An Intervention for Adolescents whose Parents are Living with AIDS

Adolescents whose parents are living with AIDS face daily challenges and stressors related to the stage of their parent's illness and the adjustment following their parent's death. An intensive, cognitive-behavioral intervention is described that addresses coping at each phase of adjustment. Targeting long-term social, behavioral, and mental health outcomes of the adolescent, parents living with AIDS and their adolescent children participate in both joint and independent workshops in order to enhance their affective and behavioral skills to cope with the parent's illness. The intervention is delivered in three modules of 8 to 16 sessions each. In Module 1, parents are helped to recognize their emotional response to their own diagnosis; make decisions about illness status disclosure; and establish positive daily routines in their household. Module 2 focuses on parenting, custody and estate planning. Adolescents join their parents for the last 8 sessions, addressing their reactions to parental illness and daily routines. After the parent dies, adolescents and their new custodial parents address issues of bereavement and adjustment in Module 3. The efficacy of this intervention is currently being evaluated.