Knowledge of senior high school students on HIV AIDS in the Lower Manya Krobo municipality of the Eastern Region of Ghana

Abstract

The HIV/AIDS menace has been a major source of concern to everyone, particularly, the people of Lower Manya Krobo Municipality as the area has always recorded higher rate of infections compared with other districts in Ghana. The study sought to assess HIV/AIDS knowledge of Senior High School students in the Lower Manya Krobo Municipality of the Eastern Region of Ghana. The simple random sampling technique was adopted to select 300 students, comprising 120 boys and 180 girls proportionately selected from the four Senior High Schools in the Municipality.A-37 item questionnaire adapted from Wanjiru Helen Wairimu was used for the data collection. The obtained data were analysed using descriptive statistics (means, standard deviations, frequencies, and percentages). The study found that; majority of the senior high school students in the LMKM of Ghana have high knowledge about HIV/AIDS. It was again found out that HIV/AIDS knowledge they have does not have much impact and influence on their sexual behaviour. Finally, it was revealed that the students in the LMKM are not applying their knowledge in HIV/AIDS due to certain inhibiting factors such as religion, limited recognition of personal risk of HIV infection, difficulty in procuring condoms, and the pandemic being a curse from the gods are the factors that inhibit the application of HIV/AIDS knowledge of the SHS students in LMKM of the Eastern Region. Several recommendations were suggested which include; the fact that the Ministry of Health in collaboration with important educational agencies should intensify sex education to the students and the community members in order to strengthen their awareness of HIV/AIDS.