Publication Date
This study assesses the vulnerability, impact and coping mechanisms of parents of disabled children on HIV/AIDS and suggests strategies for developing an HIV and AIDS programme. Using participatory methodologies of inquiry, the study found that the parents of disabled children are at a higher risk of infection to sexually transmitted infections (STI) and/or HIV and that the risk increases as the parents try to cope with having a disabled child. Therefore, a disabled child in a family acts as one of the pre-disposing factors to the parents' infection and when an infection happens in a home, the quality of care for the very disabled child is compromised causing a vicious cycle of disability and HIV/AIDS at the household level.The study recommends that target-specific interventions should be designed and implemented for the parents of disabled children to address issues of HIV/AIDS and disability, empowerment and gender issues as well as sexual reproductive health
