Brachman P, Kozarsky P, Cetron M, Jacob M S, Boonitt B, Wongsrichanalai J, Keystone J S
Department of Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Arch Intern Med. 1996 Apr 8;156(7):761-6.
To examine the attitudes and knowledge of health care professionals regarding human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection in countries with a varying prevalence of HIV infection to assist in the development of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) educational programs.
Anonymous questionnaire with four sections: demographics, attitudes, knowledge, and an open-ended question investigating feelings about the potential impact that HIV infection may have on respondents' practices.
Final-year medical students, house staff, and attending physicians at teaching hospitals in India, Thailand, Canada, and the United States.
From January to October 1992, 819 health care professionals completed the questionnaire: 340 from India, 196 from Canada, 155 from the United States, and 128 from Thailand. The percentage of respondents who had previous contact with patients with HIV/AIDS varied from 30% to 98%; it was lowest in India, followed by Thailand and then Canada, and highest in the United States. Percentages of respondents uncomfortable performing a physical examination on a patient with HIV/AIDS were 24%, 25%, 9%, and 4%, respectively. Mean HIV/AIDS knowledge scores were 83%, 84%, 92%, and 93%, respectively. Most respondents correctly identified modes of transmission of HIV infection. Only 67% of Indian health care professionals understood the concept of a false-negative screening serologic test, compared with 98% of Canadian health care professionals. In Canada and the United States, only 78% and 76%, respectively, understood the concept of a false-positive screening serologic test. Awareness of an asymptomatic stage of HIV infection ranged from 32% in India to 74% in Canada. Despite their concerns of becoming infected, health care professionals in countries with a lower prevalence of HIV infection reported a strong ethical duty to care for these patients.
Level of comfort in caring for HIV-infected patients and HIV/AIDS knowledge scores varied directly with the amount of previous contact with these patients. Disturbing numbers of health care professionals from all four countries did not understand the potential problems of the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay serologic test and a significant percentage were unaware of the asymptomatic stage of HIV infection. There is a universal need for increased education of health care professionals about HIV infection and AIDS.
调查不同艾滋病毒（HIV）感染率国家的医护人员对HIV感染的态度和知识，以协助制定获得性免疫缺陷综合征（AIDS）教育计划。
采用匿名问卷，分为四个部分：人口统计学、态度、知识，以及一个开放式问题，调查HIV感染可能对受访者的医疗行为产生的潜在影响的感受。
印度、泰国、加拿大和美国教学医院的医学专业最后一年学生、住院医生和主治医生。
1992年1月至10月，819名医护人员完成了问卷：340名来自印度，196名来自加拿大，155名来自美国，128名来自泰国。此前接触过HIV/AIDS患者的受访者比例从30%到98%不等；印度最低，其次是泰国，然后是加拿大，美国最高。对HIV/AIDS患者进行体格检查感到不适的受访者比例分别为24%、25%、9%和4%。HIV/AIDS知识平均得分分别为83%、84%、92%和93%。大多数受访者正确识别了HIV感染的传播方式。只有67%的印度医护人员理解假阴性筛查血清学检测的概念，而加拿大医护人员的这一比例为98%。在加拿大和美国，分别只有78%和76%的人理解假阳性筛查血清学检测的概念。对HIV感染无症状阶段的知晓率从印度的32%到加拿大的74%不等。尽管担心被感染，但HIV感染率较低国家的医护人员表示，照顾这些患者有很强的道德责任。
照顾HIV感染患者的舒适度和HIV/AIDS知识得分与此前接触这些患者的次数直接相关。来自所有四个国家的数量令人不安的医护人员不理解酶联免疫吸附测定血清学检测的潜在问题，并且相当比例的人不知道HIV感染的无症状阶段。普遍需要加强对医护人员进行关于HIV感染和AIDS的教育。
