Age and regional disparity in HIV education among migrants in China: Migrants population dynamic monitoring survey, 2014-2015

Objective: A lack of education among migrants remains an important but overlooked issue that indirectly contributes to HIV transmission. It is necessary to know who has received HIV education and who has a lower probability of being educated among migrants across different regions and age groups in China. Methods: We used pooled data from the 2014 and 2015 Migrants Population Dynamic Monitoring Survey. The study population included 406,937 Chinese migrants. Participants were asked whether they had received any HIV education after migrating to the destination city. Regions were categorized into east-coast, central, northwest, southwest, west-Tibet, west-Uyghur, and northeast regions. Hierarchical logistic regression modeling was conducted to investigate the relationships between the independent variables and HIV education. Results: Of 406,937 participants, half (50.6%) had reported receiving HIV education. Individuals in the west-Uyghur region had the highest proportion of receiving HIV education (73.0%), followed by the southwest region (67.9%) and the west-Tibet region (54.8%). Methods of receiving HIV education varied among different age groups. Individuals who were in a region with a higher prevalence of HIV, a lower density of medical professionals, and a higher density of migrants were more likely to receive HIV education. Conclusions: The study showed significant regional disparities among migrants in China. More HIV resources need to be allocated to regions with large-scale floating populations, such as the east-coast region. Providing multiple options, including both new and traditional media, for both young and elderly migrants is essential. HIV education should be tailored to the age of migrants with low educational and income levels.