4 research outputs found
HIV infection and the duration and control of prevalent tuberculosis disease in Harare, Zimbabwe
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Towards a definition of orphaned and vulnerable children
The HIV epidemic presents challenges including orphans and a large mass of children rendered vulnerable by the epidemic and other societal forces. Focus on orphaned and vulnerable children (OVC) is important, but needs accurate definition. Twelve focus group interviews of service providers, leaders in these communities, OVC and their caretakers were conducted at six project sites across Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe to extend this definition. The loss of a parent through death or desertion is an important aspect of vulnerability. Additional factors leading to vulnerability included severe chronic illness of a parent or caregiver,
poverty, hunger, lack of access to services, inadequate clothing or shelter, overcrowding, deficient caretakers, and factors specific to the child, including disability, direct experience of physical or sexual violence, or severe chronic illness. Important questions raised in this research include the long-term implications for the child and community, and the contribution of culture systems.
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Defining orphaned and vulnerable children
This research forms part of a broader project aimed at development and evaluation of interventions for orphaned and vulnerable children. The paper aims to provide a definitional framework and an understanding of orphans and vulnerability.
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The use of implementation research networks on orphans and vulnerable children to encourage research-driven policies: the case of Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe
There is a growing need for applied social sciences research to provide scientific evidence for use in both policy and programme development in the health sector to match the strides made in clinical medicine over the past few decades. This article presents an account of the development, implementation and progress as well as lessons learnt to date from a 5-year programme for the care of orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) in Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe that began in 2002. The project is being conducted by the Social Aspects of HIV/AIDS Research Alliance (SAHARA) under the auspices of the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) of South Africa. The main objective of the project is to provide empirical evidence of the effectiveness of various OVC interventions with a view to identifying best practices for scaling-up in the Southern African region, which is most heavily
burdened by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The initiative, which is funded by the WK Kellogg Foundation, brought together six organizations in Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe, with the blessing of their respective governments' one national implementation grant maker to coordinate the delivery of various child, family and community-centred OVC interventions and one research organization in each country. The project is currently being implemented in various sites in each of the three countries.
Some previously existing OVC interventions are being supported in a number of sites in each country, which are receiving process evaluations, while both qualitative and quantitative baseline studies have been completed in two new sites in each country. Newly developed interventions developed or described by the project that are felt to reflect a best practice approach will be implemented
in these new sites and will be evaluated, using a summative evaluation approach in the next phase of the project, which is expected to last another 35 years. Although there have been many challenges experienced in the project, some excellent progress has also been accomplished, especially in terms of various research outputs that have been completed to date which lay a strong foundation for the next phase of the project beginning in 2006.