Retroviruses and Novel Drugs

Biography

Biography: Stephen Talugende

Abstract

Protracted expectations from HIV research and treatment has been and continue to be giving hope to multidisciplinary teams and holistic interventions for prevention and impact mitigation of the pandemic. Whilst comprehensive resources are committed to generating appropriate knowledge through research, empathetic ethical practice epitomises holistic needs of beneficiaries and service providers. HIV shatters not only dreams of those infected, but also visions for the future of possibilities for improved health and related socioeconomic services. Requisite outcome of both research and treatment is when knowledge and hope becomes pragmatic, reflects more intrinsic community perspectives, and easily traslates community perspectives, meaning and conclusions. Communities, according to Bacon (2009), due to their unity, they share common beliefs and interests. Consequently, the threshold of production, publication, availability and usage of research and treatment is based on empathetically identifying how peoeple’s needs affect their ability to achieve relevant outcomes, and how this impacts on their wellbeing, as well as consistent effectiveness of innovations. Phenominally, it is an ambivalent dimension to seperate researchers as professionals from researchers as social beings. Experientially, there is a critical missing link in the way research and treatment are considered from professional and scholarly practice. Thwaites (2007) attributed the model of therapeutic empathy within contexts of: empathic attunement, empathic attitude/stance, empathic communication, and empathy knowledge. It is not a matter of research and making treatment available, but how much professionals can practically relate to the products as prospective users. Years as a service recipient enabled me to recognise how the lack of empathetic relationship of professionals led to severe backdrops to shortcomings in practice. It is easy to see possibilities in the eyes of a researcher, but how easy is it to see possibilities in those of recipients. Conclusions are easier understood by professional, than they’re in those of communities. Therefore, research conclusions and most importantly treatment are always a major breakthrough, but are always a mere step in responses against pandemics like HIV. Empathy should, in that sense remain an integral component to any kind of research.