/ 24 November 2006

Aids body expresses concern over misinformation

Listing Aids as the cause of death on public death certificates will not in any way improve the collection of statistics on HIV-related deaths, the Aids Law Project (ALP) said on Friday.

”It is also a violation of the deceased’s right to confidentiality, which can have serious repercussions for surviving family members,” the ALP said in a statement.

It expressed concern at the confusion and misinformation being generated in the reporting of the Health Professions Council of South Africa’s (HPCSA) disciplinary action against Bloemfontein pathologist Dr Leon Wagner.

According to the media, he was charged with ”recording Aids as the cause of death on a death certificate”, the statement read.

The ALP called on the media, Solidarity and the Democratic Alliance to publish accurate facts both about the case and the actual practice regarding HIV/Aids and death certificates.

It pointed out that when a patient died, a doctor is required to complete a death notice (medical certificate on death) that consists of two pages.

The cause of death recorded on the first page should only be either ”natural causes” or ”unnatural causes”.

This page is given to the family for use in applying to the Department of Home Affairs for an official death certificate.

On the second page of the death notice, the doctor is required to provide the immediate and underlying causes of death (such as HIV) and other relevant information.

”This is confidential and is sent to the Department of Home Affairs in a sealed envelope. ”It is not given to the family or any other person.”

The ALP said the Department of Home Affairs is thus able to collect statistics on causes of death — including HIV and Aids — without violating the deceased’s right to confidentiality.

”Recent reports on mortality issued by Statistics SA indicate that this is already happening.”

The project said this does not mean a doctor should conceal the cause of death from close family members, who may need the information to make decisions about their own health.

”Information should be provided during consultation and counselling with the dead person’s family, and as a rule people with HIV should be counselled and recommended to disclose their HIV infection to their sexual partner or close families.”

The project said that where they choose not to — except if this poses a direct and known risk to another person — this has to be respected.

On Friday, the disciplinary committee of the HPCSA decided that a charge of unprofessional conduct against Wagner ”is honoured”.

The inquiry will continue at a date still to be announced.

According to the HPCSA charge sheet, Wagner is accused of unprofessional conduct after he apparently recorded ”acquired immunity defect syndrome” (Aids) on ”part 1 of the notification or register of death” form. — Sapa