Factors that influence the acceptance of HIV testing by pregnant women in Nnewi Nigeria

Abstract

Context: HIV testing in pregnancy is the gateway to accessing care for the mother and the child. The interventions in Prevention of Mother-to –Child Transmission (PMTCT) of HIV can only be applied to a woman whose status is known. Therefore determining the HIV status of pregnant women is a key factor to the success of any prevention programme.
Objective: To determine the various factors influencing the acceptance of HIV testing by our pregnant women.

Study design, setting and subjects: The study was conducted at the antenatal clinic of Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital (NAUTH), Nnewi which is the only tertiary public hospital in Anambra State.
This is a cross sectional study in which questionnaires were administered to the pregnant women at the antenatal clinic on one to one bases and data collected was analysed and presented in tables and compared with simple percentages.
Results: During the period of study, 200 antenatal; women responded to the questionnaires. Their age ranged from
15- 42 years with the highest age group being 25-29years (41.0%). Highest educational level and occupation of the pregnant women significantly influenced their having and HIV test (P<0.001). All the women with tertiary education have had an HIV test while 66.7% and 7.1% of those with primary and secondary education respectively had not taken an HIV test for the first time. Also house wives (16.7%) , junior civil servants (11.1%) and traders (7.1%) had not taken an HIV test during the pre-marital period (39.0%) and the recent test during pregnancy (50.0%). The commonest source of first information about HIV/AIDS was electronic media (50%).
The HIV sero-prevalence rate is 6.0% with higher prevalence in grand multiparous women and primary school leavers. Majority of the women (60.0%) accepted to have the test in order to prevent mother-to-child transmission (MCTCT) of HIV. The routine testing with the right to opt out approach has a positive influence on the women with 100% acceptance of HIV testing.
Conclusion: Low level of education, grand multiparity and lower income occupation were associated with lower testing rate and higher HIV positivity. Therefore enforcement of female education including reproductive health education will facilities the empowerment of women and help them take preventive and protective measures against HIV infection. The routine testing with right to opt out as practiced her is highly recommended for increase uptake of HIV testing


Keywords: HIV testing, Acceptance, Pregnancy women, Nnewi.

Tropical Journal of Medical Research Vol. 10(1) 2006: pp. 1-5