B lack H istory M
Page B2
onth
.W
special
February 16, 2005
c o u e ra a e
H ealth
Study: Skewed AIDS Beliefs
Carelessness
with protection
hurts minorities
Bogus ideas about HIV/AIDS
are costing the lives of many who
go unprotected. A new study sug
gests that many African Americans
áre distrustful of the governm ent's
role in the origin and treatment of
HIV/AIDS - and that black men
who have such beliefs also have
more negative attitudes toward
condoms and use them less consis
tently.
The study was funded by the
National Institutes of Child Health
and Human Development.
“These ‘conspiracy theories’
have been out there for a while and
are part o f a larger distrust of gov
ernment, as well as of medical and
public health institutions, by many
African Americans," said Sheryl
Thorburn, an associate professor
of public health at Oregon State
University and co-author of the
study.
The researchers
c o n d u c te d a n a
tional telephone sur
vey with 5(X) ran
domly selected Afri
can Americans, ages
15-44. Included in the
survey were ques
tio n s about H IV /
AIDS beliefs, atti
tu d es
to w ard
condoms, and condom use.
More than half (53.4 percent) ot
those surveyed said they believe
that there is a cure for AIDS, but
that it is being withheld from the
poor. Only 37 percent felt that the
government was telling the truth
about AIDS.
Among the other findings were
that 43.6 percent of African Ameri-
cans surveyed felt that people who
take new med.eines for HIV are
human guinea pigs for the govern
ment; 26.6 percent said AIDS was
produced in a government labora
tory; 48.2 percent be
lieved that HIV is a
man-made virus; and
15.2 percent said AIDS
is a form of genocide
against blacks.
The study found
that conspiracy beliefs
were associated with
negative attitudes to
w ard co ndom s and
with inconsistent condom use
among African American men. The
researchers did not find the same
results for women in the survey.
Researchers believe that HIV/
AIDS conspiracy beliefs stem from
well-documented racial discrimina
tion and disparities in health care -
as well as past examples of unethi
cal research, including the infa
mous Tuskegee Syphilis Study in
the mid-20th century, the authors
say.
In the Tuskegee study, which
took place from 1932-72, the U.S.
Public Health Service studied the
effects o f untreated syphilis in
nearly 400 low-income African
American males from rural Alabama.
The men were told they were being
treated for "bad blood" and were
denied treatment for the disease.
“ Public health professionals
need to acknow ledge conspiracy
beliefs and work toward address
ing them ,” Bogart said. "It is criti
cal to have people from the com
munity delivering m essages about
HIV/AIDS transm ission and pre
vention m ethods.”
African Americans have a dis
proportionately high rate of HIV
and AIDS, the authors point out,
and addressing barriers to preven
tion is critical in changing that
trend.
Oregon Health Forum
Honors Two Women
Sen. Jackie W in
ters, R-Salem and Sen.
M argaret C arter, D-
P o rtlan d , are being
honored for their e f
f o r ts to im p ro v e
health care for O rego
nians w ith health care
achievem ent aw ards
fro m th e O re g o n
Health Forum, a state
w ide health advocacy
association.
The group praised
W inters for being an
advocate for hum an
services funding, for
understanding o f the
intricacies o f the D e
p artm en t o f Hum an
Services budget and
for supporting senior
Margaret Carter
services.
C a rte r, th e first
A m erican-A m erican
w om an in the house
in 1984, was praised
fo r h er se rv ic e on
sta te health po licy
com m ittees, creating
a p e rm a n e n t s ta te
Head Start program
and being influential
in founding the O r
egon Youth C o nser
v a tio n C o rp s. She
has worked as a coun
selor for w om en in
p ris o n a n d w a s a
c o u n s e lo r at P o rt
land Com m unity C ol
lege fo r 25 y e a rs,
w here she founded
the Portland C om m u
nity C ollege Skills
Center.
Health Careers Explored at OHSU
College students interested in health care profes
sions are invited to attend a career conference spon
sored by Oregon Health and Science University Center
for Diversity and M ulticultural Affairs.
The educational and interactive conference will
give the students an opportunity to explore the many
possibilities for their future career. The goal is to
increase underrepresented minorities and disadvan
taged students in the health and science professions
and to increase prospective students’ aw areness of
O H SU ’s educational programs, faculty, resources and
cam pus life.
The fifth annual Health, Science, & Engineering
Careers Conference will be held on Friday, Feb. 25,
from 9 a.m. to4p.m . at OHSU Marquam Hill Campus.
This year’s key note speaker will be Dr. M arian
M ehegan who serves as the U.S. Public H ealth
Service Region X associate regional health adm in
istrator for w om en’s health. For more inform ation
or to register for this event, contact the OHSU
C enter for D iversity and M ulticultural A ffairs by
calling 503-494-5657, e-m ail at cedm a@ ohsu.edu
or register online at w w w .ohsu.edu/academ ic/di-
v ersity .
Mentorships
Available
Share Your Black History
Students Explore Medical Careers
Ladarrius Tidmer, 16, plays the patient in an emergency
department class on splinting broken bones. Providence
Portland Medical Center Emergency Department technician
Robert Eaglin (left) demonstrates the wrapping technique as
Vancouver middle school student Chelsea Dalgord observes
the procedure. About 30 students attended the recent career
day event.
High school juniors interested
in health careers are encouraged to
apply to the CURE Project, a sum
m er p ro g ra m o f re se a rc h
mentorship training for disadvan
taged students at Oregon Health
and Science University.
The project, which begins June
27, will have students work in re
search laboratories under the guid
ance of scientists conducting can
cer research for a minimum of eight
weeks.
Students who are accepted will
be paid minimum wage and will re
ceive bus passes for the duration of
the summer project.
Applications are due by Friday,
Feb. 18, and are available online at
w w w .ohsu.edu/academ ic7diver-
sity or by calling 503 494-5657.
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Happy B-Day!
Quayuana Washington
Remembering the Vanport Flood:
After a deadly flo o d on the
Columbia River in 1948 when a dike broke, almost 20,000 residents o f
the now defunct city o f Vanport were displaced, with 15 people
confirmed dead. Vanport, the largest public housing project ever built
in the United States, was a revolutionary community, crossing color
lines and ridding its area o f segregation. Mrs. Lizzie Phillips (above)
and her children were one fam ily left without a home.
— from your family,
we love you.
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Happy 91sl
Birthday
Mr. Henry E Williams
Celebration at Billy Reeds
Friday Feb. 18
Time: 6 PM
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