Panel Favors Specialized AIDS Ward at County-USC

The Los Angeles County Commission on AIDS voted unanimously Friday in favor of opening a specialized AIDS ward at County-USC Medical Center, backing a proposal put forward by advocates for AIDS care who have accused the county of dragging its feet on the issue.

The dedicated ward, if approved by the Board of Supervisors, would house up to 20 patients in the hospital, which cares for one-third of the county’s AIDS patients and has one of the largest AIDS populations of any facility in the country.

Supporters say setting aside a specialized ward would improve the quality of medical care as well as emotional support for people with AIDS, some of whom say they have felt hostility from some patients and staff in hospitals without specialized wards.

“I think this is one of the most significant accomplishments in AIDS care that has taken place in Los Angeles County,” Michael Weinstein, president of the AIDS Hospice Foundation, said after the vote.

‘Took Their Time’

“I think they took their time doing it, but it’s great that they did it,” said Enric Morello of ACT UP/LA, a group that has repeatedly demonstrated in favor of the ward. “We hope the board will not . . . disavow the findings of its own commission.”

Currently, people with AIDS or AIDS-related illnesses are referred to any of a number of wards in the hospital, depending on their symptoms. For example, many are sent to the pulmonary unit because they suffer from pneumonia.

Official estimates of the average number of people with AIDS and AIDS-related complex in the hospital range from 25 to 40, which means there would probably be some overflow from the proposed ward into other areas. The hospital also handles an estimated 1,400 outpatient visits a month in its AIDS clinic.

For many months, patient advocates have urged the county to consolidate its inpatient AIDS services in a single ward. People with AIDS could choose to be housed in that ward, modeled on others throughout the country, or elsewhere in the hospital.

Supporters contend that a specialized ward would offer a more supportive environment for recuperating patients. The staff, as well as the patients, would have elected to be there, cultivating a sense of commitment and reducing the chances of discrimination, the supporters say.

They also say a designated ward would create a visible focus for support from the outside community. For example, they say people in San Francisco donated turkeys at Thanksgiving for the patients in the AIDS ward at San Francisco General Hospital.

Cost Noted

In response, some hospital officials have noted that a ward would cost the county money at a time when funding is short. The cost has been estimated by Dr. Eiming Djang, chairman of the AIDS commission’s task force on the AIDS ward, at $300,000 to $500,000.

Hospital officials have also said it would not be easy to find space for an AIDS ward because the hospital is on average 95% full. Some wondered whether a dedicated unit would also increase patients’ sense of isolation, rather than reduce it.

Last April, the commission formed a task force to study the subject. When the members were named, they came under immediate fire. Activists argued that the group consisted largely of county and hospital officials inclined to maintain the status quo.

Once the membership was expanded, the task force proved unable to meet until after its initial July 15 deadline for a decision had passed. When it finally met, members say they were surprised to discover that most of them favored the idea.

After just two meetings, the task force voted unanimously in favor of the ward. On Friday, the commission’s vote was also unanimous, although seven of its 18 members were absent. The proposal goes to the county’s chief administrative officer and the supervisors.

The recommendation calls upon the county to try to create the ward within six months. It also urges that the cost of setting up the unit not be taken out of other services in the county Department of Health Services.