COVID-19: lessons from the HIV and AIDS epidemic

Globally countries are going into lockdown due to the spread of COVID-19. It is not only illness and death that confront us in the midst of this pandemic but also social, economic and psychological effects including stigma and discrimination. 

The latest Editorial published in the African Journal of AIDS Research titled, “Managing the march of COVID-19: lessons from the HIV and AIDS epidemic” is fitting to the current global existential crisis. Authors, Whiteside, Parker and Schramm, take the reader through the lessons learned from HIV and how we responded to the AIDS pandemic, and what from this might be applied to fighting COVID-19. 

Of particular interest is a model that illustrates the progress of the COVID-19 outbreak. In early work on AIDS, Whiteside had proposed a model with three potential phases of the pandemic: the first represented the silent spread of HIV infections in the absence of treatment; the second showed AIDS cases some six to ten years later; with the final phase covering the lasting social and economic impact.

In this Editorial Whiteside et al. have discussed the relevance of this model for describing the progress and impact of COVID-19 over time. The authors point out that, as with AIDS, this model suggest that   “[t]he sequelae of the disease – its social, psychological and economic consequences – will reverberate round the world for a longer period. […} With health services overwhelmed and healthcare workers themselves becoming ill and some dying, many more unnecessary deaths will occur due to the COVID-19 pandemic.” 

The authors highlight the importance at this time of a free flow of reliable information between researchers and public health planners, policy makers and the public.

NISC has contributed publishing this Editorial as Open Access. It can be read, downloaded and distributed free of charge from the journal website. Additionally, Taylor & Francis have launched a COVID-19 microsite that consolidates journal and book resources on COVID-19. It is being updated continuously, with all COVID-19 research available free of charge at the point of publication.

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