Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2002. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
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San Francisco Examiner - April 2, 2002
Nina Wu, Of The Examiner Staff
"This is a happy occurrence," said David P. Drennan, director of the research center in the Castro. "The HIV infection has evolved into a medically manageable, chronic and largely outpatient condition." The institute will close in May.
But physicians such as Dr. Dawn McGuire, who runs the institute's NeuroAIDS clinic, do not share Drennan's joy. She worries about the 100 patients she sees daily at the facility, and the impact the closure will have on them.
"The bottom line is, Davies was meant to be the community hospital for the surrounding areas," McGuire said. "California Pacific's mission was to support and maintain HIV services at Davies. There should be a dialogue about what the community needs from this important facility."
A majority of McGuire's patients were referred from San Francisco General Hospital and the University of California San Francisco. One of her patients, Dan Phillips, said he has nowhere else to go.
The 51-year-old, diagnosed with HIV about 20 years ago, suffered a stroke two years ago. Phillips said SFGH, where McGuire runs a clinic, would be too crowded, and other private physicians would not accept his MediCare coverage.
Another patient, Lawrence Mortensen, was devastated by the news. The 36-year-old previously sought help from a number of neurologists, but it was McGuire who diagnosed him with progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy -- a condition that leaves lesions on the brain.
Under McGuire's treatment, his condition has been in remission since October.
"To take her clinic away would be horrendous for me," he said. "She's the only one I trust."
Founded in 1988 by Dr. Stephen Follansbee and nurse Brian Christiansen, the institute became a centralized place for HIV patients to receive care, with the philosophy that people should have the opportunity to try new drugs through clinical trials.
At the time, little clinical research was available, Follansbee said -- many HIV patients were receiving a patchwork of medical care.
Follansbee acknowledged many hospitals now conduct HIV clinical research compared with two decades ago, but was saddened by news of the closure. "If the need has moved on to other areas, then it needs to respond to that need," he said.
McGuire disagreed, arguing that with two out of three HIV patients developing serious neurological disorders, the institute's need was greater than ever.
"To me, it's a community service," she said. "It's a bad time, because if anything, the number of neurological complications arising from HIV are more prevalent."
E-mail Nina Wu at nwu@sfexaminer.com
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