BUSINESS WIRE; Tuesday June 23, 11:54 am EST
"This survey shows that people do, in fact, recognize how important HIV testing is, and want to bring up the subject," said Richard A. Quattrocchi, president of Home Access Health Corporation. "Generating basic awareness about HIV is no longer the issue. Today, it's about making it easier for people to take action for their own personal health and well-being."
People interested in receiving a free "Ask Yourself" medical consultation can call 1-800-HIV-TEST and speak to a trained professional throughout the entire day and evening on Saturday, June 27th.
The National Survey on Public Attitudes toward HIV Testing was conducted by Market Facts, Inc. of Arlington Heights, IL through its TeleNation service and was funded by Home Access Health. The survey polled people who had been tested for HIV as well as people who had not been tested.
Among people surveyed who had been tested for HIV, 81 percent of people opted to take an HIV test by themselves, and 17 percent opted to test with a friend or partner. Most people (63 percent) responded that they had been "unconcerned" about their test result, while 23 percent responded that they were a "little anxious", 6 percent responded that they had been "fairly anxious", and 6 percent responded that they were "extremely anxious" during the test process.
In addition, most people are split about sharing their test result with others. Among people surveyed, 56 percent shared their test result with others and 42 percent did not share their test result.
Among people who had not been tested for HIV, the survey found some interesting attitudes. For example, close to 50 percent of people responded that they view it as their individual responsibility to bring up the subject of HIV testing. However, when asked how often during the past ten years in how many physical relationships in which HIV testing was discussed, responses varied considerably. 2.5 percent of people responded that they had discussed HIV testing in "every relationship"; 4 percent responded in "most of them"; 5 percent responded in "some of them"; 3 percent responded "very few of them"; 18 percent responded as in "none of them"; and, 36 percent responded that they had only one relationship and it was "not discussed".
Other findings suggest that among people not tested, there is a healthy degree of distrust regarding other people's behavior. While 67 percent of people surveyed "strongly agreed" that the best protection was to have your partner tested, only 13 percent of people responded that they would be very likely to take someone's word that they had tested for HIV and are currently negative. Home Access Health, the leader in telemedicine, markets the only at-home HIV test approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Home Access Express(R) (results in three days) and Home Access(R) (results in seven days) allow people to conveniently and anonymously test for HIV from the privacy of their home.
Professional counselors are available for assistance 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Test results have been clinically proven to be as accurate as HIV tests administered by doctors and hospitals. Data from the Home Access clinical trials has been peer reviewed and published in the American Medical Association's Archives of Internal Medicine (Vol. 157, 2/10/97).
Home Access HIV tests are also available by mail by calling 1 800 HIV-TEST and are carried in more than 30,000 drugstores and drug wholesale distributors throughout the US including: AmeriSource, Bindley Western, Bergen Brunswig, Brooks, Cardinal Health, CVS Corporation [NYSE:CVS - news], Dillons, Drug Emporium, Dominicks, Duane Reade, Eckerd Drug, Farmacias El Amal, Genovese, Giant Eagle, Giant Foods, Kroger, Longs Drug Stores, McKesson Drug Company, Meijer, Osco, Pharmhouse, Phar-Mor, Revco, Rite Aid, Sav-On, ShopKO, Synder, Thrifty PayLess, Vons, Walgreens, and Wal-Mart.
More information about Home Access Health can be found at the website www.homeaccess.com.
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HOME ACCESS HEALTH CORPORATION'S NATIONAL SURVEY ON PUBLIC ATTITUDES TOWARD HIV TESTING
SURVEY HIGHLIGHTS
Between April 24-26, 1998, Market Facts, Inc. of Arlington Heights, IL through its TeleNation service, randomly interviewed 533 people who had first indicated they have never been tested for HIV or have never actively sought to get tested for HIV.
FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. Home Access Health makes no scientific claims regarding the data generated by this survey.
People interested in receiving a copy of the complete National Survey on Public Attitudes Toward HIV Testing can contact Kevin Johnson at 847/781-2504.
