RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Counting hard-to-count populations: the network scale-up method for public health
JF Sexually Transmitted Infections
JO Sex Transm Infect
FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd
SP ii11
OP ii15
DO 10.1136/sti.2010.044446
VO 86
IS Suppl 2
A1 H Russell Bernard
A1 Tim Hallett
A1 Alexandrina Iovita
A1 Eugene C Johnsen
A1 Rob Lyerla
A1 Christopher McCarty
A1 Mary Mahy
A1 Matthew J Salganik
A1 Tetiana Saliuk
A1 Otilia Scutelniciuc
A1 Gene A Shelley
A1 Petchsri Sirinirund
A1 Sharon Weir
A1 Donna F Stroup
YR 2010
UL http://sti.bmj.com/content/86/Suppl_2/ii11.abstract
AB Estimating sizes of hidden or hard-to-reach populations is an important problem in public health. For example, estimates of the sizes of populations at highest risk for HIV and AIDS are needed for designing, evaluating and allocating funding for treatment and prevention programmes. A promising approach to size estimation, relatively new to public health, is the network scale-up method (NSUM), involving two steps: estimating the personal network size of the members of a random sample of a total population and, with this information, estimating the number of members of a hidden subpopulation of the total population. We describe the method, including two approaches to estimating personal network sizes (summation and known population). We discuss the strengths and weaknesses of each approach and provide examples of international applications of the NSUM in public health. We conclude with recommendations for future research and evaluation.