Trauma, Grief and the Social Model: Practice Guidelines for Working with Adults with Intellectual Disabilities in the Wake of Disasters

Formulating personal needs assessments and plans for self-protection have been the recent focus of disaster preparedness manuals for individuals with intellectual disabilities and their caregivers. Interventions to address the minimization of psychological ill effects of trauma and grief in the aftermath of disasters for this population, however, remain largely unexplored. In the wake of such events, persons with intellectual disabilities require trained mental health professionals to assist them in identifying and coping with trauma exposure and its associated, often sudden losses. Intervention should be based on the unique needs of this population within the context of disaster and each individual's cognitive strengths and capacities. Coupled with reviews of research and practice in the area of disaster mental health, the social model of disability served as a foundation for the formulation of best practice guidelines for tertiary interventions with adults with intellectual disabilities. The guidelines suggest approaches that will enable professionals to identify and minimize acute and chronic responses to disasters as well as foster resilience and enhance the valuable contributions of adults with intellectual disabilities in disaster-affected communities

Considering HIV Risk and Intimate Partner Violence Among Older Women of Color: A Descriptive Analysis

This study describes the types of intimate partner violence (IPV) and sexual HIV-risk factors reported by a sample of 139 African American and Latina women ages 50 and older receiving care in outpatient clinics of an urban medical center. Additionally, we obtained estimates of the associations between experiencing IPV in a primary heterosexual relationship and the following HIV-risk behaviors among our sample of older minority women: (a) having multiple sexual partners, (b) STD history, (c) partner-related risk (i.e., having a partner who has multiple sexual partners, is HIV-infected, injecting drugs, and/or has an STD), and (d) self-perception of risk for HIV infection. Results indicate that many of these women are engaged in sexual risk behaviors, and such behaviors are associated with increased likelihood of IPV for this cohort. Implications for health care professionals are discussed

HIV Prevention for Intimate Couples: A Relationship-Based Model

HIV prevention programs targeted to heterosexuals have most often been delivered in individual or group modalities that principally focus on women as the agents of change. To date, most HIV risk-reduction interventions are not specifically designed to address issues involving intimate couples or to include both partners. Approaches which take into account relationship dynamics and communication patterns are needed to enable women to initiate or sustain condom use with their main steady partners. In this paper, we present a relationship-based HIV intervention, Project Connect, delivered to 217 African American and Latino heterosexual couples recruited from primary healthcare settings. The paper will first discuss the rationale and the conceptual framework underlying the intervention and then elaborate on the intervention components. Finally, lessons learned in the implementation of the project and implications of Project Connect to future practice and policy making for HIV interventions for heterosexual couples will be discussed