| Sue |
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| #1 |
I was successfully treated for HCV 6 years ago. A recent blood test confirms no detectable virus at this time. I have been a volunteer in a search and rescue organization for 5 years. The organization is now asking for medical history, allergies and current medications to be kept on file in the event of a member medical emergency during a search in order to provide relevant information to emergency medical responders. I am unsure if my HCV status is relevant to initial emergency treatment and would appreciate any feedback. Thank you.
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| Milret2 |
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| #2 |
Sue writes >>I was successfully treated for HCV 6 years ago. A recent blood test confirms no detectable virus at this time. I have been a volunteer in a search and rescue organization for 5 years. The organization is now asking for medical history, allergies and current medications to be kept on file in the event of a member medical emergency during a search in order to provide relevant information to emergency medical responders. I am unsure if my HCV status is relevant to initial emergency treatment and would appreciate any feedback.<<
All people providing any medical service should be well educated in "universal precautions" both for their protection and the protection of those they serve. I always make sure anyone doing medical procedures or care for me is fully aware of my hep C status (both soon after I first became aware of it and even now after more than eight years of sustained remission). I am not a person involved in medicine at any level but would expect my care providers to be upfront with me also. The American College of Surgeons does not feel that sero-positivity for hep C should change the practice of a surgeon so affected other then that such a diagnosis should cause the doctor to seek the expert advice of specialists in the treatment of hep C as treatment may lead to long term remission or cure now a days.-->http://www.facs.org/fellows_info/statements/st-22.html
Does this mean that you should share this medical history with your unit? I would ... but that is me. The likely hood of sharing blood, even in emergency care in the field, is quite low and universal precautions are both for YOUR protection and that of the patient. Even if there is blood to blood exposure risk is very low .. and risk to the patient from someone in sustained remission should not be there at all. The same odds apply to you as a patient should you have a medical emergency occur to you requiring treatment. However ... knowing that you have had liver disease at some point in the past MAY be excellent information for the doctors treating you at higher levels of care to help lessen the risk that procedures/medications used to treat you might be less risky to your liver and to your survival.
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| Sue |
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| #3 |
Thank you for your well-reasoned response to my question. I have decided to disclose my HCV history as I agree that it is in particular, important information for any potential treating physicians. Since posting my question to this group I have learned that others in the Unit are not satisfied how this personal medical information will be handled and who should have access, so I have joined a committee that will address all members concerns and develop a system that addresses the issues of access and confidentiality.
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| cookiemonster |
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| #4 |
hi
interesting post. i went thru tx 3x with no success. the last tx was about
5 yrs ago and my viral count actually went up.
anyway, i somehow manage to continue despite constant fatigue and ongoing depression which is not chemically treatable.
this past yr. i have had no appetite and have lost 40lbs. that is a good thing. so, i took advntage of my "diet" by swimming~alot up to a mile several times a week. being in much better shape i decided to take a red cross professional rescue lifeguard class with CPR/first aid/AED. it is ironic because it was the red cross that sent me a letter informing me that they couldnt use my blood because i had tested positive for hcv antibodies, that was in 1993. so after completing this class and learning about rescuer precautions like gloves and facial barriers for rescue breathing i started thinking that perhaps i cannot be a rescuer because i have infected blood!!! so, when and if i get a lifeguard job, do i have to disclose this information? the question also ties into "good samaritan" laws.
i only wanted to find a job. also, we belong to a swim club and have difficulty finding guards in late august/early sept. and as a member, being a guard then the season could potentially be lengthened.
my paragraph now seems confusing!
i am on SSI and want to have a small job that will (hopefully) allow me to have a "ticket to work" program.
i sometimes feel so infectious and useless. and the hepc side affects can be
unpredictable--
sorry to be so longwinded! thanks for your thoughts if you can make sense of my paragragh!
cookiemonster
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| Milret2 |
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| #5 |
This issue has been looked at extensively by surgeons and surgical societies. With universal precautions there is not felt to be reason to prohibit people who have HCV or HIV from working in any health field. Indeed ... refusing to let someone work in a health related field based on their HIV or HCV status could lead to some very expensive lawsuits being successfully lodged against any organization using such discriminatory parameters.
So .. can you be a lifeguard with a positive HCV test? I wonder how many lifeguards there are out there who do NOT know their HCV status who do excellent work .. even if they ARE HCV positive. I wonder the same thing about firemen, police officers, nurses, doctors ... anyone who might have HCV and not be aware of their status or be aware and simply use universal precautions anyway while saving lives and protecting the public. Actually .. I do not wonder, I am just glad there are people out there who do those very hard jobs.
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| trekie |
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| #6 |
Here is a thought on this subject. If you let everyone know that you have hep C at work and you get injured on the job. Would your fellow employees help you out or would they be afraid of the hep C. I only ask this, because I have had employment discrimination because of letting a employer know of me having hep C. If you can trust, Than I would let them know. If not... than I would really think about it. trekie |
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