Maternity nurse's evaluation of sources of information about HIV/AIDS in Alexandria

ABSTRACT

The aim of this study was to identify the sources of human immunodeficiency virus [HIV]/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome [AIDS] information among maternity nurses in Alexandria and to examine how each source was evaluated by them in terms of frequency, usability and usefulness. A simple random sample of 150 maternity nurses of all levels working in three different organizations participated in the study. Data were collected by an anonymous questionnaire to elicit the professional characteristics and the frequency of the use of the identified sources as well as three-point Likert scale to rate the sources of information according to two dimensions [usability and usefulness]. A scoring system was developed and used to show the frequency, usability and usefulness of the sources. The results indicated that in-service training, professional colleague and academic study were among the highly evaluated sources in relation to usability and usefulness; while, the professional colleague and posters were the most frequently used sources. The recommendations and implications for future provision of HIV/AIDS information were discussed