Perception of Preparatory and High School Students Towards HIV

Background: Voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) for HIV is one of the strategies for HIV/AIDS prevention, and yet, there is very little information on what influences the services in Ethiopia.Objective: To assess the perception and attitude of students towards VCT services using the Health Belief Model.Methods: A cross sectional descriptive study was conducted in October 2016, among Wolita Sodo preparatory and high school students where a multi stage sampling method was used.Results: About 247(74.8) percent of the students had heard about VCT services but less than 50%of them had undergone VCT. 165(75.5%) of the students were willing to undergo VCT. Conclusions: The majority of students had heard about VCT and revealed willingness to undergo VCT. High perceived susceptibility and barriers were associated with low willingness to undergo VCT. On the other hand, students with high perceived benefits showed better willingness to undergo VCT. It is recommended that messages on VCT give emphasis on personal susceptibility to HIV/AIDS and benefits of VCT.