Vietnamese Grandparents' Caregiving Experiences for Grandchildren Impacted by HIV/AIDS: An Ethnographic Study

This ethnographic study explores the caregiving experiences of grandparents in northern Vietnam who are raising grandchildren impacted by HIV/AIDS. Specifically, what is the process of skipped-generation caregiving in families affected by HIV/AIDS in Vietnam? Data were collected between 2009 and 2011 through participant observation and in-depth interviews with 26 grandparent caregivers and eight key informants. Informed by the Caregiving Career framework as a sensitizing concept and using constructivist grounded theory analytic strategies, the study identifies four interconnected caregiving phases shaped by cultural expectations, stigma, and intergenerational disruption. Through fieldwork and analysis, we found that grandparents drew from previous and current processes such as 1) histories of caregiving, 2) caregiving for their adult child because of a substance use disorder and/or HIV-related illness, 3) simultaneous caregiving for their adult child dying of AIDS-related illness and their grandchild, and 4) caregiving solely for the grandchild after the death of the parents. Caregivers experienced burdens that shifted based on their caregiving phase. The authors discuss the framework of the Caregiving Career and expand this framework to include cultural and contextual factors related to HIV/AIDS caregiving in Vietnam.