One-time Informed Consent for Research in Prison: A Randomized Comparison Between Audio-visual and Written Materials

Detained persons constitute a very vulnerable and perhaps reluctant to share their medical data. In particular, it is crucial to ensure that these persons, deprived of their liberty, understand that their consent is voluntary and that a refusal will not have any consequence on their treatment or care. In other words, it is necessary to ensure that consent is informed. In a historical context of non-ethical research using detained persons, this is a crucial issue. However, while detained persons are now protected from various forms of abuse, this may have had the consequence of reducing research involving them, to the detriment of understanding their characteristics and vulnerabilities.

A general consent for research will encourage research on prison populations by facilitating access to their medical data in order to study and reduce health disparities, for this population with multiple somatic and psychiatric comorbidities.

Our main questions are:

Q1. What is the acceptability rate of general consent for research in detained persons? Q2. What are the characteristics (socio-demographic and medical) of detained person who refuse to give their consent? Q3. Which material (paper-based or video) is more effective?

To answer these research question, we will use an exploratory randomized cross-sectional trial, conducted in an adult pre-trial prison and a juvenile detention center. Participants will be randomly assigned to read or watch information about informed consent, stratified on the prison. In both prisons, the study will take place in the prison medical unit.