Gender and Sexual Minority Research in the Digital Society

The chapter aims to deepen the theme of the participation of gender and sexual minorities in social research, with a specific focus on the new possibilities offered by the digital society. After defining the concept of “hidden populations” or “hard -to -reach populations,” the contribution focuses on the factors of greatest vulnerability of the LGBT population. Subsequently, the chapter aims to review the literature regarding the barriers to the sampling, recruitment, participation, and involvement of sexual and gender minorities, highlighting some strategies to overcome some of the main barriers, through a plurality of innovative procedures made possible by the so-called digital society.

Mentoring in Medicine (MIM): Motivating and enabling disadvantaged youth to become the next generation of minority health professionals

Mentoring in Medicine, Inc (MIM) is a nonprofit health and science youth development organization based in the Bronx, NY. Founded in 2006 by three physicians and an engineer- trained entrepreneur, MIM’s organizational goal is to expose socioeconomically disadvantaged students to the wide variety of health and science careers and to increase the health literacy of their communities. It is aligned with the outreach mission of the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM) whose former Director, Donald A.B. Lindberg M.D., fostered an enduring relationship. Technical assistance, evaluation, and financial support provided under his leadership helped MIM to become a nationally recognized organization leading the field to diversify health careers and to increase health literacy in often hard to reach populations. Through live and virtual programming, MIM has impacted nearly 58,000 students, parents, and educators in urban epicenters in the U.S. The MIM Team has helped 503 students who were discouraged to build a competitive application and matriculate in health professional school. MIM has 88 press features highlighting its work in the community.

Delivery of TB preventive therapy to incarcerated people living with HIV in southern African correctional facilities

TB preventive treatment (TPT) is recommended for high-risk and hard-to-reach populations such as incarcerated people living with HIV (PLHIV). To assess implementation of TPT delivery in correctional settings, we conducted an exploratory analysis of data from a multisite cohort study in South Africa and Zambia. From 975 participants, 648 were screened for TB, and 409 initiated TPT mostly within a month after initiation of antiretroviral therapy (190/409, 46.5%). We observed a median gap of one month (IQR 0.6–4.7) in TPT delivery to incarcerated PLHIV. Future research should examine standardised quality improvement tools and new strategies such as short-course regimens to improve TPT initiation in this population.

Relationship between high rates of intestinal parasitic infections and knowledge, attitudes, and practices of Ndelele Health District populations (East Region, Cameroon): a cross-sectional mixed approach

BackgroundIntestinal parasitic infections remain of public health concern worldwide, especially among rural and poorest populations as a consequence of precariousness, lack of sanitation, non-availability of potable water and poor hygiene conditions. The present study aimed to better understand the epidemiology of intestinal parasitic infections in rural areas of forested Cameroon.MethodologyA cross-sectional survey was conducted in three Health Areas (Ndelele, Kentzou and Lolo) of the Ndelele Health District (East Region, Cameroon). Information on socio-demographic characteristics, knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding intestinal parasitic infections were collected using a semi-structured questionnaire. Stool samples were collected and analyzed by the Kato-Katz and formalin-ether concentration techniques to complement simple direct examination.Principal FindingsA total of 406 individuals belonging to three main groups (Kako or Bantu, Baka or Pygmies and Central African Republic refugees) were enrolled in the study. The overall intestinal parasitic infection rate was 74.9%, including 57.2% cases of polyparasitism. Fourteen parasite species were identified, 89.1% being intestinal protozoa and 41.8% belonging to helminths. Infections with helminths were associated with Baka (P < 0.0001). Spring water consumption was associated with hookworm infection (OR = 3.87; P = 0.008). Garbage deposited near houses was positively associated with infection with Giardia lamblia (OR = 3.41; P = 0.003). Polyparasitism was positively linked to washing hand without soap before meal (OR= 11.64; p= 0.002).Conclusion/SignificanceIntestinal parasitic infections exhibited high rates in the Ndelele Health District, especially among indigenous and hard-to-reach populations (Pygmies). Hygiene measures appear as the main drivers sustaining transmission, and targeted strategies should be developed to efficiently fight against these debilitating diseases.Author summaryIntestinal parasitic infections such as soil transmitted helminthiasis and schistosomiasis, remain a public health concern in Cameroon. To better understand the epidemiology of these infections in hard-to-reach populations in rural areas, a cross-sectional study was carried out in three health areas of Ndelele health District in the Eastern-Cameroon. The rate of intestinal parasitic infections was high (74.9%) especially in indigenous populations (Baka-Pygmies) which exhibited high prevalence of soil transmitted helminth infections (83.3%). The study confirmed that the lack of sanitation and poor hygiene largely contribute to the endemicity of intestinal parasitic infections, particularly among indigenous populations. Targeted control strategies seem mandatory to reach these populations and offer them appropriate care to interrupt or reduce the transmission of these diseases.

