Abstract
Background
Transgender women (TW) are at disproportionate risk of acquiring HIV, but their participation in HIV treatment and prevention studies remains low. This manuscript aims to evaluate TW’s perspectives on study recruitment and retention to provide insights to researchers on designing a cohort study for this population.
Methods
Thirteen TW who were at least 18 years and living in Bangkok, Thailand, were recruited by purposive sampling in January 2017–February 2017. All participated in a focus group discussion, and five participated in the additional one-on-one in-depth interviews. Thematic analysis was performed from the interview transcripts to identify themes regarding cohort study recruitment and retention.
Results
The median (interquartile range, IQR) age of 25.8 (23.4–29.1) with 23.1% and 69.2% identified as females and TW, respectively, participated in the study. The analysis shows that TW highly value friendship, and maintaining a good relationship with the participants will improve recruitment and retention. Further, TW also suggested employing well-connected and respected TW influencers and community leaders to facilitate recruitment and retention, especially through online platforms. Other facilitators include having the opportunities to learn more about HIV and access to TW-friendly healthcare service, while the barriers are competing priorities and lack of a TW-centered approach.
Conclusion/Policy Implication
This study elucidates the existing barriers and facilitators to research participation for TW. The findings also underscore the importance of involving study participants in designing research to ensure that the study is acceptable and culturally appropriate for TW to participate.
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Acknowledgements
We are grateful to all the participants who participated in this study. We also thank all the staff at the Institute of HIV Research and Innovation for their kind administrative assistance and staff at Thai Red Cross Anonymous Clinic, Rainbow Sky Association of Thailand, and Service Workers in Group Foundation who helped recruited the participants.
Funding
This study was funded by the Thai Red Cross AIDS Research Centre.
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This research project was approved by the Human Research Ethics committee at Chulalongkorn University (IRB:158/56; NCT:02437981). Prospective participants were informed about the study, including methods, interview process, and possible benefits and risks. Those who agreed to participate signed written informed consent. The participants were also informed that they could refuse or withdraw to participate at any time. If they chose to do so, our participants were informed that the decision would not affect the services they receive at their respective health centers.
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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.
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Seekaew, P., Janumnuaysook, R., Lujintanon, S. et al. Perspectives of Transgender Women Toward Study Recruitment and Retention: Thematic Analysis from Thailand. Sex Res Soc Policy 19, 638–646 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13178-021-00579-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13178-021-00579-6