Providing care for a loved one with end-stage AIDS can be emotionally and physically draining. One person alone can't take on the overwhelming responsibility of providing care to a person in the final stages of the illness.
Cooperation is needed among friends and family, health care providers, and the afflicted individual.
It's important that the person with AIDS continues to have as much dignity and control over their illness as possible. The individual should be encouraged to participate in making choices regarding treatment options, personal and financial matters. Persons with AIDS and those caring for them may find assistance from hospitals, social workers , home health care , and Hospice . Hospice volunteers and health care workers form teams to work with terminally-ill persons and their families in helping to make patients as comfortable as possible. If you would like more information about sources of help for persons with AIDS, contact your doctor.