Evaluation of Harsh Reality: A sexual health print-based resource for street-involved youth

Introduction: Street-involved youth are one of the populations most at risk for elevated rates of sexually transmitted and bloodborne infections. This paper evaluates the suitability and success of a resource focused on health education with a population of street-involved youth in Winnipeg, Canada. Method: Using a mixed method approach, quantitative and qualitative data were collected and analysed. Surveys involving both structured and semi-structured questions were administered orally to 100 participants. Three gender-stratified focus groups (total of 23 participants) were also conducted. Focus groups were recorded and subsequently transcribed. Empirical data was used to calculate frequency distributions, supported by a general inductive analysis of qualitative data. Results: From the interview and focus group data, the majority of participants had a very positive perception of the resource. However, in terms of specific knowledge uptake, participants displayed a lack of recall of the specific items measured in the evaluation, such as local HIV testing facilities, types of HIV tests available and specific information pertaining to recent research conducted in Manitoba with street-involved populations. Conclusion: Both passive distribution of the resource through service-providing institutions and active distribution in the street were effective approaches for exposing a wide range of street-involved youth to the resource. Poor recall of specific knowledge objectives suggests alternate methods of presenting key fact-based information are necessary to increase resource efficiency. Articles must be created at an appropriate reading level for the street-involved population to improve reader engagement. The ability for the target population to identify that the resource is grounded in language, art, interests and lived-experiences of the street-involved youth was well-received and facilitated interest in looking through the resource and credibility of information.