Acceptability of antenatal HIV testing in Ireland

To assess the acceptability of antenatal HIV testing. A questionnaire based study. Obstetric outpatient clinic at the Portiuncula Hospital, Galway, Ireland. Women attending the antenatal clinic between May and November 2000. The participating women received pamphlets explaining HIV testing in pregnancy before completing the questionnaire. The questions included assessment of their views towards prenatal HIV testing, perceived benefits and acceptability. Seven hundred and forty-eight questionnaires were distributed. Of these 715 (96%) completed questionnaires were returned out of which 32 (4.5%) were discarded because they were improperly completed. 683 (96%) correctly completed questionnaires were analysed. 650 (95.2%) women agreed that prenatal HIV testing was a good idea and that test was necessary, 17 (2.5%) said test was not a good idea, 30 (4.4%) said test was unnecessary and 16 (2.3%) and 3 (0.4%) women were unsure whether or not test was a good idea and necessary respectively. Three hundred and sixty two (53%) women were of the opinion that prenatal HIV testing was of benefit to the mother and her baby; 301 (44%) to the mother, baby and the health workers; 14 (2%) to the baby; and 3 (0.4%) only to the mother. Only 3 (0.4%) women reported that prenatal HIV testing was of no benefit. The majority of the women, 436 (63.8%) had second level education, 202 (29.6%) received third level and 45 (6.6%) had only primary education. Antenatal HIV testing is acceptable to the majority of the obstetric population studied.