Abstract
BackgroundVoluntary counseling and testing (VCT) is one among different approaches which have been implemented as an attempt to slow the spread of HIV infection and minimize its impact at the individual, family and society level. VCT is perceived to be an effective strategy in risk reduction among sexually active young people like tertiary level students. Ethiopia as a country with high burden of HIV started responding to the epidemic by preparing and updating guidelines on VCT. The objective of this study was to assess the level of knowledge, attitude and practice of Voluntary Counseling and Testing (VCT) for HIV among university students in North West Ethiopia.MethodsA cross sectional study was conducted from February to May 2010 using a stratified sampling method to enroll students from different faculties into the study. A total of 330 university students filled in a self-administered questionnaire with response rate of 97.3%. Main outcome measures included level of knowledge, attitude and practice of VCT for HIV. A chi-square test was used to determine an association between a number of independent factors and dependant variables.ResultAbout 66.1% of the study participants were males with a mean age of 20 years. Majority (75.6%) of the respondents were Orthodox with 63% reported living in urban areas before joining the university. From the study participants 86.3% were knowledgeable on VCT, 73.3% had positive attitude towards VCT for HIV and 61.8% had had VCT for HIV in the past. Previous residence before joining the university, level of education, sex and religion were among the sociodemographic variables that showed statistically significant association with the one or more of the outcome variables. Fear of positive results, stigma and discrimination following the positive results were reported as main barriers for VCT uptake.ConclusionThe findings reveal important barriers for VCT uptake and suggest strategies to reduce stigma and discrimination.
Highlights
Voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) is one among different approaches which have been implemented as an attempt to slow the spread of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and minimize its impact at the individual, family and society level
Attitude and practice of the respondents about VCT Knowledge about VCT A total of five questions, with “Yes” and “No” response, were included in the questionnaire regarding the knowledge of the study subjects about VCT
The results from this study indicated a relatively good attendance of VCT which is much higher than a study conducted in Nigeria, Tanzania and Uganda [8,24]
Summary
Voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) is one among different approaches which have been implemented as an attempt to slow the spread of HIV infection and minimize its impact at the individual, family and society level. The objective of this study was to assess the level of knowledge, attitude and practice of Voluntary Counseling and Testing (VCT) for HIV among university students in North West Ethiopia. Sub-Saharan Africa remains the region most heavily affected by HIV. In 2010, about 68% of all people living with HIV resided in subSaharan Africa. Sub-Saharan Africa accounted for 70% of new HIV infections and almost half of the deaths from AIDS related illness in 2010 [3]. Young people ages 15–24 represent 45% of all new HIV infections. In sub-Saharan Africa, nearly 3.3 million youth are living with HIV. Skills, and access to services for youth is expected to fuel the epidemic [4]
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