Hey, listen up, W.H.O., before you say things like,
Circumcision is the most potent intervention in HIV prevention that has been described.
CAN YOU PLEASE PUT THE INFORMATION YOU REPORT INTO CONTEXT BEFORE YOU REPORT THAT TO THE WORLD?????? The studies that were done on this issue were done in the regions of Africa where infection is the most rampant and there is currently little to no prevention that is working, so the findings from these studies ONLY APPLY in those areas!!!!!! Let me state that again, this study was done, and the findings that came from it, apply ONLY to areas where there is LITTLE OR NO other methods of HIV prevention available, and where HIV incidence is way higher than normal, and it should only be viewed as an applicable method of prevention in those areas!!! This should not be taken out of context and used in populations like the US, where it does not provide up to 60% prevention for HIV, and it is certainly NOT the most potent intervention!!! Again, it does not apply to anywhere but Africa! And should only apply as a last ditch effort when other prevention methods are not available, or are not working!!!!
This makes me want to scream, puke, pull my hair out, and scratch someones eyes out. Ignorance on a level like this is completely inexcusable, especially from an agency as powerful and knowledgeable as the W.H.O.. I can only hope, that the article where this is being reported (source) is the ONLY place that this insane level of misrepresentation is being told. If not, I certainly hope that people that hear this misinformation can be intelligent enough to realize that a cut cock is NOT enough to protect them from HIV; that is, unless they have NO OTHER method of prevention, AND happen to live in the areas of the world were prevalence is at its highest… See, that is the ONLY way that they could statistically come up with that 60% figure!!!! And I can almost guarantee that the people that will read that article, or hear that information ARE NOT the people that will benefit from this “protection”! I am so appalled and disgusted by this outrageous lack of proper reporting and utter absence contextualization that I could just burst.
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE: Tell everyone you know that thinks this is true; USE CONDOMS!!! Circumcision certainly IS NOT the “most potent intervention in HIV prevention”!!!!! IT IS NOT TRUE!!! THIS ONLY APPLIES TO AFRICA (notice that ALL of the studies were done in Africa, but they totally downplay that by making such fanciful statements)!!!!
I really, really hope that by writing this post, that if I stop even ONE person from stupidly thinking, that circumcision gives them a 60% protection against HIV, that I have done more than I could hope for. Why educated and powerful people continually do things like this completely shocks me, as this is seriously the difference between life and death for many that will misinterpret this information, and thus, put their lives at risk for no reason at all.
I really hope that they realize what they have done in this misrepresentation of findings, and at least follow up in a manner that illustrates the severe lack of contextualization that is necessary when stating findings such as this; the public health ramifications can be disastrous. I am in complete and utter shock, and I just can’t even begin to express my level of rage right now.
Two things:
1. I think it’d be more appropriate to focus your rage at the person who wrote the story, rather than the WHO official who was quoted. We have no idea what else the WHO may have said.
2. The medical journal article that inspired the Reuters article you linked to is available for free (if you register) right here:
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140673607603237/fulltext
It’s evident just from skimming it that the writers of the medical report attempt try to put their findings about circumcision in a responsible context.
I sense that you may be a bit upset by this.
Andy, I agree with you about the article, and in fact, I alluded to that in my post, by saying that I hoped that this would be the only article that was written out of context in this manner. BUT, my main focus is that they are quoting a WHO official, and whether it be in or out of context, it is still something they said. Obviously, it should be taken in context, but, again, this article did not do that, as you also said. The problem, and the reason I got so pissed off, is that continually findings like this are blown out of proportion just like this. Exactly like this, in fact, and that is reprehensible and shouldn’t be allowed to be published or disseminated to the masses who will probably take it at face value (after all, why would the WHO lie to them?). Fact of the matter, is that for every one person like you and I that will go past the initial “hooray” statements and misrepresentations like this article, there are probably 10 more that will just agree with it, and implement it into their lives. That is what really scares me, and even though I know that this is just one article, this type of misrepresentation is not limited to this individual event.
joel, you could say that.
We’re living in a world where some people actually think having sex with a virgin will cure their HIV status. Someone saying something like this, regardless of their credentuals and the manner in which they stated it, is just plain dangerous.
As a doctor, I concur with everything the wonder Mister Moody has to say on this matter.
This is the problem with the press. They want sound bites, and it’s something I’ve learned over and over and over (mostly the hard way) as a researcher, practitioner, and activist: YOU HAVE TO BE MORE CAREFUL HOW YOU WORD THINGS!
I totally agree with your sentiments - obviously the research is of critical importance *in Africa* but of little elsewhere (certainly in the US) - but I also agree with the first commenter.
The rage should be mainly directed at the (laziness of the) media, but also the WHO press release writers are not innocent. There are good ways to write these things and there are bad ways to write these things. Ditto for presentation: give me a video news release (with full-playback contracts) any day over another method.
Just my $0.02