Gaber Jessica, Kerrigan Carolyne, Grenada Iridian M, Kief Nicole, Metcalfe Jen, Kouyoumdjian Fiona G
Department of Family Medicine, McMaster University , Hamilton, ON, Canada.
Faculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.
Arch Public Health. 2025 May 28;83(1):137. doi: 10.1186/s13690-025-01619-y.
Within the unique structural, procedural, and social contexts of prisons, there are substantial challenges to conducting health research. Sharing approaches that facilitate study planning and implementation could support future research and foster critical discussion regarding best practices. During a qualitative study, we developed strategies to navigate the challenges of conducting research with participants who were currently incarcerated in prisons across Canada, including in participant recruitment, participation, and benefits. We found that creativity, flexibility, and responsiveness were key to surmounting barriers, mitigating risks, and optimizing study value. Our findings can be of value to other people conducting health research in prisons.
在监狱独特的结构、程序和社会环境中,开展健康研究面临诸多重大挑战。分享有助于研究规划和实施的方法能够为未来的研究提供支持,并促进关于最佳实践的批判性讨论。在一项定性研究中,我们制定了一些策略,以应对与加拿大各地监狱中在押参与者开展研究时遇到的挑战,这些挑战包括参与者招募、参与及收益等方面。我们发现,创造力、灵活性和响应能力是克服障碍、降低风险以及优化研究价值的关键。我们的研究结果可能对其他在监狱中开展健康研究的人员具有参考价值。