Psychoeducational Model for Caregivers of Persons with AIDS

ABSTRACT

For every individual infected with the HIV virus, there is a group of friends, family and loved ones who are affected by the disease. Although support groups for these caregivers have begun to develop throughout the country, there is a paucity of research examining the effectiveness of these groups in relieving the stresses experienced by this hidden population. A review of the literature on caregiver groups of other chronically ill family members indicate that both education and support are necessary ingredients in effecting change. The authors propose a practice framework which integrates the determinants of burden, the stage of illness and the stage of mourning in assessing the differential needs of the caregiver for support and education. Implications for further research in this area are discussed. Finally, the authors delineate the usefulness of the model not only in assessing the stresses experienced by the individual caregiver but in developing and implementing a psychoeducational group.