The Importance of Blood Is Infinite: Conceptions of Blood as Life Force, Rumours and Fear of Trial Participation in a Fulani Village in Rural Gambia.
<h4>Background</h4>Clinical trials require high levels of participation and low drop-out rates to be successful. However, collecting blood samples from individuals recruited into clinical trials can be challenging when there is reticence about blood-taking. In addition to concerns regard...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2016-01-01
|
| Series: | PLoS ONE |
| Online Access: | https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0160464&type=printable |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1850232355161112576 |
|---|---|
| author | Sarah O'Neill Susan Dierickx Joseph Okebe Edgard Dabira Charlotte Gryseels Umberto d'Alessandro Koen Peeters Grietens |
| author_facet | Sarah O'Neill Susan Dierickx Joseph Okebe Edgard Dabira Charlotte Gryseels Umberto d'Alessandro Koen Peeters Grietens |
| author_sort | Sarah O'Neill |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <h4>Background</h4>Clinical trials require high levels of participation and low drop-out rates to be successful. However, collecting blood samples from individuals recruited into clinical trials can be challenging when there is reticence about blood-taking. In addition to concerns regarding the feasibility of medical research, fears of 'blood-stealing' and 'blood-selling' have ethical implications related to cultural sensitivity and informed consent. This study explores anxieties around blood-taking during a malaria treatment trial in the Gambia.<h4>Methods</h4>This case study is based on ethnographic research in one theoretically selected village due to the high reticence to screening for the clinical trial 'Primaquine's gametocytocidal efficacy in malaria asymptomatic carriers treated with dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine' carried out in the Gambia between 2013 and 2014. Data collection tools included in-depth interviews, participant observation, informal conversations and group discussions.<h4>Results</h4>In total only 176 of 411 habitants (42%) in the village accepted having a bloodspot taken to screen for malaria. Although trial recruitment was initially high in the village, some families refused screening when rumours started spreading that the trial team was taking too much blood. Concerns about 'loss of blood' were equated to loss of strength and lack of good food to replenish bodily forces. Families in the study village were concerned about the weakness of their body while they had to harvest their crops at the time of recruitment for the trial.<h4>Conclusion</h4>A common recommendation to prevent and avoid rumours against public health interventions and trials is the provision of full and consistent information during the consent procedure, which is assumed to lead to more accurate knowledge of the purpose of the intervention and increased trial participation. However, even when information provision is continuous, the emergence of rumours can be related to times of uncertainty and perceptions of vulnerability, which are often a reflection of structural inequalities and diverging value orientations between communities and public health institutions. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-8003f5ebeaa14dadb0618148a8ff9071 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1932-6203 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2016-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS ONE |
| spelling | doaj-art-8003f5ebeaa14dadb0618148a8ff90712025-08-20T02:03:13ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032016-01-01118e016046410.1371/journal.pone.0160464The Importance of Blood Is Infinite: Conceptions of Blood as Life Force, Rumours and Fear of Trial Participation in a Fulani Village in Rural Gambia.Sarah O'NeillSusan DierickxJoseph OkebeEdgard DabiraCharlotte GryseelsUmberto d'AlessandroKoen Peeters Grietens<h4>Background</h4>Clinical trials require high levels of participation and low drop-out rates to be successful. However, collecting blood samples from individuals recruited into clinical trials can be challenging when there is reticence about blood-taking. In addition to concerns regarding the feasibility of medical research, fears of 'blood-stealing' and 'blood-selling' have ethical implications related to cultural sensitivity and informed consent. This study explores anxieties around blood-taking during a malaria treatment trial in the Gambia.<h4>Methods</h4>This case study is based on ethnographic research in one theoretically selected village due to the high reticence to screening for the clinical trial 'Primaquine's gametocytocidal efficacy in malaria asymptomatic carriers treated with dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine' carried out in the Gambia between 2013 and 2014. Data collection tools included in-depth interviews, participant observation, informal conversations and group discussions.