The first paper in this month’s newsletter takes stock of PEPFAR's funding for children affected by HIV and AIDS and indicates potential new directions, including the importance of strengthening families, greater investment and service provision by governments to complement the already substantial efforts of civil society, and the necessity of supporting the development and maintenance of a social service workforce, beginning with the enormous number of volunteers who constitute the backbone of the HIV/AIDS response in most low and middle income countries. The remaining five papers provide evidence of adverse effects of HIV/AIDS and poverty on the mental health of caregivers of affected children, and of affected children themselves, and provide tentative direction forward on how to protect the mental health of affected individuals and support coping, including through two pilot interventions.
Reviewed in this edition of What's New in Research?
Saving lives for a lifetime: Supporting orphans and vulnerable children impacted by HIV/AIDS
Correlates of depression among caregivers of children affected by HIV/AIDS in Uganda: Findings from the Suubi-Maka family study
Depression among carers of AIDS-orphaned and other orphaned children in Umlazi Township, South Africa
Assessment of emotional status of orphans and vulnerable children in Zambia
Psychosocial support intervention for HIV-affected families in Haiti: Implications for programs and policies for orphans and vulnerable children
Development and piloting of a mother and child intervention to promote resilience in young children of HIV-infected mothers in South Africa