Older-age Parents and AIDS in the ERA of ART, the Case of Thailand

a MiCDA Pilot Project Description

Funding: Michigan Center on the Demography of Aging

The provision of widespread ART (anti-retroviral therapy) in low- and middle-income countries requires not just medical attention, but also social and psychological support to sustain strict adherence to drug regimens. In addition, this new ability to live with AIDS as a chronic illness alters the impact of the epidemic on older persons in their capacity as parents, or in the case of AIDS orphans, as grandparents of persons with HIV/AIDS. In this new context, older persons are likely to have considerable potential to contribute to treatment programs through encouraging HIV testing, seeking treatment, and adherence to treatment regimes by their adult children or grandchildren. This project examines the potential contributions of and consequences for older-age persons of having an adult child or a orphaned grandchild with HIV/AIDS in Thailand, a country where most persons who need ART are now receiving it. The project design relies primarily on a qualitative research approach involving in-depth interviews with parents and grandparents of persons receiving ART. In addition, quantitative assessments of the frequency of parental involvement in assisting in care and treatment adherence will be made based on self administered questionnaires from recipients of ART.