Attitudes and personal behaviours of professional health care personnel towards fellow employees living with HIV/AIDS

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The study was undertaken to establish professional health care personnel's attitudesand personal behaviours towards their colleagues living with HIV and AIDS in a ruralgovernment hospital, Mokhotlong - Lesotho. Three fundamental principles from theBelmont report (1976) generally guided the ethical measures engaged in this study;beneficence, respect for persons and justice. Quantitative methodology was used toelicit information; due to the personal nature of some of the questions inherent in aninstrument that questioned personal values and attitudes, the research chose theinstrument to be a self-administered questionnaire.The population of this study included 39 professional healthcare personnel from sixdifferent disciplines, however, the researcher categorised them into three main strata,namely: medical services (12.8 %, n = 5), nursing services (59.0 %, n = 23), andsupport services (28.2 %, n = 11). The results of this study has indicated that, a vastmajority of the respondents had very positive attitudes and supportive behaviourstowards PLWHIA and/or their CLWHIA.It is important for the institution to design and implement HIV/AIDS related programs,activities and policies that can provide support to both professional and nonprofessionalhealth care personnel about HIV/AIDS-related issues; such as shapingtheir personal behaviours and attitudes towards HIV infection, as well as promoting carefor PLWHIA and/or their CLWHIA and opposing stigmatization.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University