Abstract:
Background: Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome
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School HIV program in Ethiopia is neither comprehensively guided nor performance is
adequately tracked.
Objective: The objective of this study was to assess HIV risk perception and associated factors
among Gondar town governmental preparatory schools� students.
Methods: Cross-sectional study using random and systematic sampling was done from
December 2018 � January 2019 G.C. Structured self-administered questionnaire used to collect
data. Data were reviewed and checked for completeness and consistency. Data was entered using
Epi-info ver.7 and analyzed using latest SPSS ver.25. Explanatory variables with p<0.05 were
entered to multivariable logistic regression. Final association was computed using binary logistic
regression with p-value <0.05 considered as statistically significant.
Results: A total of 633 students participated and 20 were interviewed. Out of 633, 36% had HIV
risk perception
Conclusions: The study showed low HIV risk perception. Factors like educational level, parental
monitoring and number of sexual partners were among factors significantly associated with HIV
risk perception.
Recommendations: It is better to reinforce HIV/AIDS awareness campaigns and implement
sexual life skills education in these schools to increase their low HIV risk perception.
Key words: Gondar; HIV; preparatory; risk perception; student
