Family-Centered Care

HIV and the Family

HIV affects the whole family. That’s why we provide family centered care. It doesn’t matter who in the family is infected with HIV—everyone is affected. Family centered care providers recognize the importance of the family in the lives of clients. Programs are designed to meet the special needs of families.

An HIV positive diagnosis can leave you not knowing where to turn. Secrecy about the virus makes it hard for children and parents to talk about their feelings. Children may get angry. If they don’t have ways to express themselves, they get into trouble. Parents may need help with their own feelings and problems. You may have a lot of questions — How do I tell my family? Where will I go for treatment? How will it affect my everyday life? Will I be able to work? What will this mean for my kids? What do I do if others in my family need to be tested?

“When my daughter was diagnosed, and I was trying to get information, it was hard. There was no coordination between agencies. We didn’t know what we needed, and it was crazy trying to navigate all these AIDS service organizations. It was overwhelming. The good thing about the Consortium is you have one case manager. If you want to try some other type of treatment, the case manager can help and you don’t have to tell your story over and over. Families need someone to help them bring it all together. Because it works with the family as a whole, the Consortium reaches out to affected family members who are usually forgotten.” — F. P., Lower New York Consortium, Family Advocate

At Bellevue, the Family Clinic provides comprehensive, case-managed pediatric and adult internal medicine and obstetrics/gynecology services in a one-stop-shopping model for HIV-positive patients and their families twice a week. A Consortium-funded pediatrician and social worker provide HIV/AIDS primary care once a week at St. Vincent's Hospital in Manhattan and in the Special Care Clinic at Richmond University Medical Center.

These clinical programs are linked directly to community case managers at the AIDS Service Center of NYC in lower Manhattan and Community Health Action of Staten Island, both community social service agencies that provide family-centered case management services for families affected by HIV. The linkage of hospital providers to community agencies helps families avoid systemic barriers to care and the service fragmentation characteristic of New York City's health care and social services delivery system.

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How We Can Help
Our members work with one another and with you and your family to plan and provide excellent care. We also help you find services like housing, counseling or job placement.

Our Team of Specialists
We work with directly with our patients to plan, deliver and evaluate their care.