More than just a virus: the sexual health needs of consumers with HIV and mental illness in the third decade of AIDS.
This paper provides a review of the literature concerning risk taking behaviors for HIV amongst the mentally ill and knowledge of HIV/AIDS amongst this group. The paper presents a comparison of Australian and international statistics of prevalence and new infection rates and outlines the subsequent psychiatric complications arising from AIDS. Suggestions are made as to the development of appropriate patient sexual health teaching by nurses. Above all the purpose of the paper is to inform clinicians and develop discourse concerning the implications for clinical practice.