A few years ago, I was still working for a well respected medical institution somewhere in Metro Manila. I was tasked by one of the senior medical resident to conduct an interview of a mid-50s woman who was awaiting for her queue outside the ICU waiting. I let her inside on one of the cubicle of the Intensive Care Unit of the hospital which was empty. Before conducting some actual interviews, I made her feel a little bit comfortable with my approach and gave her a pen to fill-out the consent forms prior to HIV/AIDS testing and so we went to room to conduct a private matter relating to her test.
She was a bit nervous about it as when I was about to conduct an interview with her personally. I did asked her some funny and outrageous questions regarding her sexuality? Like how many multiple sex partners did she slept with, Having sex with same gender? She did answered truthfully about it. Did she already had information about HIV/AIDS which transmissible through blood transfusion, sexual contact and others which is kind of a short orientation on the topic of this illness before undergoing blood collection and testing which is mandatory under the current Philippine HIV / AIDS Law (Republic Act 8504). As I became serious on discussing her a bit of the disease which still felt apprehensive. Usually an HIV/AIDS consent for testing interviews are usually conducted by either a Physician, Nurse, Medical Technologist or even a Medical Social Worker trained or oriented to handle cases like these. Still "PATIENT CONFIDENTIALITY" is still practiced in order to protect the identity of the patient suspected with this illness.
