Table 3 Key considerations from our focus group study
Study design | • Which communities need to be included in the research and why? • How heterogeneous are these groups (e.g. in terms of cultures, religions, languages, age, education, generation, migration history)? • Which organisations / individuals can advise throughout the study on ethics, access, recruitment, methods, topic guide and dissemination? |
Research team | • Composition of team, including researchers, community and patient partners, and support staff with relevant language and cultural competency skills • Gender - will we need male and female researchers and community facilitators? • Any training needs? |
Institutional procedures | • Check institutional procedures including policies on ethics, translation of materials, and payments to participants |
Costs | • Staff, including those with linguistic and cultural skills • Participant incentives • Translation and transcription • Room hire • Transport and childcare costs • Sufficient time to build relationships, recruit, translate transcripts |
Building relationships | • Contact and visit relevant organisations, support groups, individuals, community centres and places of worship to start building trust and relationships as early as possible • Involve and inform relevant organisations / individuals throughout the study • Invite community organisations and partners to participate in dissemination activities |
Ethics and informed consent | • Verbal, audio or written consent? • Do forms need to be translated into South Asian languages and piloted before use? • Forms need to be as clear, accessible and as short as possible • Who will explain and take consent? |
Recruitment | • Use a range of strategies and sources. This could include local and national Asian TV and radio stations • Does the sample reflect the diversity within and across communities? |
Venue | • How easy is the venue for participants to access? • Transport costs to and from venue |
Focus groups | • How many focus groups will need to be conducted? • Have all relevant communities been included? • Size of groups – smaller groups of around 5–7 participants worked best • Timing – avoid religious festivities and Ramadan; be aware of childcare responsibilities and shift work • Mixed or single-sex groups? • Older and younger participants together or separate? • How will confidentiality be discussed and ensured? • Flexibility - participants may arrive late or leave early due to other responsibilities. Be prepared that there may be more or fewer participants on the day than expected |
Translation and transcription | • Who will do this? • If using community facilitators, what are the strengths and limitations of this? • If using a professional translation agency, how long will they take and how much will it cost? Strengths and limitations? |
Analysis / interpretations | • Involve staff with cultural and linguistic knowledge and skills • Consider presenting findings to participants for feedback |
Reflexivity, power and acknowledgement | • How are the data shaped by various stakeholders? • What can we do to minimise power differentials? • How will all contributors be acknowledged? |
Dissemination | • How will the findings be communicated to stakeholders, including patients and public? • How can community and patient partners be involved in dissemination? • Can we make use of local and national Asian TV and radio stations as avenues for communicating the findings? • Invite community and patient partners to co-author papers and present at conferences |