Aids Education Needs Assessment: A Comparative Study of Jail and Prison Correctional Officers

Abstract

To ascertain HIV/AIDS knowledge levels and the education needs of correctional officers in jails and state prisons in northwest Florida, a needs assessment instrument was administered in the workplace. State law requirements mandating annual HIV/AIDS training for correctional officers led to a hypothesis that state prison correctional officers would have greater knowledge levels than jail correctional officers, who do not have regularly scheduled training as there is no mandated program on the local level. On the whole, knowledge levels were good in both groups, with prison correctional officers scoring better than correctional officers in the jails on most items. However, statistical and item analyses of responses suggest that both groups generally are unable to consistently distinguish between various behavioral risk situations, at times rating similar risk situations very differently. This research is consistent with other studies whose results suggest that designs for educational programs intended for adults should employ an adult learning theory framework. Education better tailored to the environment and to the age and learning requirements of participants increases the probability that learners will be prepared to make effective decisions in the workplace.

Officer Perceptions of Risk of Contracting HIV/AIDS in Prison: A Two-State Comparison

“…A review of the literature regarding correctional officers' knowledge of HIV/ AIDS and how risk is perceived in the workplace uncovered eight related articles. Four articles studied corrections institutions in the United States (Kamerman, 1991;Keeton, 2004;Mahaffey & Marcus, 1995;McIntyre et al, 1999) and the others examined prisons in Europe (Dillon & Allwright, 2005;Ferguson, 1997;McKee, Markova, & Power, 1995;Rotily et al, 2001).…”

“…Staff who had HIV training had generally the same level of knowledge as staff who did not have training (Dillon & Allwright. 2005;Keeton. 2004).…”

The Effects of Inmate Medical Issues on Correctional Staff Job Involvement and Organizational Commitment

“…In researching correctional staff who worked at a prison hospital that provided treatment to HIV/AIDS inmates, Kamerman (1991) found information and training reduced fears of working with individuals with an infectious disease. Dillon and Allwright (2005), Hartley et al (2013), Keeton (2004), and Lambert and Paoline (2005) also concluded more information and training on infectious disease and its control are needed for staff. In-depth information on what is being done to address inmate infectious diseases to protect staff and other inmates needs to be provided.…”

Seroconversion Risk Perception Among Jail Populations

“…Over the last decade, worldwide public health campaigns have been more effective in reaching populations most at risk with prevention, outreach, and treatment advances. However, most corrections-based HIV/AIDS education in the United States implements a “one-size-fits-all” approach (Keeton, 2004; Swartz et al, 2004). Results of the current study underscore gender differences in perception that persist among inmates with respect to perceived risk of seroconversion and access to HIV education.…”