Assessment of knowledge and attitude towards Anti Retro Viral therapy among HIV counseling and testing clients in Harar Health Facilities, Ethiopia

Introduction: Anti Retroviral Therapy (ART) began in Ethiopia in 2003. However, knowledge and attitude towards ART in the community remains largely unexplored in the literature. The objective of this study was to assess knowledge and attitude towards ART among HIV counseling and testing (HCT) clients in selected health facilities of Harar, Ethiopia.

Methods: A cross sectional design was used. A total of 739 HCT clients in three randomly selected health facilities in Harar were selected using a systematic random sampling method and were interviewed. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 16.

Results:Nearly ninety percent of the respondents had heard of ART with 70.9% and 86.2% had good knowledge and attitude towards ART respectively.  Rural residence (AOR=.678 95% CI (.382, .981)), no HIV risk perception (AOR=.310, CI (.146, .925)), and being tested at PIHCT (AOR=.359, CI (.281, .845)) were associated with less knowledge about ART while discussing about ART at home (AOR=2.914, CI (1.671, 5.080)) and being merchant (AOR=2.697, CI 1.331, 4.185) were associated with having good knowledge of ART.  

Conclusions: The majority of the study participants were knowledgeable about ART and its benefits but have fair knowledge about eligibility and adherence indicating the need for continuous IEC/BCC activities on the issue. Attitude about ART is good in the majority of those asked.