Study recruitment
Q: Why is my household selected for invitation to this study?
A: Based on over 160,000 residential building in Hong Kong, our research team has selected your household on a random basis in proportion to the distribution among the 18 Districts. Therefore, we have no information regarding your household other than the residential address.
Q: May I invite my family members or friends who are not living with me to join this study?
A: As we consider address as the unit in the random sampling of households, participants are not allowed to invite their non-co-living family members or friends to join this study.
Q: Who should be responsible for completing the surveys for my households?
A: Participating households could delegate a person aged 18+ years on their own as the “household representative” for survey completion. Please be reminded that the baseline survey and all fortnightly updates must be completed by the same household representative.
Q: Can my co-living family members also join this study?
A: Only one person (household representative) is allowed to complete the baseline and fortnightly surveys. If other co-living members would like to take part in this study, they could perform a rapid self-test using the distributed test kits when they present with respiratory symptoms, and upload the test results via the QR code on the package. The findings could help us understand the transmission pattern of respiratory infections at household level.
Survey completion
Q: When should I fill in a fortnightly update survey?
A: Participants should provide fortnightly updates every 14 days. Whenever a new fortnightly survey is ready for completion, you will be reminded through email. Each fortnightly update would be expired 14 days, and no submission is allowed after the expiry date.
Q: Will the system save the survey progress automatically?
A: By pressing “Next”, the system will save the survey responses provided on that page and earlier. You are recommended to complete the survey all at once, and leave the page only after the sign “survey completed” is shown.
Q: What is the “ad-hoc thematic survey” stated on the invitation letter?
A: At irregular intervals, we would invite participants to complete other one-off surveys related to infectious diseases and public health. The completion of each “ad-hoc thematic survey” would entitle the participants to designated points, which could be used for redeeming supermarket voucher. Participation in these surveys is completely voluntary, whereas the decision would not affect their eligibility to take part in the EcSS+ study.
Study incentives
Q: What are the criteria for getting a HKD50 supermarket voucher?
A: A participant is awarded 400 points for the completion of baseline survey and 50 points for each fortnightly update. The accumulation of 500 points would entitle participants to redeem a HKD50 supermarket voucher. Participants are required to provide the address and recipient’s name for an effective delivery through surface mail.
Q: I have successfully redeemed supermarket voucher on the system, but I still have not received it. What should I do?
A: Thank you for your support in the study. We strive to send out the supermarket voucher within 3 months after each participant submits a redemption request. Should you have any enquiries, please reach out to the research team via phone/WhatsApp/email during office hours.
Rapid testing
Q: My household has not yet received the rapid self-test kits, what should I do?
A: We would send out the self-test kits to households who have completed the baseline survey AND the first fortnightly update. After completing the first fortnightly update, please check for any pick-up notifications from the HKPost (SMS message) or the SF Express mobile application (in-app notification).
Q: When should my co-living members or I perform rapid self-test?
A: Whenever any household members present with fever, cough or sore throat, he/she should perform rapid self-testing and upload the test result using the QR code on the package. We recommend participants to perform testing on the 1st or 2nd day of symptom onset for a higher accuracy.
Q: If I am tested positive by the rapid test, what should I do?
A: Regardless of the rapid test result, you should seek medical advice from doctors and receive appropriate diagnosis and treatment based on your disease conditions. In case of emergency, please go to Accident & Emergency immediately.
Q: If my household has already used up all the distributed test kits, what should we do?
A: Due to limited resources, we are unable to supply additional test kits. If they are used up already, we welcome your household to perform testing using other test kits, and upload the result to us the same way. Thank you for your support!
Cancellation of email subscription / change of email address
Q: If I wish you change my contact email address, what should I do?
A: Please reach out to the research team via phone/WhatsApp/email during office hours.
Q: If I wish you unsubscribe to the fortnightly email reminders, what should I do?
A: You may select “unsubscribe email” at the bottom of the fortnightly reminder. If you wish to reactive the email subscription, please reach out to the research team via phone/WhatsApp/email during office hours.
Other questions
Q: Is there any risks or benefits arising from the participation in this study?
A: Participation in this study will not lead to any foreseeable psychological, physiological, social, legal or commercial risks or benefits, apart from the minimal pain and/or discomfort associated with self-sampling during rapid testing and anxiety experienced by participants tested positive for respiratory infections.
Q: How will my personal data be protected?
A: All data collected in this study would be kept strictly confidential. They would only be published in academic journals or disseminated publicly in aggregate form. All raw data would be destroyed five years after completion of the study. The conduction of this study has been approved by the Joint CUHK-NTEC Clinical Research Ethics Committee. For enquiry regarding Clinical Research Ethics, please contact the Committee at crec@cuhk.edu.hk or by phone at 3505 3935.