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Data were collected in 2000 from 1081 students from eight colleges in China to assess the overall level of AIDS knowledge, and to explore regional, gender and grade differences in AIDS knowledge. The data indicate an inconsistent level of AIDS knowledge among students, with a significant gender and grade difference. More than one-third of the students perceived themselves as having limited knowledge of AIDS. While the students could identify transmission modes, they were less knowledgeable about symptoms, activities that did not transmit the virus, treatment and preventive measures. The majority of the students reported having discussed AIDS issues with their peers and friends, but few of them had done so with their parents or teachers. AIDS knowledge varied among students by site of residence, with the highest knowledge among students from the urban areas and the lowest among those from rural areas. The data underscore the urgent need for HIV/AIDS-related health promotion and prevention efforts targeting college students as well as younger age groups in China.

Background: Health literacy is an increasingly important public health concern. However, little is known about the health literacy of general public in China. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of low health literacy and demographic associations in Shanghai, China. Methods: This study was a community-based cross-sectional health survey utilizing a multi-stage random sampling design. The sample consisted of 1360 individuals aged 15–69 years with the total community-dwelling Chinese as the sample frame. Health literacy was measured by a questionnaire developed on the basis of a national health literacy manual released by the Chinese Ministry of Health. Multiple logistic regression models were used to identify whether common socio-demographic features were associated with health literacy level. Results: The prevalence of low health literacy was 84.49% (95% CI, 82.56% to 86.41%). The prevalence of low health literacy was negatively associated with the level of education, occupation, and annual household income, but was not associated with gender, age, or the presence of non-communicable chronic disease. Conclusions: Simplifying health services, enhancing health education, and promoting interventions to improve health literacy in high-risk populations should be considered as part of the strategies in the making of health policy in China.

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Australia, like other ethnically diverse societies, needs to provide culturally appropriate health care to all its citizens. One way of facilitating this is to ensure that health services research adequately reflects the circumstances and needs of culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities within the population. This article discusses the fieldwork phase of a qualitative research project on dementia caregiving in 4 CALD communities in south west Sydney, Australia. Rather than focusing on the study results-which have been published elsewhere-this article presents and discusses crucial fieldwork issues that arose in the conduct of the project, particularly regarding participant recruitment and facilitation of focus groups. In being transparent about some of the difficulties encountered and how these were managed, we offer suggestions for other researchers wanting to include CALD communities in a meaningful way in their research projects.