Authors

1Luisa Guerrero Hernández, 2Amelia Ramos González-Serna

Position

1Enfermera. 2Enfermera UGC Cardiología del Hospital de Valme. Profesora asociada del Departamento de Enfermería. Universidad de Sevilla.

Contact address

Luisa Guerrero Hernández. C/ Polonia, 8 - portal 8, 1º A. 41012 Sevilla.

Contact email: luisagh86@yahoo.es

Abstract

Objectives: to describe the level of knowledge and the attitudes of adolescents and young people about HIV / AIDS. To identify any wrong beliefs about the disease, and to analyze the effectiveness of educational interventions about HIV / AIDS.
Method: an integrative review involving a bibliographic search among publications between 2009 and 2014, in the Dialnet, Scielo, Cuiden plus, Cinalh and Pubmed databases. The inclusion criteria were: articles containing the information required about the study objectives in the established age range, available in full text, and in Spanish, English or Portuguese.
Results: twenty-seven (27) articles were selected out of all articles found in the databases; these included 25 research studies, one systematic review, and one narrative review. The majority of adolescents are aware of how the virus is transmitted, and that condoms are an effective prevention method. Despite this, there are wrong beliefs and confusing pieces of knowledge which make adolescents vulnerable; and there are persistent negative attitudes towards HIV+ people.
Conclusions: evidence supports that educational programs on HIV/AIDS will improve the knowledge and attitudes, and modify behaviours; therefore, it is necessary to implement programs of health education that address sexual education topics, through promotion and prevention, in order to control and prevent the infection from spreading among young people. Discriminatory attitudes and social stigmatization should also be addressed.

Keywords:

HIV/AIDS; educational intervention; STDs; adolescentyoung adult

Versión en Español

Título:

Conocimientos, actitudes y creencias de los adolescentes sobre el VIH/sida