Awareness level of school students in age group of 14-18 years about HIV & AIDS in a rural area of Jammu (J&K)

HIV infection is known to have established in India since year 1986 and three decades are over since then. A lot of activities have been since then going on by the government of India sponsored NACP under the aegis of NACO. The endemicity of this infection in populations is known to be inversely proportional to the level of awareness about HIV/AIDS. As per the data available, there are variations in level of awareness about the HIV/AIDS and it's prevention among the general populations as well as the at risk populations. So it is always prudent to assess the level of awareness among the general population. For this reason survey of awareness level among the high school students can give a reliable indication as they represent the level of awareness of their families. Hence a study was conducted among the adolescent students in age group of 14-19 years ie. Class 9-12 years. Study Design: Cross sectional study. Study Subjects: adolescent students in age group of 14-19 years ie. Class 9-12 years. Study Period: Dec 2015 Materials and Methods: The study was conducted in village Maralian of Block RS Pura (rural field practice area of Department of Community medicine, GMC Jammu). The schools chosen were High and Higher secondary standards where the students of age group >14 years could be contacted. Study Instrument: A pre tested schedule containing (47) questions related to Knowledge, attitudes and practices of adolescents about modes of transmission and prevention of HIV infection, attitudes and beliefs about it and their related practices was used to interview. It was seen that the students in age group of 14-18 years were much aware about the HIV/AIDS, it's causes, routes of transmission, risk factors, preventive measures and facilities for diagnosis and drugs. Students of this age group can be taken as proxy to the families they belong to and hence the general population of the area under study. But still, a large proportion is having wrong concepts or no ideas about all the aspects associated with HIV/AIDS. Conclusion: Hence, conducting and sustaining IEC activities in the area is recommended.