This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Mashimo, A. Articles by Umenai, T. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Mashimo, A. Articles by Umenai, T. Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

The Role of AIDS Volunteers in Developing Community-based Care for People with AIDS in Thailand

Japanese Nursing Association, Survey and Research Section, fwii0493{at}mb.infoweb.ne.jp

Hiroko Miura, DDS, MPH, PhD

Department of Speech Therapy, Faculty of Health Science, Kyushu University of Health and Welfare

Shoji Sakano, MD, PhD

Department of Emergency Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Akita University

Akira Hamada, BP

Department of Welfare and Volunteer, School of Social Welfare, Kibi International University

Bang-on Thepthien, MPH

ASEAN Institute for Health Development, Mahidol University

Takusei Umenai, MD, PhD

Department of Welfare and Volunteer, School of Social Welfare, Kibi International University

The present study analyses the effectiveness of AIDS volunteers in mitigating the stigma attached to People With AIDS (PWAs) within the context of developing community-based care (CBC) in Thailand. A total of 86 trained village health volunteers (T-VHVs) and 99 non-trained village health volunteers (N-VHVs) were enrolled in the study In addition, 58 villagers in the T-VHV's intervention area and 72 villagers in the non-intervention area were also enrolled. Both T-VHVs and N-VHVs as well as villagers were assessed to determine their level of knowledge with respect to HIV/AIDS and attitudes toward PWAs. Furthermore, we also determined the village health volunteers' level of activity in distributing knowledge of HIV/AIDS in order to prevent and reduce stigma in the community. Although T-VHVs showed a greater depth of knowledge of HIV/AIDS than N-VHVs (p<0.05), positive attitudes toward PWAs and the level of practice of village health volunteers did not differ significantly between T-VHVs and N-VHVs. While the level of health knowledge of villagers did not differ significantly between the T-VHV's intervention and control areas, a significant difference was observed between the two areas in terms of the villagers' attitudes towards PWAs ( p<0.01). Villagers in the intervention area attached less stigma to PWAs; therefore, T-VHVs played a role in providing basic information on AIDS to the villagers and in mitigating the stigma attached to PWAs. However, these volunteers need to undergo further training through a well-organized training programme in order to obtain a greater depth of knowledge. This is essential for the development of commuity-based care for PWAS. Asia Pac J Public Health 2001;13(1):3-8

Key Words: Community-based care • knowledge/attitude/practice (KAP) • HIV • AIDS • health volunteers • Thailand.

Asia-Pacific Journal of Public Health, Vol. 13, No. 1, 3-8 (2001)
DOI: 10.1177/101053950101300102


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?