Correlation between peer-group support and behavior of preventing opportunistic infection in early adult people living with HIV/AIDS

Introduction: Opportunistic infections are still leading cause of death for people living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in Indonesia.Support and motivation-surrounded environment is one of the factors that can influence the behavior of people living with HIV (PLWHA) to prevent opportunistic infections.The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between peer-group support, demographic factor, and behavior of preventing opportunistic infections in early adulthood PLWHA.Material and methods: PLWHA as respondent, correlational study with a cross-sectional approach.Ninety-eight respondents who have fulfilled inclusion criteria were selected through purposive sampling.Independent variable in this study was peer-group support, and dependent variable was opportunistic infection prevention behavior.Data were collected through a questionnaire, and analyzed using logistic regression test, with a statistical significance < 0.05.Results: Peer-support in couple community has good informational support and rewards.Opportunistic infection prevention behavior of the respondents included behavior-seeking information, routine treatment, vigilance, and high awareness of transmission.There was a significant correlation between peergroup support (p = 0.000) and employment status of PLWHA (p = 0.034) with opportunistic infection prevention behavior.Conclusions: Peer-group support has a strong relationship with behavior of preventing opportunistic infections in PLWHA in early adulthood.This is in accordance with the stating that peer-support is one of the driving factors which can change a person's behavior.