Mpho Keetile
In Botswana no study has examined the association between beliefs and attitudes of young people towards ARVs and sexual risky behaviors. This paper aims to assess the association between beliefs and attitudes of youth about ARVs and sexual risk behaviors. It is based on secondary data derived from the Botswana AIDS Impact Survey IV (BAIS IV) which is the latest survey aimed at providing up to date information on HIV/AIDS pandemic in Botswana. A sample of 2632 youth in ages 15-24 years was considered for analysis. About 11% of youth in the sample were of the view that people on ARVs should not always use condoms, 5% believed ARVs cure AIDS, and 52% said that their personal concern about getting HIV has not changed since the introduction of ARVs. Logistic regression results indicate statistically significant association between having multiple sexual partners and the belief that people on ARVs should not always use condoms (AOR, 1.5), and belief that a person on ARVs should stop taking them once they feel better (AOR, 2.5). Moreover, young people who said that their personal concern about getting HIV has not changed (AOR, 1.04) or those less concerned (AOR, 1.6) about getting HIV since the introduction of ARVs were more likely to have multiple sexual partners. Meanwhile, there was no significant association observed between some beliefs and attitudes about ARVs and inconsistent condom use, except for young people who said that they are less concerned about getting HIV since the introduction of ARVs (AOR, 9.9). Beliefs and attitudes of youth about ARVs suggest that more education efforts need to be incorporated in HIV care and treatment to reduce risky sexual behaviors and HIV transmission among youth.
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