BIRJ-MS-12-3-11B

Abstract

HIV/AIDS in Zambia has had a devastating impact on many families and communities. For more than twenty

years communities have been struggling to find better and effective ways of providing community-based

care to children orphaned in the HIV and AIDS epidemic. Unlike in the past when children orphaned by

AIDS received best community care options, today the picture is different as many children do not receive

the best community-based care they deserve. Although HIV andAIDS infection rates in Zambia seem to

have stabilizedthe number of children orphaned by the disease is expected to rise. These children face a

gloomy picture. Obviously there is a need to ramp up appropriate and quality community-based care options

for AIDS affected children. One way this might be done is utilizing cultural competence and translational

research. These two approaches are innovative and can improve orphaned children’s well-being. For

example culture competence could serve as a platform for providing needed skill sets to communities

providing care to orphaned children. As communities grapple with the challenges of orphaned children,

translational research might be a suitable approach that could make it possible for communities to share

critical lessons amongst themselves about best care to AIDS-impacted children. Translational research could

make possible the sharing of care options between AIDS stricken communities across Zambian communities.