This World AIDS Day (December 1), HIV and sexual health charity Terrence Higgins Trust (THT) is challenging the public to take an online quiz to test whether their understanding of HIV is up to date.
People are being invited to answer six ‘true or false’ questions about HIV, including how the virus is (and isn’t) transmitted, and what a diagnosis means for a person’s life. The quiz will then compute which decade their understanding of HIV sits at: the ‘80s, ‘90s, ‘00s, or – for a perfect score – 2014.
To answer the questions, click here:
Are You Stuck in the ‘80s? has been created to challenge some of the common myths and misconceptions that have persisted around HIV throughout the last 30 years. Last year, a THT study revealed that more than nine out of 10 people living with HIV think the public’s understanding of the condition needs improving, with more than six out of 10 describing it as “poor” or “very poor”.
The study also reported that 83% of people living with HIV could think of a time when they had wanted to disclose their status but didn’t feel able to, mainly due to concerns about people’s negative reactions.
Sonya Trivedy, Fundraising Director at THT, said: “HIV today is in a totally different place from where it was in the 1980s, so it can be frustrating that public attitudes to the condition seem to lag behind. This World AIDS Day, we wanted to do something that didn’t just draw attention to declining awareness but actually provided people with clear facts to bring their knowledge up to date. Please help us by taking the quiz, and sharing it with your friends online.”
In 2013, there were nearly 100,000 people living with HIV in the UK, a quarter of whom were unaware they have the virus.
World AIDS Day is an international event that has been running since 1988 and is dedicated to raising awareness of HIV and AIDS.
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