KNOWLEDGE LEVEL IN HIV/AIDS AMONG ADOLESCENT GIRLS
Adolescence is one of the most crucial periods in the life of an individual (especiallygirls) with changes occurring in their physical, biological and emotional aspects. Unlikeolder adults and boys, the adolescent girls are less likely to get knowledge regardingHIV/AIDS. For girls they attain puberty with a landmark of menstruation. Other than thatcertain emotional and mood changes also occur to them. They face difficulty in handlingthe problems in association with their reproductive health. The need of the day is toaware them regarding their reproductive health. The objective of the study is to assess theknowledge level of HIV/AIDS among adolescent girls, analyze the misconceptionsregarding their knowledge in HIV/AIDS and to share tips for managing reproductivehealth problems associated with HIV/AIDS. The researcher employed DescriptiveResearch Design for her study. The target group was adolescent girls of age group 13-17from Kollam district with a Sample size of 60. Non-probability sampling was used in the study as the study subjects those who are convenient to the researcher. Self-made questionnaire adopted from WHO’s “Illustrative Questionnaire for InterviewSurveys with Young People by John Cleland” is used as the tool for data collection. The major findings of the study were that adolescent girls believed HIV/AIDS as a prolonged life condition and that it affects both physically and mentally. But they had certain misconceptions regarding the mode of transmission, signs and symptoms. Due to their myths and misconceptions they are unaware about how care should be given to improve their knowledge of HIV/AIDS They believe that knowledge of HIV/AIDS provided by their family is more benefit than the knowledge they get from outsiders. The Study attempts to assess the knowledge of HIV/AIDS among adolescent girls and there by providing them knowledge to improve their reproductive health.