TIME TO STOP THE FIGHTING OVER HIV NORTH SPORTS FINAL Edition

He looked up at me, his tear-stained, chubby, 10-year-old face peering over the wasted, bony ribs of his father's still chest. I and all the other doctors had failed him. His dad was dead. No pain. Easy for me to keep him nearly comatose, a decision he'd made several weeks earlier. Easy fo...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inChicago tribune (1963)
Main Author Allan P. Frank, M.D.
Format Newspaper Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Chicago, Ill Tribune Publishing Company, LLC 25.02.1994
Subjects
CHICAGO
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Summary:He looked up at me, his tear-stained, chubby, 10-year-old face peering over the wasted, bony ribs of his father's still chest. I and all the other doctors had failed him. His dad was dead. No pain. Easy for me to keep him nearly comatose, a decision he'd made several weeks earlier. Easy for me to think relieving his physical suffering was tantamount to relieving the guilt, anger and fear he'd confessed at 3 a.m. while I removed fluid from his lungs that had nearly killed him. What could I say to console this 33-year-old man whose brief exploration with injectable cocaine gave him the HIV virus and, eventually, AIDS? How could I respond to his guilt over leaving his son without a father to take him to Bulls and Cubs games, to go hunting next fall or ice fishing this winter?
ISSN:1085-6706