title: A randomized controlled trial to evaluate the effectiveness of a board game on patients' knowledge uptake of HIV and sexually transmitted diseases at the Infectious Diseases Institute, Kampala, Uganda.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  As the number of HIV infections continues to rise, the search for effective health education strategies must intensify. A new educational board game was developed to increase HIV peoples' attention and knowledge to HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) information. The object of this study was to assess the effect of this educational board game on the uptake of knowledge.
  
  
  METHODS
  A randomized controlled trial where patients attending the Infectious Diseases Clinic, Kampala, Uganda were randomized to either play the board game (intervention arm) or to attend a health talk (standard of care arm). Participants' knowledge was assessed before and after the education sessions through a questionnaire.
  
  
  RESULTS
  One hundred eighty HIV-positive participants were enrolled, 90 for each study arm. The pretest scores were similar for each arm. There was a statistically significant increase in uptake of knowledge of HIV and STIs in both study arms. Compared with patients in the standard of care arm, participants randomized to the intervention arm had higher uptake of knowledge (4.7 points, 95% confidence interval: 3.9 to 5.4) than the controls (1.5 points, 95% confidence interval: 0.9 to 2.1) with a difference in knowledge uptake between arms of 3.2 points (P < 0.001). Additionally, both participants and facilitators preferred the board game to the health talk as education method.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The educational game significantly resulted in higher uptake of knowledge of HIV and STIs. Further evaluation of the impact of this educational game on behavioral change in the short and long term is warranted.
authors.affiliation: Infectious Diseases Institute, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda.
authors.forename: Jane N
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Wanyama
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Castelnuovo
authors.forename: Gavin
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Robertson
authors.forename: Kevin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Newell
authors.forename: Joseph B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Sempa
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kambugu
authors.forename: Yuka C
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Manabe
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Colebunders
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D005717:Games, Experimental; D006678:HIV; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000635:transmission / Q000821:virology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010353:Patient Education as Topic / Q000379:methods*; D012749:Sexually Transmitted Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000635:transmission; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014454:Uganda; D055815:Young Adult