Sealed Research
knowing the user
Service
Ux Lead volunteering
Client
Lacrei Saúde
Year
2020 to date
Lacrei is the first portal created to gather and strengthen, in one place, the health, legal and psychosocial inclusion of LGBTQIAP+ people. The platform connects the LGBTQIAP+ community – always with respect for the uniqueness of each person – to health professionals, with lawyers and companies prepared to serve us with safety and quality.
Brazil is still one of the most violent countries for the LGBTQIAP+ population. Therefore, we believe that initiatives for the protection and care of our community are increasingly necessary. Improving the quality and life expectancy and experience of LGBTQIAP+ people is the main objective of Lacrei.
Current scenario and problems
Our first step in this research flow was to carry out an immersion stage. First of all, we needed to understand Lacrei's function and the context in which it was inserted. At the same time, we began a process of deepening issues related to diversity, such as neutral language, gender identity and sexuality.
Within this initial discovery process, we analyzed the research materials already existing at Lacrei: two forms with research carried out before the creation of the MVP. The results of these surveys indicated a high interest of G, B and L people in the platform, in addition, we noticed a low participation of trans people and the absence of questions focused on intersectional issues.
We point out as one of the main problems this lack of intersectional guidelines both within the research carried out and in Lacrei itself. With this in mind, we sought to identify in our table survey data that would indicate which overlapping social identities are the most vulnerable, within the LGBTQIA+ spectrum, when we talk about access to health services. We came to the conclusion that these three social identity groups needed more attention in our research stream:
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Black people.
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People who attend gynecologists.
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trans people.
What we seek
With these learnings, we decided that the central point of our first UX research process would be to understand the individualities of these intersectional groups, that is, we would try to focus on collecting data about people with a vagina, people of color and trans people.
The second point of this process was to identify whether the reach of the platform was in fact mostly G, B and L, as indicated by the first surveys.
In order to collect this information, we decided to carry out a quantitative survey, through a form, and a qualitative survey, through in-depth interviews.
Challenges encountered
It is natural that in the process of in-depth research, people will give up on the day of the interview. Lacrei is a new NGO that is in the process of building its image, we don't have the resources to try to guarantee, or at least encourage, the commitment of the people recruited.
Trying to avoid dropouts, and even because of the difficulty in engaging people to participate in our research process, our recruitment was done almost entirely within the social cycle of research people (friends, acquaintances, recommended people) and the current reach of Lacrei (we publish a form recruitment on our instagram).
As we suspected, Lacrei's reach turned out to be mostly cisgender and this made it difficult for us to access transgender people. This access was even more difficult due to our position of privilege, since the team of volunteers is made up of cisgender people, which ended up generating distrust and resistance to our intentions in the people approached.
Qualitative
For the collection of qualitative data, we used the methodology of the in-depth interview. In this approach, the respondent is encouraged to share questions related to their habits, desires, concerns and experiences. With this kind of approach, we were able to collect subjective questions that quantitative methods cannot explain by themselves.
Flow used to carry out our interviews
There are three main methodologies for applying in-depth interviews; open, structured and semi-structured interview. In this case, we used the semi-structured method, that is, we created a base script, but we left the possibility of inserting new questions during the conversation if necessary.
Aiming to create a safe space for the respondent, we started the script by introducing Lacrei and our intention with the research, making it clear that no question was mandatory and ensuring the right to withdraw at any time.
At the end of the survey, we asked for a general evaluation of the experience, with the aim of identifying points for improvement both in the script and in our own performance as interviewers.
In order to carry out the interviews, we organized ourselves into pairs, while one person was responsible for conducting the conversation, the other recorded what was learned. To facilitate the use of this collected information, we tabulated the results in a single shared worksheet.
The spreadsheet structure can be reused for future interviews, but new recording methods can be used in conjunction with the current one. The richer the log, the better the data collected.
We interviewed 15 people
Average age: 26 years old
Country regions: SP, BA, RJ and GO
Clippings:
1 trans woman
2 trans men
5 non white people
Sexuality:
4 lesbian women
3 gay men
5 bisexual people
1 aseuxal people
1 panromantic aseuxal person
Quantitative
For the collection of quantitative data, we developed an online form. In addition to being a practical method and requiring considerably less effort compared to other methods, this methodology generates solid results that can be revisited at different times during the project and used by teams from other areas.
Definition of audiences
Crossing the research data, we understand that it would not be productive, at least at this first moment, to dedicate ourselves to deepening our collection in order to understand each symbol of the LGBTQIAP+ community individually.
To carry out this detailed research, it would take an enormous amount of time and effort, in addition, the data indicated the main profiles that the platform currently reaches, focusing our energy on audiences that will be less impacted by Lacrei would actually be counterproductive.
Therefore, our initial definitions are based on primary audiences, that is, people who already have access to the platform or who will potentially access it.
What General Topics
The word “welcoming” was the most said throughout the research process. A humanized and welcoming treatment is the least that is expected when using a health service, but for people from the LGBTQIAP+ community, this treatment is often neglected or even denied.
In general, the lack of knowledge about diversity on the part of professionals and the lack of preparation to deal with different family compositions proved to be a common pain.
Safety and reliability was also an issue present in all conversations. We noticed a concern from respondents about how the platform could prevent malicious people from registering with the intention of harming patients or even professionals.
Individual topics
Trans people suffer various aggressions when using health services, from the reception to the medical care itself. Their identities and bodies tend to be delegitimized even by professionals. Precisely for this reason, this group is more likely to not return to their appointments and not follow treatments.
People with a vagina represent the most vulnerable group when it comes to harassment. Fear is a constant for this group, who seek to create networks of referrals from professional people (which tend to exclude cis male doctors) and they prefer to be accompanied when performing more delicate procedures.
Non-white people are read primarily because of their race. Black and indigenous people have the right to health that is neglected, if not denied, both in the public and private sectors. When they have access to private healthcare, there is an uncomfortable feeling of not belonging, as these spaces are often predominantly white.
Personas
As a final result of this research process, we developed the first Lacrei user personas. In addition to a document, personas serve as a guiding tool for the UX team, and can be improved with further research, in the same way that new personas can emerge as the platform grows and with the collection of new data.