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de Graaf BC, Gerritse MBE, Michiels KCJ, Kluivers KB, van de Belt TH. Social media recruitment of participants in a female stress urinary incontinence trial: A feasibility study. Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol 2024; 299:253-257. [PMID: 38908036 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejogrb.2024.06.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2024] [Revised: 06/07/2024] [Accepted: 06/16/2024] [Indexed: 06/24/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE This study explores the opportunities of social media advertisements as a recruitment strategy in women with stress urinary incontinence (SUI). STUDY DESIGN This feasibility study was part of a larger clinical trial on the effects of a patient decision aid for SUI treatment. We started a 61-day social media advertisement campaign to recruit women for the trial. The primary outcome of our study was enrolment pace. Secondary outcomes involved cost per participant, baseline demographic comparison and ad campaign performance metrics. Additionally, we interviewed recruited participants to identify the facilitators and barriers of our approach. RESULTS Ten participants were recruited, of whom 8 completed the full study protocol (2 questionnaires 6 months apart). The enrolment pace, 4.0 study participants per month, was faster compared to the average of 2.7 participants per month through conventional methods. The campaign reached 87 clicks on the advertisement per day and 1 % of these women showed interest in our study by contacting us. The overall conversion rate from click to full participation was 0.2 %. The costs per participant were €112. Besides higher age, the demographics of the social media recruited participants were comparable to the conventional inclusions. Qualitative analysis identified more user-oriented enrolment procedures and potential participant benefit as facilitators of social media recruitment. CONCLUSION This study shows that social media recruitment can be feasible in trials for women with SUI. It can accelerate recruitment of eligible participants. Optimising the enrolment procedure to better meet participants' needs and recruitment benefits may improve participation and cost-effectiveness. Trial registration ID 2017-3540.
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Affiliation(s)
- Boris C de Graaf
- Gelderse Vallei Hospital, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Ede, the Netherlands
| | - Maria B E Gerritse
- Gelderse Vallei Hospital, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Ede, the Netherlands; Radboud University Medical Center, Department of Gynecology, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
| | - Kim C J Michiels
- Radboud University Medical Center, Department of Gynecology, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Kirsten B Kluivers
- Radboud University Medical Center, Department of Gynecology, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
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Ferguson JE, Hagel Campbell E, Bangerter A, Cross LJS, Allen KD, Behrens K, Branson M, Calvert C, Friedman JK, Hennessy S, Meis LA, Taylor BC, Burgess DJ. Email recruitment for chronic pain clinical trials: results from the LAMP trial. Trials 2024; 25:491. [PMID: 39030622 PMCID: PMC11264665 DOI: 10.1186/s13063-024-08301-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2023] [Accepted: 06/28/2024] [Indexed: 07/21/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Recruitment for clinical trials and large-scale studies is challenging, especially for patients with complex conditions like chronic pain. Email recruitment has the potential to increase efficiency, to reduce costs, and to improve access for underrepresented patient populations. The objective of this study was to examine the effectiveness, efficiency, and equitability of email versus postal mail recruitment for the Learning to Apply Mindfulness to Pain (LAMP) study, a three-site clinical trial of mindfulness-based interventions for chronic pain. METHODS Patients with chronic pain diagnoses were recruited from three United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facilities using the VA electronic health record (EHR). Recruitment materials were sent using either postal mail (n = 7986) or email (n = 19,333). Patients in the email recruitment group were also mailed introductory postcards before any emails. Mailing addresses and email addresses were obtained from the EHR. Effectiveness was measured by the response rate of patients who logged into the secure LAMP study website. Efficiency was measured by the number of days from when the recruitment materials were sent to when patients logged into the LAMP portal as well as the estimated costs of each recruitment approach. To assess equitability, we examined whether email recruitment was less effective for underrepresented populations, based on demographic information from the EHR. RESULTS Effectiveness-unadjusted response rates were greater for email versus postal-mail recruitment (18.9% versus 6.3%), and adjusted response rates were over three times greater for email recruitment (RR = 3.5, 95% CI 3.1-3.8) based on a multivariable analysis controlling for age, gender, race, ethnicity, rurality, and site. Efficiency-email recruitment had a significantly lower mean response time (1 day versus 8 days) and a lower cost. Equity-email recruitment led to higher response rates for all subpopulations, including older, non-White, Hispanic, rural, and female Veterans. CONCLUSIONS Email recruitment is an effective, efficient, and equitable way to recruit VA patients to large-scale, chronic pain clinical trials. TRIAL REGISTRATION Clinical Trial Registration Number: NCT04526158. Patient enrollment began on December 4, 2020.
