Interventions for HIV Clients with Co-Occurring Substance Use and Personality Disorders

Many HIV/AIDS clients who currently need some form of psychosocial intervention are individuals diagnosed with substance use, a mental health problem, or both. In any setting a proportion of these clients, because of their behaviors, present myriad challenges to individual providers in terms of engagement in medical care, medication adherence, and difficulty with interpersonal skills. These clients struggle with how to appropriately express their needs. Providers struggle to understand and respond to clients' escalating and disruptive behaviors in a therapeutic, concerned, and consistent manner. This case-based article, which highlights strategies, interventions, and client vignettes, will focus on these issues.