Case Study: Gayle and Patrick
Read the following case study about Gayle and Patrick. You may also click on the Audio: Thinking It Over if you prefer to listen to the case study. After reviewing the case study, answer the questions on below.
Gayle and Patrick have been in a monogamous marriage for seven years. During a medical checkup, Gayle finds that she is HIV positive. Because she has not been sexually active outside her marriage and has never injected drugs, received a blood transfusion, or been hospitalized, she is quite certain that Patrick must have infected her. When she calls the local health clinic to discover if Patrick has been tested for HIV, they tell her that this information is confidential. She does not want to confront Patrick for fear that he may not be infected and she will have to explain her own infection.
Audio: Thinking It Over
This is a difficult situation for Gayle to find herself in. She has to deal with two very large issues — she's infected with a life-threatening virus and she's living with doubt and fear about her partner. Since she's quite certain he transmitted the virus to her, he most likely is infected. How did he become infected? In what behavior did he participate that put him at risk, and eventually put her at risk as well? Why didn't he tell her about it? Why didn't he have himself tested to make sure he was HIV-free? Most people in such cases would be angry with their partners. But Gayle is holding out that there's a possibility that Patrick isn't infected. Now she has to deal with the issue of disclosing this news to Patrick and confronting him with the questions. This is not something she needs to be dealing with right now. What could Patrick and Gayle have done to ensure each other's safety? What would have been the responsible thing to do?
1.What do you think Gayle should do?
2.What might you do in a similar situation?
3.What laws does your state have regarding partner notification for HIV, AIDS, and other sexually transmitted infections?
6 answers