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Affiliation(s)
- John E Ferguson
- Divisions of PM&R and Rehabilitation Science, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Emily Hagel Campbell
- Center for Care Delivery and Outcomes Research, Minneapolis VA Health Care System, Minneapolis, MN, 55417, USA
| | - Ann Bangerter
- Center for Care Delivery and Outcomes Research, Minneapolis VA Health Care System, Minneapolis, MN, 55417, USA
| | - Lee J S Cross
- Center for Care Delivery and Outcomes Research, Minneapolis VA Health Care System, Minneapolis, MN, 55417, USA.
| | - Kelli D Allen
- Center of Innovation to Accelerate Discovery and Practice Transformation, Durham VA Health Care System, Durham, NC, USA
- Thurston Arthritis Research Center, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Kimberly Behrens
- Center for Care Delivery and Outcomes Research, Minneapolis VA Health Care System, Minneapolis, MN, 55417, USA
| | - Mariah Branson
- Center for Care Delivery and Outcomes Research, Minneapolis VA Health Care System, Minneapolis, MN, 55417, USA
| | - Collin Calvert
- Center for Care Delivery and Outcomes Research, Minneapolis VA Health Care System, Minneapolis, MN, 55417, USA
- University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Jessica K Friedman
- Center for the Study of Healthcare Innovation, Implementation and Policy, VA Greater Los Angeles Health Care System, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Sierra Hennessy
- Center for Care Delivery and Outcomes Research, Minneapolis VA Health Care System, Minneapolis, MN, 55417, USA
| | - Laura A Meis
- Center for Care Delivery and Outcomes Research, Minneapolis VA Health Care System, Minneapolis, MN, 55417, USA
- University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN, USA
- National Center for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Women's Health Sciences Division, Veterans Affairs, MA, Boston, USA
| | - Brent C Taylor
- Center for Care Delivery and Outcomes Research, Minneapolis VA Health Care System, Minneapolis, MN, 55417, USA
- University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Diana J Burgess
- Center for Care Delivery and Outcomes Research, Minneapolis VA Health Care System, Minneapolis, MN, 55417, USA
- University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN, USA
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Lee BP, Witkiewitz K, Mellinger J, Anania FA, Bataller R, Cotter TG, Curtis B, Dasarathy S, DeMartini KS, Diamond I, Diazgranados N, DiMartini AF, Falk DE, Fernandez AC, German MN, Kamath PS, Kidwell KM, Leggio L, Litten R, Louvet A, Lucey MR, McCaul ME, Sanyal AJ, Singal AK, Sussman NL, Terrault NA, Thursz MR, Verna EC, Radaeva S, Nagy LE, Mitchell MC. Designing clinical trials to address alcohol use and alcohol-associated liver disease: an expert panel Consensus Statement. Nat Rev Gastroenterol Hepatol 2024:10.1038/s41575-024-00936-x. [PMID: 38849555 DOI: 10.1038/s41575-024-00936-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/22/2024] [Indexed: 06/09/2024]
Abstract
Most patients with alcohol-associated liver disease (ALD) engage in heavy drinking defined as 4 or more drinks per day (56 g) or 8 (112 g) or more drinks per week for women and 5 or more drinks per day (70 g) or 15 (210 g) or more drinks per week for men. Although abstinence from alcohol after diagnosis of ALD improves life expectancy and reduces the risk of decompensation of liver disease, few studies have evaluated whether treatment of alcohol use disorders will reduce progression of liver disease and improve liver-related outcomes. In November 2021, the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism commissioned a task force that included hepatologists, addiction medicine specialists, statisticians, clinical trialists and members of regulatory agencies to develop recommendations for the design and conduct of clinical trials to evaluate the effect of alcohol use, particularly treatment to reduce or eliminate alcohol use in patients with ALD. The task force conducted extensive reviews of relevant literature on alcohol use disorders and ALD. Findings were presented at one in-person meeting and discussed over the next 16 months to develop the final recommendations. As few clinical trials directly address this topic, the 28 recommendations approved by all members of the task force represent a consensus of expert opinions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brian P Lee
