"It's a secret between us": a qualitative study on children and care-giver experiences of HIV disclosure in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo.

ABSTRACT:

Background

It is estimated that 64,000 children under 15 years of age are living with HIV in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Non-disclosure - in which the child is not informed about their HIV status - is likely to be associated with poor outcomes during adolescence including increased risk of poor adherence and retention, and treatment failure. Disclosing a child's HIV status to them can be a difficult process for care-givers and children, and in this qualitative study we explored child and care-giver experiences of the process of disclosing, including reasons for delay.

Methods

A total of 22 in-depth interviews with care-givers and 11 in-depth interviews with HIV positive children whom they were caring for were conducted in one health-care facility in the capital c

SUBMITTER: Sumbi EM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7866707 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature