JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Iris scanning, as a means of human biometric recognition, has been increasingly deployed over the last decade and continues to improve and expand. To better understand the acceptability of this technology, we report the long-term experiences of healthcare provider (HCP) and frontline worker participants with iris scanning as an identification tool in an Ebola vaccine (EBL2007 vaccine trial) trial conducted in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Objective:

To document the long-term experiences with iris scanning for identity verification throughout this vaccine trial

Methods:

Two years after the start of the EBL2007 vaccine trial (February-March 2022), 69 trial participants, comprising of nurses, first-aid workers, midwives, and community health workers, were interviewed using focus group discussions. . Thirteen individual in-depth interviews were conducted with physicians partaking in the trial, iris scan operators, trial staff physicians, and trial participants who declined iris scanning. Qualitative content analysis was utilized to identify significant themes.

Results:

Interviewees had initially widely accepted the iris scan and viewed this tool as a distinctive means to identify individuals participating in the EBL2007 vaccine trial. However, over time, this perception shifted to become less favourable. Some voiced concern that their vision diminished soon after using the tool, and that this continued until the end of the study. Others reported that the perception of diminished vision started long after the end of the clinical trial. However, no vision impairment had been reported as an adverse event or assessed in the trial as being associated with the use of the iris scan, which employs a previously certified safe infrared light for iris scanning.

Conclusions:

Our findings suggest the relevance of continuous efforts to effectively disseminate and repeat information about the functioning and safety of the iris scan technology to potential users. Precise depiction of iris scanning as a harmless procedure could dispel misunderstandings, concerns, and perceived risks among its potential users in a vaccine trial. Clinical Trial: (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT04186000)