Unique Opportunities and Challenges From Two Online Psychosocial Randomized Clinical Trials

Research aimed at testing readily delivered online psychosocial interventions for addressing the needs of custodial grandfamilies (CGF) has been scarce. This symposium reports on two NIH-funded randomized clinical trials (RCT) involving fully online interventions: Study 1 (S1)-dyadic social Intelligence training for custodial grandmothers and their adolescent grandchildren, and Study 2 (S2)-4 week resourcefulness training with daily journaling intervention for grandmothers only. We presented here on the unique advantages and challenges of online RCTs as they apply to CGFs and similar hard-to-reach populations. First, in a cross-study collaboration, Jeanblanc et al. report data from both studies on how COVID-19 influenced coping habits, grandchild’s remote learning, household conflict, uncertainty, and finances. Second, Castro et al. investigate how baseline positive and negative affect were reported in daily diaries completed by both grandmothers and grandchildren across 14 days at pretest in S1. Third, Musil et al. describe the challenges and benefits of using an entirely online design for the distribution and collection of longitudinal data, as exemplified by 4 weeks of qualitative daily journals from S2. Lastly, Webster et al. report on the benefits and challenges of recruitment and retention strategies encountered across S1 and S2. As discussant, Rachel Pruchno considers how the specific methodological advantages and disadvantages of online RCTs covered in the above papers apply to family caregiving research in general.

Designing Participatory Aging Research on Exclusion From Social Relations: A Citizen Science Project

Many policies and initiatives aim at enhancing the social participation of older adults. Despite this growing interest in increasing social inclusion and combating social exclusion in older age, the voices of socially-excluded older adults and their experiences remain underrepresented in research. Based on data from the Austrian research project “Socially Excluded Older Adults: Voices and Experiences” (SEVEN), I reflect on what it means to co-create research with the hard-to-reach populations of socially excluded older adults. Data discussed is derived By inviting this group to participate in each stage of the research, the project develops an innovative approach that, on the one hand, facilitates and advances ways for socially-excluded older adults to express their voices, thereby empowering them and their self-advocacy, and, on the other hand, creates research insights that are able to grasp the life worlds of older, socially excluded adults more accurately.

Comparisons Between Recruitment and Retention Strategies for Two Online RCTs

Custodial grandfamilies (CGF) comprise a small, diverse group of the US population which can make samples difficult to recruit and retain. Two online RCT studies (S1 & S2) for CGF used a variety of recruitment strategies with varying success. S1, for grandmothers (GM) only, successfully recruited from Facebook (47.95%) and community flyers (17.73%). S2, dyadic study for GM and adolescent grandchildren (AGC), recruited through emails to high school counselors (43.29%) and community (30.94%) and professional (17.13%) kinship support organizations. The advantages of online RCTs for hard-to-reach populations include expedited administration, buffering against social distancing, nationwide enrollment (S1-42 states; S2-43 states), and generalizability of findings. Challenges of online RCTs are establishing rapport and building trust with participants who are not comfortable with technology and designing screenings to identify false participants. Overall, these studies highlight the advantages of an online RCT, especially for hard-to-reach populations like custodial grandfamilies.