Australian medical students’ attitudes towards HIV and PWH

BACKGROUND: Long-term patient outcomes for people with HIV (PWH) are largely dependent upon provision of quality healthcare. Bias or misinformation influencing care may be present before healthcare workers begin formal training. There are no known studies profiling attitudes of Australian medical students towards PWH. This descriptive study gauged medical students' opinions regarding PWH and their understanding of HIV/AIDS and its transmission. METHODS: A REDCap-based self-administered survey was disseminated to undergraduate and postgraduate Monash University medical students over a 7-week period. The survey closed in March 2024. RESULTS: Of an estimated 1900 enrolled students, we received 136 responses. Of those, 54 identified as male, 81 identified as female, and 1 identified as another gender. The median age was 21 years (range 17-31). There were 48 (35.3%) preclinical and 88 (64.7%) clinical year students. Most preclinical (87.5%) and clinical year (67.0%) students had at least one inaccuracy in their HIV/AIDS knowledge. The majority (107/136, 78.7%) had inaccurate knowledge about HIV transmission. Only 6.8% clinical year students were confident in their ability to counsel a PWH on all relevant aspects of management. Insufficient education was cited by 41.2% of students and 88% felt that further education regarding HIV/AIDS would be beneficial. HIV/AIDS knowledge improved as students progressed through medical school. Bias against PWH was rare. CONCLUSIONS: While bias against PWH was low, this highlighted a crucial gap in students' knowledge and confidence regarding HIV management. These findings underscore a critical need for targeted HIV/AIDS education and training to ensure sustained delivery of quality HIV care.