AIDS: current implications and impact on nursing

The pandemic proportions of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) have already begun impacting health care in the United States. It is safe to say that in the near future nursing will have to formulate an aggressive response to this situation. This article addresses the origins of HIV and the resulting acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) and discusses the impact on nursing. It also suggests ways in which nursing as a profession can respond to the epidemic of HIV and the fear which surrounds it.