Increasing recruitment and retention of Anglophones to a prospective cohort of people who inject drugs in Montreal

People who inject drugs (PWID) are a key population at risk of poor health outcomes and frequently experience difficulties in accessing timely healthcare. Much of the data on PWID in Quebec is derived from samples that are largely or entirely Francophone. As a result, it is not possible to explore differences between language communities in access to care. This project is a collaboration with community organisations to increase the recruitment of English-speakers to an existing longitudinal cohort study of PWID, the HEPCO study, and produce data on access to care stratified by language community. The HEPCO study, based in Montreal, has provided critical data on the health of PWID for nearly 20 years. Activities to increase recruitment and retention of Anglophones to HEPCO will be designed and implemented in partnership with community organisations. HEPCO data will be analysed to assess differences between language communities in access to essential health care, such as harm reduction services, drug treatment services, COVID-19 vaccination, and HIV and hepatitis C testing. This study will inform the development of more inclusive health services. It will also have implications for researchers across Canada by providing insights into approaches for increasing linguistic minority participation in health research.