VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA – This summer, Community-Based Research Centre (CBRC) will be hitting the road to collect data at more than twenty-four Pride festivals across Canada for Sex Now, the country’s largest and longest running health survey of gay, bisexual, queer, and trans men and Two-Spirit and non-binary people (GBT2Q). This will be the first in-person data collection for the study in four years.
“COVID-19 has challenged our ability to engage GBT2Q communities in in-person research. We are thrilled to be back in the field this summer working with community members face-to-face,” says Ben Klassen, Sex Now Research Manager.
Developed by CBRC with recruitment from coast to coast to coast in several languages (English, French, and Spanish), Sex Now has been collecting and sharing valuable data on the physical and mental health of the country’s GBT2Q people for more than twenty years. The information collected is made publicly available to community organizations and policy makers to use in advocating for better programs and resources that help improve health outcomes for GBT2Q people. In recent years, Sex Now data has been used to help end conversion therapy practices in Canada, reform Health Canada’s blood donation policy, and inform other public health strategies and services.
Conducted in partnership between CBRC, REACH Nexus, the Canadian HIV Trials Network and local community organizations across the country, Sex Now 2022: Let’s Get Physical will take place from June to September at Pride festivals across the country. Participants will be asked to complete a short electronic survey on a tablet or their own device, which will ask questions related to their sex life, substance use, mental health, service access and more.
Through our Test Now program, participants will also have the option of completing an HIV self-test as part of the study. “Many queer and trans folks experience stigma when accessing sexual health services. By connecting with GBT2Q in queer and trans friendly spaces, like Pride Festivals, we will be able to provide stigma-free low barrier access through HIV self-testing,” says Chris Draenos, CBRC’s National STBBI Testing and Linkage Implementation Manager. The goal of the Test Now program is to empower GBT2Q people of all HIV statuses to overcome barriers to conventional HIV testing for themselves, their partners, and their friends, and facilitate access to care. All Sex Now participants will be provided with a small honorarium as a thank you for their time.
For more information and a complete list of participating Pride festivals, please visit sexnowsurvey.com. Please note that in some cities, CBRC will be visiting additional GBT2Q spaces, such as bars and bathhouses.
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For interviews, please contact:
Christopher DiRaddo
CBRC’s Associate Director, Communications
[email protected]
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