SÓNIA GARRUCHO (*)
RESUMO
Os Psiquiatras podem desempenhar um papel de relevo na prevenção da infecção pelo VIH, nomeadamente em relação a sujeitos com perturbações mentais variadas. Ao mesmo tempo, são cada vez mais solicitados a avaliar e tratar sujeitos com patologia mental associada à infecção pelo VIH e à SIDA. Assim sendo, torna-se pertinente estudar as atitudes dos psiquiatras em relação à SIDA.
Neste artigo apresentam-se os resultados de um estudo que teve por objectivo investigar as atitudes de médicos psiquiatras em relação à SIDA, comparando as atitudes de psiquiatras que exercem em hospitais psiquiátricos com as atitudes de psiquiatras que exercem em departamentos de psiquiatria e saúde mental de hospitais gerais.
Foi estudada uma amostra de 90 psiquiatras de ambos os sexos, com média de idades de 43 anos, do distrito de Lisboa, maioritariamente casados, com filhos e com contacto profissional com sujeitos seropositivos ou com SIDA. Verificou-se que as atitudes dos médicos estudados em relação à SIDA foram predominantemente positivas e favoráveis, mais acentuadamente entre os solteiros sem filhos, evidenciando baixa percepção de risco pessoal e profissional em relação à infecção pelo VIH, constatando-se correlação negativa entre as atitudes e a percepção de risco. Finalmente, entre os psiquiatras de hospitais psiquiátricos e de hospitais gerais verificaram-se algumas diferenças em relação à obtenção do consentimento informado para realização do teste e em relação ao rastreio sistemático dos doentes.
Palavras-chave: Atitudes, percepção de risco, psiquiatras, SIDA, consentimento informado.
ABSTRACT
]]> Psychiatrists may play a leading role in the prevention of the HIV infection, namely in reference to subjects with various mental disorders. Besides, psychiatrists are becoming more and more requested to evaluate and treat subjects with mental pathology associated with the HIV infection and AIDS. Therefore it has become relevant to study the attitudes of psychiatrists towards AIDS.This article presents the results of a study whose aim was to investigate the attitude of physicians towards AIDS and to compare the attitudes of psychiatrists who work in psychiatric hospitals with the attitude of those who work in the department of psychiatry of general hospitals.
A sample of 90 psychiatrists of both genders was studied: they were 43 years old on average, from the district of Lisbon; most of them were married, with children and with professional contact with subjects infected with HIV or with AIDS. The physicians under study, particularly those who were single and childless, showed a predominantly positive and favourable attitude to AIDS, revealing their low perception of risk, both personal and professional, in relation to HIV infection. Therefore, the correlation between attitudes and perception of risk is negative. Finally, some differences were found between psychiatrists who work in psychiatric hospitals and those who work in the department of psychiatry of general hospitals over the obtaining of informed consent to undergo the HIV test and the systematic medical evaluation of the patients.
Key words: Attitudes, perception of risk, psichiatrists, AIDS, informed consent.
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(*) Psicóloga clínica.
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