Expert: Kristen Brannock, MPH - 4/13/2006

Question
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Followup To
Question - Thank yopu for your answer.But can you please answer just one more question.Please.
1. What are the strategies taken to increase the level of AIDS awareness among people?
Your answer is highly appreciated.Thanks a lot.
-------------How people's denial and complacency may affect AIDS prevention and awareness campaign? I think this is the most important question as i can't find any appropriate answer for this question.Anyway, thaks again for answering my question.------------
Followup To
Question -
I am a student who is still studying, would like to ask questions regarding to AIDS as I need some information that will help me in my assignment.I hope you can answer all my question but if can't , just omit the question.
1. What are the strategies taken to increase the level of AIDS awareness among people?
2. Do you think cocktail drugs or antiretroviral drugs are effective to prolong the lives of AIDS patients? If possible, please give some example of cases to support your view.
3. Can you please explain how AIDS prevention able to reduce the number of new AIDS cases among homosexual and heterosexual?
4. What are the efforts taken to educate AIDS patients to prevent spreading HIV to others?
5. How people's denial and complacency may affect AIDS prevention and awareness campaign?
I hope you can give me some feedback since there are lots of book and articles that I have read give different answer for the above questions that makes me wondering which one is true and accurate.Please kindly state your name, position and qualification so that I can refer your name in my reference list.Thank you and hope you will reply me soon

Answer -
I'm sorry but I do not have the time to answer all of your questions...please choose one and I will answer. Sorry about that but I'm quite busy and this is volunteer work.
Answer -
HIV infection is rising in America-especially among minorities. Some groups may be in denial that this is a growing problem or at least comfortable with not addressing it. If you deny something is a problem, then efforts are not taken to prevent it. If a group of people deny they have an epidemic on their hands, they may not bother with conducting the research necessary to develop effective prevention programs. Also, if people think that something is not a problem, then they probably have no motivation to learn more about the issue, affecting HIV awareness. In sum, realizing that something is a problem is one of the first steps to raising awareness and ultimately learning to prevent it. Denial blocks these necessary actions.

If you want to go more in depth, I would encourage you to look for past research studies on HIV beliefs and denial among minorities. If you want an international perspective, you could look at how people view the problem in Africa, which is very real, and as Im sure you know, very prevalent. Good luck!

Answer
There are many strategies to increase HIV/AIDS awareness. Mainly, there are attempts to educate people. Many community-based organizations offer HIV prevention education. There are policy level attempts at increasing awareness too. I would suggest doing a search for more specific policies or programs.