Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the knowledge, and attitudes of Bandar-Abbas general public about various aspects of HIV/AIDS, Methodology: A random sample of individuals aged 15-64 years were interviewed using a multistage area sampling method. A four section questionnaire was used to measure HIV/AIDS-related attitudes and knowledge. Results: In all, 2123 people participated in the study. The majority of respondents had a relatively poor knowledge about HIV/AIDS. Age and education, were associated with the knowledge about HIV/AIDS. Negative attitudes toward HIV-infected individuals were common. Those with higher education were more positive in their attitudes compared to Less educated respondents. ``Television'' was the main source of information (72.4%) followed by ``newspapers and magazines'' (51.6%) as stated by the participants. Conclusions: Poor knowledge and negative attitude about AIDS still exist. There should also be a big push to increase teaching efforts in schools. Moreover, educational advisors, physicians and nurses should be active in educating people.