Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1991. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
San Francisco Chronicle (SF); Wednesday, October 2, 1991
Clarence Johnson, Chronicle East Bay Bureau
The 26,000-member organization, meeting at the Oakland Convention Center, also launched a campaign to promote infection control methods as the best way to prevent transmission of HIV.
Infection control would require greater use of gloves, gowns and masks by health workers, along with intensified cleansing of medical instruments, particularly those used for surgery.
"Reliance on the tests would provide a false sense of security, which could be deadly," said spokeswoman Maureen Anderson. She said that because it takes up to six months before the HIV antibodies become present in the blood, a person who tests negative could actually be an infectious carrier many months before being detected.
In addition, the tests would have to be repeated routinely, costing more than $1 billion just to test the nation's 2 million nurses until age 65, the group said. Test money could be better spent researching AIDS or improving overall medical care, the group said.
As of March, there have been 1,358 AIDS cases reported among U.S. nurses, who make up the largest group in the nation's health care system.
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