An added advantage opportunity is that families who are exposed to their dying loved one are benefitting in term of education not only pertaining to death and dying, but also about HIV and AIDS, therefor also fulfills an AIDS awareness and prevention role. We need to be assisting survivors to actualise their loss. We all need to accept the reality and finality of the loss we have experienced. Often survivors are excluded from normal grieving rituals ie. Memorial services and funeral.
New ways are to be found to personalise alternative ways in which to say goodbye to the diseased.
Survivors need to be helped to identify and express their feelings. These feelings, which are more often negative ie. Guilt, anger, helplessness and anxiety, need to be encouraged to be expressed in a safe environment. Survivors need to continue living without the deceased. Healthy independent functioning needs to be encouraged though identifying the specific areas of the survivors life that has been affected.