Current communication and behavioral aspects of HIV and STIs: findings from a survey of Medical University students

Abstract

Aims: To assess the specifics of sexual behavior and awareness among young people regarding STIs and HIV infection, as well as to study the attitude and degree of readiness to help HIV-infected patients among medical university students.
 Materials and methods: To assess the level of awareness on STI and HIV prevention and risky sexual behavior, a sociological survey was conducted through an anonymous questionnaire with the signing of voluntary anonymous consent. To identify the psychological features of the students, which may influence the behavior, the propensity to risk, the attitude towards the disease, the method of assessing the level of communicative tolerance of V.V. Boyko was used. The distribution of responses was analyzed for the entire population of respondents, a representative appropriate volume for each questionnaire. Statistical analysis was performed using Microsoft Excel and SPSS. The 2 criterion and Student's independent t-criterion were assessed. Statistical significance was set as p0.05.
 Results: A total of 565 4th year NSMU students participated in the study which was conducted from 2022-2023. The results of the study demonstrated that the use of the Internet among young people as a source of information about STIs and HIV infection is becoming more popular year by year. The sexual behavior of the students participating in the study was characterized as risky. It was found that medical students (20.5%) experience fear of HIV infection when providing medical care to HIV-infected patients. The level of professional communicative tolerance of future physicians is assessed as high.
 Conclusions: The low level of awareness among young people with regard to sexual health requires strengthening the implementation of existing activities on primary prevention of STIs and HIV infection, as well as the introduction of new preventive measures for these infections, adapted to the needs of young people.The ignorance of the legal aspects of providing care to HIV-infected patients, which was revealed in the course of the survey among medical students, requires more detailed study of these issues during the preparation of future doctors for professional activities.