Jamaican Grandmothers Care for HIV-Positive Children
In some small, rural communities in Jamaica, many elderly women are the primary caregivers for HIV-positive children whose parents have died of AIDS, the Jamaica Gleaner reports (Jamaica-gleaner.com, 5/12).
According to the article, the task of taking care of orphaned children usually falls on female family members, such as aunts, grandmothers and great-grandmothers—women who are often very old.
The article also mentions problems faced by aging women who try to administer antiretroviral medications to children.
“We delayed treatment in a child who lived with a grandmother as she could not see and read instructions on the medication and therefore would not have been able to administer the drug properly,” said Dr. Tracy Evans-Gilbert, who heads a pediatric HIV/AIDS program in Jamaica.
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"I'm HIV positive and diabetic (as well as have high cholesterol) and some of my meds specify taking them with 'high fat foods' which I have to do twice a day. I've eaten as healthy as possible, but when it comes to high fat foods, I am in a quandary...about what to eat sometimes..."