Table 1. How likely would you be to consider a potential partner's HIV status before beginning a physical relationship with that partner?
| QUESTION | RESPONSE |
|---|---|
| Very Likely | 54.6% |
| Somewhat Likely | 10.4% |
| Somewhat Unlikely | 4.0% |
| Very Unlikely | 26.7% |
| Don't Know/No Answer | 4.3% |
Table 2. How likely do you think a potential partner would support a request to get tested for HIV before entering into a physical relationship?
| QUESTION | RESPONSE |
|---|---|
| Very Likely | 36.3% |
| Somewhat Likely | 21.8% |
| Somewhat Unlikely | 11.4% |
| Very Unlikely | 12.0% |
| Don't Know/No Answer | 18.5% |
Table 3. What's the likelihood of you being supportive if a potential partner requested you to get tested for HIV before beginning a physical relationship?
| QUESTION | RESPONSE |
|---|---|
| Very Likely | 70.1% |
| Somewhat Likely | 12.3% |
| Somewhat Unlikely | 3.1% |
| Very Unlikely | 8.2% |
| Don't Know/No Answer | 3.3% |
Table 4. Would your feelings about someone change if they required an HIV test from you before entering into a physical relationship?
| QUESTION | RESPONSE |
|---|---|
| More Favorable | 40.7% |
| Feelings Wouldn't Change | 40.5% |
| Less Favorable | 11.3% |
| Don't Know/No Answer | 7.5% |
Table 5. How likely would you be to delay or deny an initial physical encounter with someone until they got tested for HIV?
| QUESTION | RESPONSE |
|---|---|
| Very Likely | 52.3% |
| Somewhat Likely | 14.6% |
| Somewhat Unlikely | 7.1% |
| Very Unlikely | 17.8% |
| Don't Know/No Answer | 8.2% |
Table 6. How likely would you be to take someone's word that they have been tested for HIV and are currently HIV negative?
| QUESTION | RESPONSE |
|---|---|
| Very Likely | 13.0% |
| Somewhat Likely | 24.8% |
| Somewhat Unlikely | 15.3% |
| Very Unlikely | 38.3% |
| Don't Know/No Answer | 8.6% |
Table 7. Who should be responsible for bringing up the subject of HIV testing in a relationship?
| QUESTION | RESPONSE |
|---|---|
| My Own Responsibility | 48.7% |
| Both Equally | 38.2% |
| Partner's Responsibility | 4.8% |
| Don't Know/No Answer | 8.3% |
Table 8. How likely would you be to initiate a discussion about HIV testing if the partner doesn't bring up the subject?
| QUESTION | RESPONSE |
|---|---|
| Very Likely | 56.4% |
| Somewhat Likely | 24.3% |
| Somewhat Unlikely | 5.1% |
| Very Unlikely | 8.0% |
| Don't Know/No Answer | 6.1% |
Table 9. Thinking back over the last ten years, what best describes the number of relationships you've had in which HIV testing was discussed?
| QUESTION | RESPONSE |
|---|---|
| Every Relationship | 2.5% |
| Most of Them | 4.2% |
| Some of Them | 4.7% |
| Very Few of Them | 3.1% |
| None of Them 1 | 8.5% |
| Only One Relationship/ | |
| Discussed 1 | 4.3% |
| Only One Relationship/ | |
| Not Discussed 3 | 6.6% |
| No Relationships 1 | 0.6% |
| Don't Know/No Answer | 5.5% |
Table 10. What is your level of agreement with the following statement? The only way anybody can know with 100% certainty about a partner's HIV status is to have him or her tested for HIV.
| QUESTION | RESPONSE |
|---|---|
| Strongly Agree | 67.2% |
| Somewhat Agree | 19.1% |
| Neither Agree or Disagree | 2.7% |
| Somewhat Disagree | 3.0% |
| Strongly Disagree | 3.7% |
| Don't Know | 2.6% |
EDITOR'S NOTE: National HIV Testing Day is June 27, 1998.
Contact: Home Access Health Kevin Johnson, 847/781-2504 kj@homeaccess.com
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