According to the World Health Organization, HIV/AIDS is the leading cause of infectious death worldwide, with an estimated death toll of approximately 36 million people (WHO , 2014). HIV stands for human immunodeficiency virus. HIV is very different from other communicable diseases because the virus invades the body's cells and weakens the immune system. It does this by destroying healthy, important cells that fight disease and infection. Why your immune system cannot fight this virus remains a question that many scientists are seeking to answer (SIDA, 2014). Scientists know that HIV can go undetected in our body's cells for long periods of time. The HIV virus invades our T cells, responsible for cellular immunity, and is capable of duplicating itself in these cells and then destroying them. When too many T cells are destroyed, the body is unable to fight this virus, leading to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome or AIDS (AIDS, 2014). Scientists aren't sure of the exact origins of HIV, but many believe it began when humans arrived. in contact with a certain type of West African chimpanzee (SIDA, 2014). There is evidence that monkeys carry a virus like HIV called simian immunodeficiency virus, or SIV, which has been around for many years. Scientists believe SIV was transmitted to humans from chimpanzees when hunters came into contact with the animal and ate infected meat. HIV is transmitted in several ways. The virus is transmitted through sexual contact, during childbirth, breastfeeding, occupational exposure and intravenous drug use (SIDA, 2014a). Healthcare workers are at higher risk of contracting HIV because it lives and reproduces in bodily fluids such as blood, semen, vaginal fluids, breast milk, a...... medium of paper......re heart disease, cancer, chronic lower respiratory diseases, and stroke (CDC, 2013). The life expectancy of a man living in the United States of America is 77.11 years, while that of a woman is considerably higher, at 81.94 years in 2014. The average birth rate in 2014 in the United States is 13.42 births per 1,000 people, while the death rate is 8.15 per 1,000 people. The total infant mortality rate in 2014 is 6.17 percent per 1,000 live births (CIA, 2014). The United States of America is considered the largest and most powerful economy in the world, with the most important industries being technological innovation, motor vehicles, and telecommunications. (CIA, 2014). The United States' GDP is $16.72 trillion, an increase of 1 percent from 2012. The unemployment rate for 2013 is 7.3 percent and the poverty line is 15 .1 percent (CIA)., 2014).