Due to necessary scheduled maintenance, the JMIR Publications website will be unavailable from Wednesday, July 01, 2020 at 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM EST. We apologize in advance for any inconvenience this may cause you.
Who will be affected?
Readers: No access to all 28 journals. We recommend accessing our articles via PubMed Central
Authors: No access to the submission form or your user account.
Reviewers: No access to your user account. Please download manuscripts you are reviewing for offline reading before Wednesday, July 01, 2020 at 7:00 PM.
Editors: No access to your user account to assign reviewers or make decisions.
Copyeditors: No access to user account. Please download manuscripts you are copyediting before Wednesday, July 01, 2020 at 7:00 PM.
Wirtz AL, Page KR, Stevenson M, Guillén JR, Ortíz J, López JJ, Ramírez JF, Quijano C, Vela A, Moreno Y, Rigual F, Case J, Hakim A, Hladik W, Spiegel P
HIV Surveillance and Research for Migrant Populations: Protocol Integrating Respondent-Driven Sampling, Case Finding, and Medicolegal Services for Venezuelans Living in Colombia
HIV surveillance and research for migrant populations: a protocol integrating respondent-driven sampling, case finding, and medicolegal services for Venezuelans living in Colombia
Andrea L Wirtz;
Kathleen R Page;
Megan Stevenson;
José Rafael Guillén;
Jennifer Ortíz;
Jhon Jairo López;
Jhon Fredy Ramírez;
Cindy Quijano;
Alejandra Vela;
Yessenia Moreno;
Francisco Rigual;
James Case;
Avi Hakim;
Wolfgang Hladik;
Paul Spiegel
ABSTRACT
Background:
Epidemiologic research among migrant populations is limited by logistical, methodological, and ethical challenges, but necessary for informing public health and humanitarian programming.
Objective:
We describe a methodology to estimate HIV prevalence among Venezuelan migrants in Colombia.
Methods:
Respondent-driven sampling (RDS), a non-probability sampling method, was selected for attributes of reaching highly networked populations without sampling frames and analytic methods that permit estimation of population parameters. RDS was modified to permit electronic referral of peers via SMS and Whatsapp. Participants complete socio-behavioral surveys and rapid HIV and syphilis screening tests with confirmatory testing. HIV treatment is not available for migrants who have entered Colombia through irregular pathways; thus, medicolegal services integrated into post-test counseling provide staff lawyers and legal assistance to participants diagnosed with HIV or syphilis for sustained access to treatment through the national health system. Case finding is integrated into RDS to allow partner referral. The study is implemented by a local community-based organization providing HIV support services and related legal services for Venezuelans in Colombia.
Results:
Data collection launched in four cities in July and August 2021. As of November 2021, 3,105 of the target 6,100 participants were enrolled.
Conclusions:
Tailored methods that combine community-led efforts with innovations in sampling and linkage to care can aid in advancing health research for migrant and displaced populations. Worldwide trends in displacement and migration underscore the value of improved methods for translation to humanitarian and public health programming.
Citation
Please cite as:
Wirtz AL, Page KR, Stevenson M, Guillén JR, Ortíz J, López JJ, Ramírez JF, Quijano C, Vela A, Moreno Y, Rigual F, Case J, Hakim A, Hladik W, Spiegel P
HIV Surveillance and Research for Migrant Populations: Protocol Integrating Respondent-Driven Sampling, Case Finding, and Medicolegal Services for Venezuelans Living in Colombia