Assessing AIDS Knowledge among Health Volunteers and Women by 44-item AIDS Awareness Assessment Tool in Zanjan

Background: Considering the accelerating rate of HIV / AIDS during recent years in Iran, it is extremely important to assess the AIDS awareness among people to design appropriate health education programs. This study aimed to evaluate AIDS awareness of health volunteers and the women covered by Zanjan health centers. Methods: This was descriptive cross-sectional study that carried out in 2019. The population consisted of all married health volunteers (205) and the women (198) covered by Zanjan health centers. The target population was selected by purposive sampling method. A valid and native researcher-made questionnaire was used to collect the required data. The data was analyzed by SPSS (version 16) software. Results: Both studied groups were homogenous in terms of age, education, and marital status. The findings showed that the health volunteers’ AIDS awareness was higher (70%) than that of the women. The difference was statistically significant. Conclusion: Although the health volunteers' awareness of AIDS was higher than that of the women, considering their role and participation in the education of people, this level of awareness is not acceptable.