title: Culturally-adapted and audio-technology assisted HIV/AIDS awareness and education program in rural Nigeria: a cohort study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  HIV-awareness programs tailored toward the needs of rural communities are needed. We sought to quantify change in HIV knowledge in three rural Nigerian villages following an integrated culturally adapted and technology assisted educational intervention.
  
  
  METHODS
  A prospective 14-week cohort study was designed to compare short-term changes in HIV knowledge between seminar-based education program and a novel program, which capitalized on the rural culture of small-group oral learning and was delivered by portable digital-audio technology.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Participants were mostly Moslem (99%), male (53.5%), with no formal education (55%). Baseline HIV knowledge was low (<80% correct answers for 9 of the 10 questions). Knowledge gain was higher (p < 0.0001 for 8 of 10 questions) in the integrated culturally adapted and technology-facilitated (n = 511) compared with the seminar-based (n = 474) program.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Baseline HIV-awareness was low. Culturally adapted, technology-assisted HIV education program is a feasible cost-effective method of raising HIV awareness among low-literacy rural communities.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, Emory University, Atlanta GA, USA. iofotok@emory.edu.
authors.forename: Ighovwerha
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Ofotokun
authors.forename: Jose Nilo G
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Binongo
authors.forename: Eli S
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Rosenberg
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kane
authors.forename: Rick
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ifland
authors.forename: Jeffrey L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Lennox
authors.forename: Kirk A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Easley