ABSTRACT
Discussion about permanency planning compels parents to confront the realities of illness and to acknowledge the eventual possibility of surrendering the care of their children to others. This chapter describes two distinct service models developed for providing mental health and custody planning services to families with advanced human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease or acquired immune deficiency syndrome. Project Talk uses cognitive behavior techniques with groups of parents and their teenage children. Project Care employs a psychoeducational approach to counseling mothers and children in their homes. Both models are being evaluated in separate longitudinal studies to assess the mental health outcomes of the children and the models’ effectiveness in helping parents to plan for their futures. Project Talk uses cognitive behavior techniques in group sessions with parents who have HIV disease and their teenage children. Unless a supportive and stable environment is created to improve short-term and long-term mental health outcomes in orphaned children, a viable custody plan may not endure.
