AWARENESS, PERCEPTION AND ATTITUDE TOWARDS PATIENTS WITH HIV/AIDS AMONG NON-HEALTH WORKERS IN RIVERS STATE UNIVERSITY TEACHING HOSPITAL
Abstract
Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) remains a major global public health issue, having claimed 42.3 million lives so far with ongoing transmission in all countries globally, with some countries reporting increasing trends in new infections when previously on the decline. This study assessed awareness, perception and attitude towards patients with HIV/AIDS among non-health workers in Rivers State University Teaching Hospital. A descriptive cross-sectional research design was used for this study. The target population of this study was 173 non-health workers of Rivers State University Teaching Hospital. A simple random sampling technique was used to derive 121 non-health workers from the total population. The instrument used in the study was a self-structured questionnaire titled APAHQ. Data was analysed using descriptive statistics of mean, frequency and percentages. The findings of the study revealed that awareness level of HIV/AIDS was 94.3%. The mean of mean of 3.2 ± 0.6 indicates a moderate perception of the respondents about patients with HIV/AIDS. The mean of mean of 0.3 ± 0.7 indicates a negative attitude of the respondents towards patients with HIV/AIDS at Rivers State University Teaching Hospital. This study emphasized on the need for public enlightenment in order to clear myths and misconceptions of HIV/AIDS in order to end stigmatization of patients with HIV/AIDS. Based on the findings, the study recommended that public enlightenment should be carried out frequently to clear misconceptions about HIV/AIDS and the need to end stigmatization of patients with HIV/AIDS.
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