This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Video positively influenced HIV testing rates
Calderon Y. Pediatrics. 2011;127:911-916.
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
The CDC recommends that before consenting to an HIV test, participants must understand HIV infection and the “meanings of positive and negative results,” and a study conducted by researchers in New York showed that an educational video can help meet those goals.
Yvette Calderon, MD, and researchers from the Jacobi Medical Center and Albert Einstein Medical Center, both in New York, conducted a two-armed, randomized controlled trial on 200 sexually active people, aged 15 to 21 years, in their EDs. The participants were asked to watch the video or listen to a counselor. They also conducted pre- and post-intervention surveys.
The researchers said participants in the video portion of the intervention had higher mean HIV knowledge scores compared with the counseling group, despite having similar knowledge at baseline (78.5% and 66.3%, respectively). Watching the video was also more influential in swaying HIV-testing acceptance rates, the researchers said, noting that about half of the video group accepted testing compared with 22% in the other group.
The researchers said those who watched the video, engaged in oral sex, were aged older than 18 years and women were more likely to be tested.
“Regardless of testing method, it is important that people being tested for HIV have the requisite pretest knowledge to provide adequate informed consent,” the researchers concluded. “In New York, before testing, people must also be informed and understand seven key pieces of information, including key definitions, the benefits of testing, and partner notification procedures. A video can provide this information in a consistent and culturally appropriate way.”
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
 |
Follow the PediatricSuperSite.com on Twitter. |