<h4>Results</h4>In total only 176 of 411 habitants (42%) in the village accepted having a bloodspot taken to screen for malaria. Although trial recruitment was initially high in the village, some families refused screening when rumours started spreading that the trial team was taking too much blood. Concerns about 'loss of blood' were equated to loss of strength and lack of good food to replenish bodily forces. Families in the study village were concerned about the weakness of their body while they had to harvest their crops at the time of recruitment for the trial.<h4>Conclusion</h4>A common recommendation to prevent and avoid rumours against public health interventions and trials is the provision of full and consistent information during the consent procedure, which is assumed to lead to more accurate knowledge of the purpose of the intervention and increased trial participation. However, even when information provision is continuous, the emergence of rumours can be related to times of uncertainty and perceptions of vulnerability, which are often a reflection of structural inequalities and diverging value orientations between communities and public health institutions.https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0160464&type=printable |
| spellingShingle | Sarah O'Neill Susan Dierickx Joseph Okebe Edgard Dabira Charlotte Gryseels Umberto d'Alessandro Koen Peeters Grietens The Importance of Blood Is Infinite: Conceptions of Blood as Life Force, Rumours and Fear of Trial Participation in a Fulani Village in Rural Gambia. PLoS ONE |
| title | The Importance of Blood Is Infinite: Conceptions of Blood as Life Force, Rumours and Fear of Trial Participation in a Fulani Village in Rural Gambia. |
| title_full | The Importance of Blood Is Infinite: Conceptions of Blood as Life Force, Rumours and Fear of Trial Participation in a Fulani Village in Rural Gambia. |
| title_fullStr | The Importance of Blood Is Infinite: Conceptions of Blood as Life Force, Rumours and Fear of Trial Participation in a Fulani Village in Rural Gambia. |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Importance of Blood Is Infinite: Conceptions of Blood as Life Force, Rumours and Fear of Trial Participation in a Fulani Village in Rural Gambia. |
| title_short | The Importance of Blood Is Infinite: Conceptions of Blood as Life Force, Rumours and Fear of Trial Participation in a Fulani Village in Rural Gambia. |
| title_sort | importance of blood is infinite conceptions of blood as life force rumours and fear of trial participation in a fulani village in rural gambia |
| url | https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0160464&type=printable |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT sarahoneill theimportanceofbloodisinfiniteconceptionsofbloodaslifeforcerumoursandfearoftrialparticipationinafulanivillageinruralgambia AT susandierickx theimportanceofbloodisinfiniteconceptionsofbloodaslifeforcerumoursandfearoftrialparticipationinafulanivillageinruralgambia AT josephokebe theimportanceofbloodisinfiniteconceptionsofbloodaslifeforcerumoursandfearoftrialparticipationinafulanivillageinruralgambia AT edgarddabira theimportanceofbloodisinfiniteconceptionsofbloodaslifeforcerumoursandfearoftrialparticipationinafulanivillageinruralgambia AT charlottegryseels theimportanceofbloodisinfiniteconceptionsofbloodaslifeforcerumoursandfearoftrialparticipationinafulanivillageinruralgambia AT umbertodalessandro theimportanceofbloodisinfiniteconceptionsofbloodaslifeforcerumoursandfearoftrialparticipationinafulanivillageinruralgambia AT koenpeetersgrietens theimportanceofbloodisinfiniteconceptionsofbloodaslifeforcerumoursandfearoftrialparticipationinafulanivillageinruralgambia AT sarahoneill importanceofbloodisinfiniteconceptionsofbloodaslifeforcerumoursandfearoftrialparticipationinafulanivillageinruralgambia AT susandierickx importanceofbloodisinfiniteconceptionsofbloodaslifeforcerumoursandfearoftrialparticipationinafulanivillageinruralgambia AT josephokebe importanceofbloodisinfiniteconceptionsofbloodaslifeforcerumoursandfearoftrialparticipationinafulanivillageinruralgambia AT edgarddabira importanceofbloodisinfiniteconceptionsofbloodaslifeforcerumoursandfearoftrialparticipationinafulanivillageinruralgambia AT charlottegryseels importanceofbloodisinfiniteconceptionsofbloodaslifeforcerumoursandfearoftrialparticipationinafulanivillageinruralgambia AT umbertodalessandro importanceofbloodisinfiniteconceptionsofbloodaslifeforcerumoursandfearoftrialparticipationinafulanivillageinruralgambia AT koenpeetersgrietens importanceofbloodisinfiniteconceptionsofbloodaslifeforcerumoursandfearoftrialparticipationinafulanivillageinruralgambia |