Use HIV’s Lessons to Help Children Orphaned by COVID-19

August 10, 2021

(Nature) – I have spent my career studying how the HIV epidemic affects children. One profound way is through the death of one or both parents — the United Nations definition of an orphan. As of 2020, about 15 million children and adolescents, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa, had lost one or both parents to HIV/AIDS. These youngsters face immense challenges. Through decades of research, the field is slowly learning how to help them lead healthy lives and succeed in school. I never thought that my expertise on pandemics and mass child bereavement would be relevant to the United States. And then the COVID-19 pandemic hit. (Read Full Article)