Browsing by Author "Brotherton, Michelle"

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    Persons Living with HIV as a Vulnerable Group: An Argument to Ensure Treatment, Care, and Support
    (MDPI, 2024-07-11) Brotherton, Michelle
    Generally, human rights documents are to be applied universally. However, certain groups are identified for special treatment due to vulnerabilities faced; these are often referred to as vulnerable groups or populations. While human rights literature and public health literature make a case for particular sensitivity regarding vulnerable populations living with HIV, there is perhaps a case to be made for people living with HIV to be recognised as a vulnerable group in and of itself. It is often other vulnerabilities, such as poverty, disability, or discrimination, that render persons living with HIV legally vulnerable. But what happens if these other vulnerabilities are not present? Persons living with HIV could benefit from being recognised as a vulnerable group, in that it could prioritise their health rights and promote their access to healthcare and services. This article considers how identifying persons living with HIV as a vulnerable group could impact their treatment, care, and support. By looking at examples of countries where people living with HIV have been identified as vulnerable, and at how vulnerable groups are defined, an argument is made that it could be beneficial to persons living with HIV to be identified as a vulnerable group in terms of accessing treatment, care, and support.
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    The Malleable Scarcity of Oral Contraceptive Pills
    (Bentham Open, 2024) Brotherton, Michelle
    Introduction: The lack of oral contraceptive pill scarcity is taken into consideration in this article manuscript. Some of the factors are analysed that influence this situation by taking a close look at both historical and contemporary examples of scarcities and shortages. Methods: Investigations are conducted on whether oral contraceptive pills can even be scarce through an argument by analogy or if politics, legal precedents, societal views, and market politics determine scarcities and shortages. Results: Given the human rights implications of reproductive health care services and the fundamental difference OCPs can make in the lives of millions of women, claims of shortages and scarcities need to be placed under scrutiny to avoid a violation of rights through unmet needs. Conclusion: THE malleable scarcity of oral contraceptive pills:“Throughout the history of medicine, thousands of drugs have been developed, but only one has been influential enough to earn the title of simply the pill.”
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    Using the right to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress to address the needs of adolescent mothers living with HIV
    (South African Medical Association, 2023-08) Brotherton, Michelle
    Various human rights issues arise from the intersection of adolescent motherhood and HIV. While health rights may be the most obvious means by which to address such issues through policy development and legislative means, the right to health is not the only human right that may provide recourse or relief in this regard. This article considers an unexplored avenue of approaching such issues through reliance on the right to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress. The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights provides for the ‘right to science’ in article 15(1)(b) and more recently, as elaborated on in General Comment no. 25 of 2020. This article considers how this right can be relied upon to address issues pertaining to adolescent motherhood and HIV. Precedent from a Venezuelan Supreme Court decision is considered, as well as the normative content of the right to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress. This may be another legal means by which to hold states accountable for the health of young mothers and their children, especially as new practices, medicines and treatments emerge regarding HIV.