Impact of HIV and AIDS on the eldery: a case study of Chiladzulu district.

UNLABELLED HIV may affect the elderly in a number of ways. They may become infected themselves; their children may suffer prolonged illness and incapacity, and need the elderly to look after them; the same children may then die from the illness, leaving the elderly without the support of the next generation; this bereavement also leaves the older people to meet funeral costs and then to take care of orphans left behind. HIV has impacts on old people in ways that are social, economic, psychological and physical in nature. AIMS We wanted to understand the socio-economic impacts of HIV/ AIDS on lives of older people following the death of their productive children, and to examine how the elderly struggle to take care of HIV/AIDS orphans. While it is generally appreciated that older people undergo such hardships, little research has been done in Malawi to unravel the magnitude of thes problems. We hope that our findings will increase awareness and lead to more being done to alleviate the problems faced by older people as a result of HIV/AIDS. RESULTS The results reveal that older people have no alternative but to provide care and support to their ill children, and following the death of their children to become parents again in taking care of the orphaned grandchildren. This is a particularly big challenge in a country like Malawi, dependent on hand-hoeing for subsistence agriculture, where food production requires people who are physically strong. 79% of older people taking care of HIV/AIDS patients or orphans were found to have limited or no information about HIV/AIDS. 31% were dependent on relatives for support, while 69% sustained themselves through piece work, small business or farming. CONCLUSION Elderly people need more resources and assistance to enable them to fulfil their vital role in caring for HIV-AIDS orphans. They are also in critical need of more information about HIV-AIDS, as many are sexually active with multiple partners, and preventive information is currently not reaching this important section of the community.