Mohammad Dawood
Okaz/Saudi Gazette
JEDDAH — A recent study was conducted on secondary students in Jeddah to determine their awareness levels on the ways of transmitting HIV/AIDS.
The study was initiated by Dr. Mohammad Halawani, consultant of infection control and director of infection control department at Jeddah health directorate.
The study was directed at secondary students, as they are more susceptible to acquiring the disease. The study addressed the reasons for the students’ ignorance, and the dangers of the lack of awareness.
The study, which included 708 students of both sexes, pointed that 40 percent of the students do not know the name of the virus that causes AIDS.
Another 27 percent are not aware of the ways the disease is transmitted.
More than 70 percent said that they got some information from the internet. Only 11 percent choose to obtain information from their parents.
Some 54 percent of the students blame society for the lack of awareness. It is a sensitive subject that many in society refrain from discussing.
Some 22 percent blame the school curricula for not addressing this vital issue. About 6 percent requested that controlled sex education should be taught at schools.