- Division of Gastroenterology and Liver Diseases, University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine and Institute for Addiction Science, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Katie Witkiewitz
- Center on Alcohol, Substance use and Addictions, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, USA
| | - Jessica Mellinger
- Department of Internal Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Michigan Medicine, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Frank A Anania
- Division of Hepatology and Nutrition, US Food and Drug Administration, Silver Spring, MD, USA
| | - Ramon Bataller
- Liver Unit, Hospital Clinic, Institut d'Investigacions Biomediques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Thomas G Cotter
- Division of Digestive and Liver Diseases, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Brenda Curtis
- Technology and Translational Research Unit, Translational Addiction Medicine Branch, National Institute on Drug Abuse Intramural Research Program, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Srinivasan Dasarathy
- Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, USA
| | - Kelly S DeMartini
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA
| | | | - Nancy Diazgranados
- Office of the Clinical Director, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Andrea F DiMartini
- Departments of Psychiatry and Surgery, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Daniel E Falk
- Medications Development Branch, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | | | - Margarita N German
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Patrick S Kamath
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, MN, USA
| | - Kelley M Kidwell
- Department of Biostatistics, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Lorenzo Leggio
- Clinical Psychoneuroendocrinology and Neuropsychopharmacology Section, Translational Addiction Medicine Branch, National Institute on Drug Abuse Intramural Research Program and National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism Division of Intramural Clinical and Biological Research, National Institutes of Health, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Raye Litten
- Division of Treatment and Recovery, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Alexandre Louvet
- Service des maladies de l'appareil digestif, University Hospital of Lille, Lille, France
- Unité INSERM INFINITE, Lille, France
| | - Michael R Lucey
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Mary E McCaul
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Arun J Sanyal
- Stravitz-Sanyal Institute for Liver Disease and Metabolic Health, Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, Richmond, VA, USA
| | - Ashwani K Singal
- Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology Hepatology and Nutrition, University of Louisville School of Medicine, Louisville, KY, USA
- Department of Medicine, Robley Rex VA Medical Center, Louisville, KY, USA
| | - Norman L Sussman
- DURECT Corporation, Cupertino, CA, USA
- Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Norah A Terrault
- Division of Gastroenterology and Liver Diseases, University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine and Institute for Addiction Science, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Mark R Thursz
- Division of Digestive Diseases, Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Elizabeth C Verna
- Division of Digestive and Liver Diseases, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Svetlana Radaeva
- Svetlana Radaeva, Division of Metabolism and Health Effects, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Laura E Nagy
- Department of Inflammation and Immunity, Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, USA.
| | - Mack C Mitchell
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA.
