Following the US Supreme Court’s decision to legalize same-sex marriage nationwide in the US on Friday, a new iPhone app will conduct the first large-scale, long-term health study of people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (LGBTQ), or another sexual or gender minority.
The new “PRIDE study” conducted through an Apple ResearchKit app developed by the University of California San Francisco, will allow scientists and doctors to better target medical concerns that occur within minority sexuality and gender communities– ultimately improving the overall health of LGBTQ people.
“In order for the community to thrive — not just survive — we need to incorporate LGBTQ people into all facets of life, including health and research,” said Juno Obedin-Maliver, clinical fellow at the University of California, San Francisco. “We need to understand their needs in their own words and voices.”
WHAT IS THE PRIDE STUDY?
Called PRIDE for “Population Research in Identity and Disparities for Equality,” the study aims to allow healthcare providers to understand how the wellbeing, lives, thoughts and experiences of LGBTQ or other sexual and gender minority people, change over time.
The scientific community will be able to learn more about the attitudes, risk factors and outcomes for a diverse range of conditions and diseases – ranging from HIV/AIDS to depression – for this specific group.
“Everyone’s participation in the PRIDE Study makes an impact by adding information that we can use to promote health and combat disease,” researchers explained.
BRIDGING THE INFORMATION GAP
LGBTQ people continue to face unique health and healthcare disparities that stem from discrimination and stigma, resulting in sexual orientation and gender identity not being collected in most health studies.
Basically, there is a huge data vacuum in terms of how sexual orientation and gender identity affect health.
Prior to this app, researchers have had a very difficult time addressing the health concerns of this specified community, as discrimination has prevented many from speaking out about their health problems.
According to the team behind the PRIDE study, there is strength in numbers. “With each additional participant, our data become stronger, and our community becomes healthier.”
DISCRIMINATION OF LGBTQ PEOPLE
The study will also investigate some of the discrimination that LGBTQ people face during their treatment.
According to a recent report by Lambda Legal, while many of us feel vulnerable when seeking health care services, for LGBT people that vulnerability is often exacerbated by disrespectful attitudes, discriminatory treatment, inflexible or prejudicial policies and even refusals of essential care.
“These barriers, in turn, can result in poorer health outcomes and often have serious and even catastrophic consequences,” researchers wrote. According to the study, more than half of all respondents reported that they have experienced discrimination in health care.
Similarly, a research from the Wayne State School of Social Work, examining data from the National Transgender Discrimination Survey (2008-09), found that 41% of transgender men reported being “denied or refused care, verbally harassed, or physically assaulted in a doctor’s office or hospital.”
THE RESULTS FROM PRIDE WILL MAKE A DIFFERENCE
Collaborating with LGBTQ individuals over time will help researchers promote health and combat disease in the community.
The results from this “longitudinal cohort study” will be shared directly with participants and the medical community through publications and conferences. Relevant resources will also be made available to everyone through The PRIDE Study website.
The study is open to all LGBTQ or another sexual or gender minority adults aged 18 years or older that currently live in the United States. For more information, click here.
