Utilization of Sexual and Reproductive Health Services and Associated Factors Among the Youth in Lira City West, Northern Uganda: A Cross Sectional Study

Murungi, Tom; Benyumiza, Deo; Apio, Juliet; Nekesa, Catherine; Misuk, Ivan; Kumakech, Edward

doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-2506724/v1

Cited by 1 publication

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“…There is also a growing number of males opting out of circumcision since 2016 up to today [3]; however, younger males remain reluctant to undertake this voluntary initiative. This coupled with the limited numbers of young people undertaking HIV testing and other sexual and reproductive health services in Northern Uganda of about 43% and 42%, respectively, poses a significant challenge in the fight against HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections [6,7]. SMC uptake can be attributed to the knowledge about the relevance of safe male circumcision or due to the cultural, social, and religious perceptions within the different societies.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Knowledge, Perception, and Practice of Safe Medical Circumcision on HIV Infection Risk Reduction among Undergraduate Students of a Public University in Northern Uganda: A Cross-Sectional Study

Akugizibwe,

Benyumiza,

Nekesa

et al. 2024

BioMed Research International

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Background. About 70% (25.6 million) of the global HIV/AIDS burden is from Sub-Saharan Africa. Safe male circumcision (SMC) is one of the measures that were adopted by the Ugandan government aimed at reducing the risk of HIV infection contraction, as recommended by the WHO. Its main goal was to maximize HIV prevention impact with voluntary medical circumcision services to all adult men and adolescent boys. The objective of our study was to assess the knowledge, perception, and practice of safe medical circumcision on HIV infection risk reduction among undergraduate students of a public university in Northern Uganda. Methods. We conducted a cross-sectional survey among 556 randomly selected Lira University undergraduate students from March 2023 to June 2023. With the use of a self-administered questionnaire, we collected data on the knowledge and perceptions of undergraduate students towards safe medical circumcision. Data were exported to Stata® 17 statistical software. Univariate, bivariate, and multivariate regression analyses were done at a statistical level of significance P value < 0.05. Results. Our 556 study participants had an age range of 21-25 years. The majority (81.29%) of the respondents knew that safe medical circumcision reduces the risk of acquiring HIV. However, the perception is that close to 3 in 4 (74.46%) of the students were unsure if they would opt for safe medical circumcision as risk reduction measure against HIV. The practice of safe medical circumcision was 64.8% among the study participants. Conclusions. More than three in four of the undergraduate students have knowledge on safe medical circumcision as risk reduction measure for HIV infection. And close to 3 in 4 (74.46%) of the student’s perception were unsure if they would opt for safe medical circumcision as risk reduction measure against HIV. The practice of safe medical circumcision was 64.8% among the study participants. Therefore, in an effort to increase SMC’s adoption for HIV/AIDS prevention, the Ministry of Health of Uganda and related stakeholders in health should work hand in hand with university study bodies in order to optimize SMC uptake among university students.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%