Recruitment

Partnering with Clinicians and Families

Clinicians who care for potential child participants can serve as key partners in the recruitment process. Because they are trusted by the children and families they see, when clinicians endorse a research study they consider to be valuable and safe, families may be more interested in learning more. Clinicians who make their clinical settings available for research activities further provide a location that is already familiar and accessible to potential participants.

Researchers can create strong partnerships with clinicians by identifying and responding to their interests and concerns. They can also be a resource for specialized information and consultation.

Similarly, the manner in which members of the research team engage with families during the recruitment phase creates the conditions for informed family decision-making and participation. Consistent with family-centered care principles, interactions must include the sharing of complete and unbiased information, value parent/family perspectives and concerns, and respect parents as partners.

Such partnership activities are central to the development of the research home (PDF).

Keys to Successful Recruitment

Sonika Bhatnagar, MD, MPH, and colleagues reviewed recruitment processes in a 17-site multicenter pediatric randomized control trial and identified strategies for recruitment success in an article in Clinical Pediatrics. Here she shares some key points with a young researcher. Video with Transcript

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Dr. Bhatnagar assembled specific recommendations to enhance recruitment for researchers who are partnering with clinical practices in her Recruitment Challenges and Strategies Presentation (PDF).

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Family-Centered Recruitment

The manner in which information about a potential research study is conveyed to families and potential participants is critical and influences their ability to make informed decisions, consistent with the principles of human research protections and family-centered practices.

The Center for Excellence in Child and Adolescent Health Research has prepared this video which demonstrates how to mindfully communicate unbiased information about a clinical trial in a way that respects the parent’s decision-making process.

Recruitment Checklists and Examples of Recruitment Materials

• Recruitment Checklist: Engaging Clinicians (PDF)
• Recruitment Checklist: Engaging Families (PDF)
• Study Talking Points Example (PDF) to guide a clinician’s explanation of a study to parents and potential participants
• Trials Summary Example (PDF) to help clinicians stay current on open studies that may be relevant to their patients
• Quick Reference Points Example (PDF) to summarize and format key points so they can be printed as a “pocket guide” or read from a smartphone
• Study Poster Examples (PDF) to place on walls or bulletin boards in a physician’s office to help generate interest in the study
• Participant Brochure Example (PDF) to hand out to parents when discussing study parameters

Integrating the Web into Recruitment Activities

Websites can be developed to provide both brief and comprehensive information about a research study and the condition of concern. An example is the Urinary Tract Infection – Short Course Therapy (SCOUT Study) website. Websites such as this provide a standard overview of the study, which patients can be directed to by the referring physician for more information. Additionally, as was the case with the SCOUT study, websites can provide a brief video in which the PI discusses the significance of the study and what is involved in participation. A special SCOUT Study Toolkit for Physicians provides additional material for clinicians, including academic articles about UTIs, and sample recruiting aids.

Resources

• Center for Health Equity Initiatives, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh
  The Center aims to understand and reduce health disparities in underserved populations
• Children and Clinical Studies — This National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute website provides information for the public, health professionals and researchers about clinical trials. This page has an excellent video for parent and teens about participating in pediatric clinical trials.
• The Ethical Conduct of Clinical Research Involving Children (book) — National Academy of Sciences. Committee on Clinical Research Involving Children; Board on Health Sciences Policy; Institute of Medicine; Field MJ, Behrman RE, editors. National Academies Press (2004)
• Pediatric PittNet
• Pitt+Me — The Pitt+Me Research Registry is a free service provided by the Clinical and Translational Science Institute that links people of all ages, with or without health conditions, to hundreds of in-person and remote research studies at the University of Pittsburgh and UPMC. With more than 250,000 participants, Pitt+Me has helped hundreds of study teams meet their recruitment goals. To learn more about the program or to use Pitt+Me to recruit for your research study, contact us today at 412-648-4273 or jacksonk@pitt.edu.     
• Toolkit for Making Written Material Clear and Effective (PDF) — A low-literacy resource from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
• U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, Office for Human Research Protections