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Post traumatic stress amongst AIDS orphans

Lynne Smit

The results of the world's largest comparative study of Aids orphans, focusing on 1 200 Xhosa-speaking children in the poorest areas of Cape Town, has prompted Dr Zola Skweyiya, Minister of Social Development, to replicate the study in all nine South African provinces.

Levels of post-traumatic stress amongst Aids orphans were found to be at similar levels to children experiencing sexual abuse and those living in war-torn societies, said Lucie Culver, of the University of Oxford's department of social policy and social work, at the 3rd South African Aids Conference in Durban, South Africa.

Initial research by Oxford University and Cape Town Child Welfare found that, compared to international norms, Aids orphans are twice as likely to be depressed, five times more likely to have post-traumatic stress and seven times more likely to have peer problems. However there is a silver lining, as research also found that the mental health of Aids orphans could be improved.

"If Aids orphans are given enough food, enabled to go to school and given a social grant, it reduces depression and behavioural problems," said Culver. It was also found that because many carers of Aids orphans are either elderly or unwell, usually grandparents, improving their health would reduce children's anxiety, added Culver.

Given that one-in-five of our children are expected to be orphans by 2020 - an estimated 2.3 million children - this additional study, which is anticipated to involve interviewing 13 000 children nationally, will provide evidence on which to base government policy relating to Aids orphans, Culver concluded.

Speaking at the same session, which focused on the impact of HIV and Aids on the youth, Ann Strode from the University of KwaZulu-Natal took new regulations governing non-therapeutic research (NTR) on minors to task for making the process inordinately difficult and time-consuming.

While she allowed that strict guidelines were needed to protect the rights of minors, Strode did point out that the new regulations would severely restrict important research. "These new regulations require that all NTR requiring the participation of minors will have to get the consent of the minister of health," Strode explained.

"What this means is that the health minister will have to sift through large volumes of research before giving consent, slowing down the entire process. It could also lead to legal action taken against the minister if she declines to give that consent. "It's too broad because it includes all NTR research, even low-risk research. This effectively means that, for example, research in to children's perceptions of traffic hazards would have to be approved by the minister.

"These regulations need to be amended so that consent only need be given in exceptional cases where there is some risk involved. And, perhaps, the minister could also delegate such responsibility to Research Ethics Councils."

More information:

  3rd South African Aids Conference in Durban, South Africa

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