Knowledge and attitudes towards AIDS among primary health care physicians in the Asir region Saudi Arabia.

Although acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) has not yet emerged as a major public health problem in Saudi Arabia a survey of primary health care physicians in the Asir Region revealed serious gaps in knowledge among those are central to AIDS prevention and control. Analyzed were questionnaires completed by 328 physicians from 118 urban and 210 rural primary health care centers in 1993 in this southwestern region of the country. 74% of physicians were male; their mean age was 36.5 years. Although 82.9% agreed that AIDS is a global health problem only 6.7% felt it was of concern to Saudi Arabians. 19.5% acknowledged having extremely limited knowledge about AIDS and 97.2% were interested in professional education on this topic. Not only did many physicians have misinformation about modes of transmission (e.g. 13.8% identified mosquito bites and 49.7% implicated casual kissing) 33.8% were unaware that tatooing is a known mode of transmission. Also inadequate was knowledge of groups at risk of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV); infants of HIV-infected women those with multiple sex partners patients with repeated blood transfusions drug addicts and homosexuals were identified by only 7.9% 43.0% 43.1% 66.1% and 63.7% of physicians respectively. 7.9% thought that vaccines against HIV were available and 11% claimed AIDS was curable. None of the physicians had treated a person with AIDS and only 5.2% reported any personal contact with an AIDS victim. On the other hand 89% were aware of the signs and symptoms of AIDS. 49% of physicians felt AIDS patients should be isolated; only 25.1% favored home-based care.