title: Debunking common barriers to pediatric HIV disclosure.
abstract: As HIV-positive children continue to gain more access to antiretroviral therapy and survive into young adulthood, caregivers face the difficult process of disclosing a child's HIV status to that child. Although disclosure has many proven benefits for mental health, psychosocial development, caregiver well-being, treatment adherence and future planning, such a process is still often met with resistance. This article discusses the main reasons given for delaying or avoiding disclosure of a child's HIV status. Each barrier to disclosure is discussed and debunked as an insufficient reason to delay the positive benefits that the disclosure process has shown to produce. HIV disclosure is a critical and multifaceted issue in children. Such a process has been shown to best involve a multi-disciplinary support team that assists caregivers in continually adapting the disclosure discussion to meet the developmental needs and understanding of each individual child over time.
authors.affiliation: The Childrens Hospital, Denver, CO, USA. domek.gretchen@tchden.org
authors.forename: Gretchen J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Domek
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D044966:Anti-Retroviral Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology*; D002648:Child; D005190:Family; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000523:psychology*; D015497:HIV-1; D006801:Humans; D010372:Pediatrics; D014342:Truth Disclosure
chemical_list: D044966:Anti-Retroviral Agents