Mothers with HIV/AIDS and their children: disclosure and guardianship issues

For many mothers living with HIV/AIDS, whether, when, and how to disclose their HIV diagnosis to their children and arranging for future care are important although agonizing issues. Due to the increasing number of children who lose their mothers to AIDS and the dearth of empirical information about them, these issues are increasingly important to research. This study of 188 HIV-positive mothers and their 267 children of minor age in New York City revealed that only half the mothers had disclosed their HIV diagnosis to at least one of their children and only 57% had made formal plans for the children's care. As expected, older children were more likely to be informed than younger children. Contrary to some previous research, maternal disclosure was not related to ethnicity, advanced illness, improved psychological well-being, or greater or more satisfying social support resources. Implications for future research and provision of services to this group of women are discussed.