A qualitative study on cultural sensitivity during survey fieldwork for early childhood caries in Ile-Ife, Nigeria: bridging the gap between culture and science.

Objective: The qualitative study described culture-related issues that may bridge the ethical conduct of fieldwork for a cross-sectional study of the oral health of preschool children in the Ife Central Local Government Area of Nigeria, conducted between December 2024 and January 2025.

Results: There were 1,411 mother‒child pairs recruited by 20 research assistants and nine dentists trained on ethical considerations and cultural sensitivity before data collection began. A group discussion (debriefing session) was held with 18 consenting research assistants and nine dentists of the fieldwork. The transcripts from the discussions were inductively analysed, and key themes were identified. Both research assistants and dentists observed cultural norms infringing on the privacy of study participants, and dentists had to overcome mistrust and consent challenges (concerns with touching the child's head during height measurement and with dentists conducting oral examinations). This study highlights the need to map the cultural nuances of study sites before conducting a population-level survey to help develop culturally sensitive study protocols.