The video began with a narrator’s explanation of the aim of the study portrayed in the vignette (“to understand which sexual and drug-sharing behaviors are spreading HIV and hepatitis C infection in the community”) and instructions to focus-group members to “think about whether the research raises issues of respect, fairness, harm, or benefit” to participants.
The vignette begins with the “recruiter’s” initial approach and the actor/potential participant’s response of “Not interested” as he/she turned to walk away.
The recruiter then attempts to get the participant’s attention by saying, “We are giving people $40 to participate in a survey on HIV and drug use. We hope what we learn from the study will help improve drug use and HIV services in this community.”
At this point the participant stops and responds, “Forty dollars? What would I have to do,” and the recruiter explains, “You’d just need to come in to the Center for an hour to answer questions about your drug use and sexual behavior. After that we would do a blood test for HIV and hepatitis C status.”
This is followed by a brief dialogue involving participant questions and explanations by the recruiter about confidentiality protections, the participant’s access to his/her HIV test results, and educational counseling and referrals. The “investigator” makes clear that treatment would not be provided as part of the study.
The vignette ends with the drug user agreeing to an appointment to participate in the research, giving the recruiter his/her name, and responding to the recruiter’s question about whether he/she had used drugs in the past week.
