Secular trends in HIV knowledge and attitudes among Vietnamese women based on the Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys, 2000, 2006, and 2011: what do we know and what should we do to protect them?

Abstract

BackgroundIn Vietnam, women are at risk of HIV infection due to many factors. However, there is limited evidence about what women know and how they behave to protect themselves from HIV.ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to investigate the trends in comprehensive HIV/AIDS knowledge, attitude, and associated factors among Vietnamese women from 2000 to 2011.DesignData from three waves of the Vietnam Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (years 2000, 2006, and 2011) were used. Logistic regression methods examined factors associated with each of two dependent variables, HIV/AIDS knowledge and attitude toward HIV/AIDS.ResultsAlthough there was an increasing trend in basic HIV/AIDS knowledge and positive attitude toward the disease, in Vietnamese women in the general population over the survey years, the prevalence of women with basic HIV/AIDS knowledge and positive attitude toward HIV/AIDS was low. Multivariable models indicated that women who had higher levels of education, lived in urban areas, had higher economic status, and knew about places of HIV-related services were more likely to have good HIV/AIDS knowledge (e.g. in 2011, AOR's=3.01; 1.27; 1.88; 2.03, respectively). Women with higher educational attainment, knew about HIV services, and had better HIV knowledge were more likely to report positive attitude toward HIV/AIDS (e.g. in 2011, AOR's=2.50; 1.72; 2.23, respectively).ConclusionsThis study recommends that public health programs for the control of HIV, such as behavioral change communication campaigns or social policies for women, should focus not only in improving the quality of existing HIV/AIDS counseling and testing services but also on expanding coverage to increase accessibility to these services for women in rural areas. In addition, efforts to raise the level of knowledge about HIV/AIDS and improve attitude toward the disease should be undertaken simultaneously. The results of this study can help inform HIV control policies and practices in other developing countries.

A comprehensive analysis of trends and determinants of HIV/AIDS knowledge among the Bangladeshi women based on Bangladesh Demographic and Health Surveys, 2007–2014

“…Thus, we would interpret our finding with caution and would recommend in-depth analysis regarding the effect of religion on the knowledge about HIV/AIDS among the women in Bangladesh. This study results show that women from a higher level of socio-economic status (middle and rich) have a higher likelihood of HIV/AIDS knowledge compared to poor women, which is consistent with the studies [30]. The justification of the result is that women from upper socio-economic class have more access to modern amenities and health care facilities, which increase their likelihood of knowing about HIV/AIDS.…”

“…Particularly, women living in urban areas are more likely to have knowledge about HIV/AIDS compared to rural women, which is in accordance with other studies [10, 21, 30, 32]. Contrary to our findings, there are few studies [17], which reported that the type of residence is unrelated to women’s knowledge about HIV/AIDS.…”

“…In addition, we found women aged 30 years or above are less likely to have knowledge about HIV/AIDS. Conversely, Van Huy et al [30] showed that women aged 30 years or above are more likely to have knowledge about HIV/AIDS, however, this study was in the context of Vietnam. The earlier studies in the context of Bangladesh, e.g.…”

Determinants of comprehensive knowledge of HIV/AIDS among women of the reproductive age (15-49) in Uganda

“…The findings are in conformity with the study conducted among Vietnamese women which reported that married women had less odds of having comprehensive knowledge of HIV compared to singles because they believe that marriage is a protection to risky sexual behaviors. 15 Women in rural areas (OR=0.91) 95% CI (0.77-1.09) had lower odds of having comprehensive knowledge compared to urban women in this study. This result correlates with several findings.…”

“…In this study, majority of the respondents (24%) were in the age group of (15)(16)(17)(18)(19) and a high proportion of women (80%) resided in rural areas. Catholic religion had majority of the respondents (40%) compared to other religions.…”