Recruitment
RECRUITMENT
Participants were recruited from a variety of settings including, but not limited to, adolescent and primary care health clinics, family planning clinics, HIV testing facilities, gynecology clinics, institutions of higher learning, community-based youth centers, schools, and other community locations. Community education strategies, including use of pelvic models to demonstrate ring insertion, an educational video, and other printed materials were shared individually and in group sessions and via social media platforms to inform potential participants and parents/guardians about the study. Although the study was designed to enroll approximately 300 participants, screening and enrollment on all MTN studies was paused on March 28, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on research operations. Because the study had reached 82% of its accrual target, the study was not reopened for screening and enrollment. Therefore, a total of 247 were enrolled in the study. It was a requirement that at least a third of enrolled participants were aged 16–17 to provide important safety data in this age group. In Uganda, because recruitment of minors from schools was prohibited by the local IRB, emancipated minors from the community, including school dropouts, were targeted. All recruitment materials were approved by sites’ IRBs/Ethics Committees (ECs) prior to use.