3.1.1. Italy
RECRUITMENT
Initially, in Italy, researchers attempted to recruit AYCs in high schools and municipalities but without success, due to the low level of visibility of AYCs. Thus, it was decided to try to engage AYCs with the mediation of public or private health and/or social care services and through condition-specific associations and NGOs working with young persons. In this case, it was a trusted professional that took the initial contact with the parents/guardians to ask for permission and then invited the AYC to participate. Following this, a member of the research staff further contacted the parents and the AYC to provide all the necessary details, respond to questions and organise the collection of the consent forms before proceeding to the screening. The majority of participants were identified in this way. A minority of participants contacted the research team after having found leaflets or online information about the project. In this case, after an initial contact with the AYC, a phone contact with the parents/guardians was sought to provide all the information, secure consent and eventually organise the logistics of the group. The recruitment process took place mostly before the COVID-19 pandemic, while some participants were recruited later but following the same process (i.e., with the mediation of trusted professionals).