Should all students of the martial arts be required to take

[Jack]

Phantasmic, please don't add an image as part of your signature. Thank you

[Phantasmatic]

No disrespect, but why?

[Jack]

No disrespect taken, its merely a forum rule which you agreed to when you joined (Remember clicking on the agree button?)

 

Basically, it can slow down users with slower connections and can generally clog the thread up.

 

[SaiFightsMS]

This is a fairly serious issue. In these days everyone should be concerned about blood contact. Aids/HIV is not the only blood born pathogen transmitted in blood.

 

The problems this issue raises seem much crueller when they involve a young person. Should everyone have to take a blood test to determine their status? Good question. Those who have at any point in their life engaged in any activity where they might have been exposed should be tested regardless of whether or not they practice a martial art.

 

When it comes to activities such as sparring where face contact,or any other training that may produce blood, is allowed everyone should be trained in proper cleanup

 

techniques.

 

Maybe a full contact training situation is not the best idea for anyone with HIV or any blood contagion.

 

The benefits of martial arts should not be totally denied to those concerned. Their are other schools other arts which are not so combat oriented. I hope the youngster involved does get to train somewhere. Even if he is restricted to kihons and kata there is much to be gained.

 

In a way the issue is further complicated by the fact that there are those who prey upon such people, without regards to themselves. A bit of self defense is an appropriate thing to learn.

 

 

[omnifinite]

An Aikido dojo I visited once had a blood policy that you had to sign. It basically instructed people to immediately leave the mat if blood was spilled and there was a procedure for cleaning it up using a special kit. You had to sign it saying you agreed with it. I don't remember it requiring you to say if you had any blood diseases... but it might have.

[kchenault]

Any person with a communicable disease should have the courage to be upfront with the school and instructors. They should, even if the disease is no fault of their own, have the courage to accept the,sometimes unfortunate, side effects of having a disease.

 

Tragic as it is, they now have a responsibilty to the public health to take precautions, for their well being as well as others. They have so much courage to continue to live their lives with the disease, what would be a little more? I would happily work on many things with someone who was HIV+, but sparring, for safety's sake, is not one of them. I commend anyone who wishes to keep healthy thru the martial arts.

[guarddog]

I think when doing martial arts or contact sports for this matter it is something that should be taken into consideration. What if the HIV person was to get cut, bleed on someone else and that person not take action right away on prevention?

 

Its a tough situation however because HIV is so serious clubs must protect their students somehow from the chance of getting it.

[BlueDragon1981]

The school owner has a right to know from that person upon entering the school. If the person with the HIV gets cut then every percaution nessesary should be administered.

[Davison]

i think it is a good thing as long as everyone is aware of the situation.

[karate_woman]

Depending on what type of training is involved, I don't think the student needs to be trained "privately", however, there are a number of activities that open students up to potential cuts, such as sparring, grappling, and practicing certain self defense moves (depending on the speed that the techniques are executed), to name a few. I think anything involving partner work that the Sensei feels has an above average chance of resulting in scratches/blood, should be avoided for the protection of everyone involved.

 

There was blood involved in each of the last two grappling matches I had, so I think grappling is probably a bad idea in that situaion. If students (especially the HIV student) wore the sparring helmets with the face masks, that would offer some protection in a sparring situation, as I doubt there would be huge gushes of blood coming out of anywhere but the nose in most sparring injuries.