Young men in the US became concerned when unsightly purple lesions appeared on their bodies, they had groin pain and their lymph glands became inflamed. They felt severely fatigued, had a fever and were losing weight. In 1982, these mysterious symptoms was given a name: Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). Later, it was realised AIDS was caused by a virus: Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV).

Geraldine Fela visited every Australian state and territory, researching widely and interviewing nurses who courageously volunteered to care for HIV and AIDS patients. Nurses’ compassion extended to families who were fearful of catching the virus, especially before it was realised how it was transmitted. Some parents rejected their children, refusing to visit them in hospital.

The background of the epidemic given in the early pages is informative and interesting. But it is the painful stories of the interviewees that remain in the memory days after the last page is turned. Before pre-exposure prophylaxis and the advances in HIV treatment, death was inevitable. Nurses could only make patients comfortable.

HIV/AIDS is a disease embroiled in the politics of blame, prejudice and sexual moralism. Some HIV positive gay patients who had returned to their hometowns to die, had not come out to their families. Nurses were often asked to pave the way for a full disclosure to be made to parents and siblings.

Critical Care is not all doom, gloom and funerals. Humour pops up now and again to lighten the mood. One hilarious anecdote involves a wax candle and a ceramic teaching aid.

Reviewed by Clive Hodges

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr Geraldine Fela is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Macquarie University in the Department of History and Archaeology. Her research sits at the intersection of labour history, gender and sexuality studies and social history. She is currently undertaking a project examining the 1998 waterfront dispute between the Maritime Union of Australia and Patrick Stevedores. Her doctoral research, which she is working towards publishing as a monograph, explored the role of Australian nurses and nursing unions in responding to the HIV and AIDS crisis.

Find out more about Geraldine Fela