RECRUITING RARE & HARD TO REACH POPULATIONS: A SAMPLING STRATEGY FOR SURVEYING NYC RESIDENTS LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS, USING AGENCY RECRUITERS.

Recruitment of a probability sample of people living with HIV/AIDS presents a formidable challenge for survey researchers. This is a disease that has flourished at the margins of society, beyond the reach of conventional sampling techniques. Many individuals living with HIV or AIDS have unstable housing situations, are active substance users, or are disenfranchised or alienated from mainstream society. As a result, standard procedures for screening households or assembling lists of eligible respondents are not feasible. Strict rules governing patient/client confidentiality preclude a survey researcher f om making direct contact with an HIV infected client through a medical or social service provider. Initial contact with such a sampled client must be made through an intermediary who ha