Abstract

Background: People living in slums are often deprived of health-care facilities, making them vulnerable to several health issues and infections. One of the most fatal infections is HIV/AIDS, and moreover, many are not even aware of available services for the treatment of such fatal diseases. HIV-related stigma and discrimination remain an important barrier in effectively fighting the HIV and AIDS epidemic. Objectives: To assess the comprehensive knowledge of HIV/AIDS among adults of reproductive age group in an urban slum in Bengaluru and to assess the attitude toward people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA)among the slum population.
Materials and Methods: A community-based, cross-sectional study was carried out among adults of reproductive age group (15-49 years of age)in urban slums of Bengaluru. The study was conducted among 260 participants over a period of 3 months (July to September 2015). House to house survey was done and data were collected using a semi-structured questionnaire. Data were entered in Microsoft Excel sheet and analyzed using SPSS 21 software. Descriptive statistics such as frequency tables, pie diagrams, and bar charts were used wherever necessary.
Results: Only 35.3% (92)of study participants were aware of the fact that HIV can be transmitted through breastfeeding, and 41.9% (109)knew about transmission from mother-to-child during delivery. Although the majority of the participants said they felt sympathetic toward PLWHA, 207 (79.6%)of them believed that PLWHA should not marry, and 114 (43.8%)thought that HIV positive women should not give birth to a child. Conclusion: Comprehensive knowledge of transmission and preventive methods of HIV/AIDS is still low among the slum population. Therefore, programs must focus on appropriate behavior change communication especially among women in the reproductive age group in slum areas.