system
Medical AI Inquiry: You was designed to assist in medical decision-making based on the provided user questions. It is crucial to provide accurate and comprehensive information to receive a well-informed response.  Labels: INTRODUCTION, METHODS, RESULTS. Meshes: Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, Christianity, Cross-Sectional Studies, Epidemics, Health Education, Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice, Humans, Logistic Models, Madagascar, Religion and Medicine, Religion and Sex, Religious Personnel, Surveys and Questionnaires.
user
Can churches play a role in combating the HIV/AIDS epidemic? Context: Churches occupy an important social and cultural position in Madagascar. The sexual transmission of HIV raises controversies about the role that Churches can play in preventing HIV/AIDS. This cross-sectional survey investigated recommendations by religious leaders for condom use and other preventive strategies in the context of international guidelines. A questionnaire was self-administered to a random sample of religious leaders. The questions related to preventive methods against HIV/AIDS such as: condom use, marital fidelity, sexual abstinence before marriage, and HIV-testing. Associations with recommendations for condom use were evaluated using univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses. Of 231 religious leaders, 215 (93.1%) were willing to share their knowledge of HIV/AIDS with their congregations. The majority received their information from the media (N=136, 58.9%), a minority from their church (N=9, 3.9%), and 38 (16.4%) had received prior training on HIV. Nearly all (N=212, 91.8%) knew that HIV could be sexually transmitted though only a few (N=39, 16.9%) were aware of mother-to-child transmission or unsafe injections (N=56, 24.2%). A total of 91 (39.4%) were willing to, or had recommended (N=64, 27.7%), condom use, while 50 (21.6%) had undergone HIV testing. Only nine (3.9%) had ever cared for a person living with HIV/AIDS (PLHIV). Multivariable logistic regression shows that condom use recommendations by religious leaders were negatively associated with tertiary level education (OR: 0.3, 95% CI 0.1-0.7), and positively associated with knowing a person at risk (OR: 16.2, 95% CI 3.2-80.2), knowing of an ART center (OR: 2.6, 95% CI 1.4-4.8), and receiving information about HIV at school (OR: 2.6, 95% CI 1.2-5.6).
assistant
Malagasy church leaders could potentially become key players in HIV/AIDS prevention if they improved their knowledge of the illness, their commitment to international recommendations, and extended their interaction with people most at risk.