UNC Charlotte School of Nursing alumna, Dona Haney, describes her experiences at Mercy Hospital where she was the infection control nurse during the HIV AIDS epidemic. Topics discussed include the lack of anticipation of the disease by the local medical community; her responsibility for establishing protocols for infection control following guidelines from the CDC; heightened fear and anxiety among hospital staff and how she handled this; the patient-focused approach to nursing at Mercy Hospital that was modelled by the Sisters of Mercy, in particular Sister Therese Galligan; the first diagnosed person with AIDS in Charlotte, who was one of Ms. Haney's patients; stigma surrounding the disease and how that changed over time; societal changes engendered by AIDS including more open discussion of sex and homosexuality; frequently changing protocols with respect to testing for HIV AIDS and confidentiality guidelines and the implications of this; the work of the Metrolina AIDS Project (MAP) and the Regional AIDS Interfaith Network (RAIN) in Charlotte; the role of HIV AIDS in bringing the local gay community into the public realm to fight for civil rights.
