The public's attitude toward physicians and the care of AIDS patients in the state of Maryland.

A telephone survey of 1477 households in Maryland examined the public's attitudes toward physicians and the treatment of AIDS patients. The results indicated that most respondents (86%) want to know their physician's human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) status and that 65% would change physicians if that physician had acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Approximately 50% did not know if their doctor treated AIDS patients, but the majority (68%) responded they would not change doctors because they treated AIDS patients. Significant differences were found in respondents' opinions related to age and education. It was also found that the majority of respondents (57%) received their information about AIDS from the mass media and that very few received their information from medical or other health sources.