Navigating the Challenges of Global Reproductive Health Research

Abstract

Reproductive health research in low-resource settings poses unique and complex challenges that must be addressed to ensure that global research is conducted with strict adherence to ethical principles, offers direct benefit to the research subjects, and has the potential for adoption of positive findings to the target population. This article addresses challenges to conducting reproductive health research in low-resource settings in the following areas: (1) establishment and maintenance of global collaboration, (2) community partnerships, (3) ethical issues, including informed consent and the role of incentives, (4) staff training and development, (5) data collection and management, and (6) infrastructure and logistics. Particular attention to these challenges is important to ensure that research is culturally appropriate and methodologically sound and enhances the adoption of health-promoting behaviors. Rigorous evaluation of interventions in low-resource settings may be a cost-effective and time-efficient way to identify interventions for large-scale program replication to improve women's health.

Building Connections While Conducting Qualitative Health Fieldwork in Vietnam

“…In order to establish connections at the microlevel of social capital, all persons involved in conducting a study need to determine their collective goals, lay out their roles and tasks, and learn to trust and support one another over time (Stenson et al, 2010). We found that working alongside qualified and dedicated interpreters as coresearchers helped us to establish connections to the community, not only when working toward the mutual goals of the project but also when developing study tools and during the analysis and dissemination phases of our studies.…”

“…It is common for international researchers to experience resistance from local and national government systems when trying to implement health research projects that involve sensitive subjects such as reproductive health or HIV/AIDS (Stenson, Kapungu, Geller, & Miller, 2010). We experienced significant setbacks due to our lack of knowledge about Northern Vietnam's government landscape prior to entering the field.…”

Conducting Environmental Health Research in the Arabian Middle East: Lessons Learned and Opportunities

“…All research was conducted in accordance with UNC IRB and UAEU IRB approvals. The burden of combining multiple IRB protocol reviews has been noted by other researchers ( Sly et al 2009 ; Stenson et al 2010 ). Although required by the IRB at our research university, minor protocol modifications, such as wording changes to the questionnaire for improved clarity or informed consent language simplification, were not standard practice in the UAE.…”

“…Cultural differences also influenced review of the informed consent agreement with household participants. Sly et al (2009) and Stenson et al (2010) discussed the difficulties of obtaining informed consent from study participants in developing countries where local ethical standards differ from global standards. The perception of the individual as autonomous is not necessarily valid in societies where a communal framework is the norm ( Bhutta 2004 ; Stenson et al 2010 ).…”

“… Sly et al (2009) and Stenson et al (2010) discussed the difficulties of obtaining informed consent from study participants in developing countries where local ethical standards differ from global standards. The perception of the individual as autonomous is not necessarily valid in societies where a communal framework is the norm ( Bhutta 2004 ; Stenson et al 2010 ). These researchers cite an example in rural India where village elders made decisions for their entire community ( Geller et al 2006 ).…”