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Saleem A, Appannah A, Meyer C, Hutchinson AM, Mills A, Smit DV, Boyd L, Rose M, Sutherland F, O'Keefe F, Lowthian JA. A qualitative exploration of challenges recruiting older adults for Being Your Best, a co-designed holistic intervention to manage and reduce frailty: lessons learnt amidst the COVID-19 pandemic in Melbourne, Australia. BMJ Open 2024; 14:e082618. [PMID: 38803255 DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2023-082618] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/29/2024] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Researchers face numerous challenges when recruiting participants for health and social care research. This study reports on the challenges faced recruiting older adults for Being Your Best, a co-designed holistic intervention to manage and reduce frailty, and highlights lessons learnt amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. DESIGN A qualitative study design was used. Referrer interviews were conducted to explore the recruitment challenges faced by the frontline workers. An audit of the research participant (aged ≥65) database was also undertaken to evaluate the reasons for refusal to participate and withdrawal from the study. SETTING Hospital emergency departments (EDs) and a home care provider in Melbourne, Australia. PARTICIPANTS Frontline workers and older adults. RESULTS From May 2022 to June 2023, 71 referrals were received. Of those referrals, only 13 (18.3%) agreed to participate. Three participants withdrew immediately after baseline data collection, and the remaining 10 continued to participate in the programme. Reasons for older adult non-participation were (1) health issues (25.3%), (2) ineligibility (18.3%), (3) lack of interest (15.5%), (4) perceptions of being 'too old' (11.2%) and (5) perceptions of being too busy (5.6%). Of those participating, five were female and five were male. Eleven referrer interviews were conducted to explore challenges with recruitment, and three themes were generated after thematic analysis: (1) challenges arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, (2) characteristics of the programme and (3) health of older adults. CONCLUSION Despite using multiple strategies, recruitment was much lower than anticipated. The ED staff were at capacity associated with pandemic-related activities. While EDs are important sources of participants for research, they were not suitable recruitment sites at the time of this study, due to COVID-19-related challenges. Programme screening characteristics and researchers' inability to develop rapport with potential participants also contributed to low recruitment numbers. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER ACTRN12620000533998; Pre-results.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ahsan Saleem
- Bolton Clarke Research Institute, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Arti Appannah
- Bolton Clarke Research Institute, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Claudia Meyer
- Bolton Clarke Research Institute, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- Centre for Health Communication and Participation, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- Rehabilitation, Ageing and Independent Living Research Centre, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- College of Nursing and Health Sciences, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
| | - Alison M Hutchinson
- School of Nursing and Midwifery, Centre for Quality and Patient Safety Research, Institute for Health Transformation, Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia
- Barwon Health, Geelong, Victoria, Australia
| | - Amber Mills
- Central Clinical School, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | | | - Leanne Boyd
- Eastern Health, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | | | - Fran Sutherland
- Cabrini Health Consumer Representative, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | | | - Judy A Lowthian
- Bolton Clarke Research Institute, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
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Baillot A, Asselin M, Bernard P, Lapointe J, Bond DS, Romain AJ, Garneau PY, Biertho L, Tchernof A, Blackburn P, Langlois MF, Brunet J. Acceptability and Feasibility of the Telehealth Bariatric Behavioral Intervention to Increase Physical Activity Before Bariatric Surgery: A Single-Case Experimental Study (Part I). Obes Surg 2024; 34:1639-1652. [PMID: 38483742 DOI: 10.1007/s11695-024-07161-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2023] [Revised: 03/04/2024] [Accepted: 03/06/2024] [Indexed: 04/20/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Physical activity (PA) can play an important role in optimizing metabolic/bariatric surgery (MBS) outcomes. However, many MBS patients have difficulty increasing PA, necessitating the development of theory-driven counseling interventions. This study aimed to (1) assess the feasibility and acceptability of the TELEhealth BARIatric behavioral intervention (TELE-BariACTIV) trial protocol/methods and intervention, which was designed to increase moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity (MVPA) in adults awaiting MBS and (2) estimate the effect of the intervention on MVPA. METHODS This trial used a repeated single-case experimental design. Twelve insufficiently active adults awaiting MBS received 6 weekly 45-min PA videoconferencing counseling sessions. Feasibility and acceptability data (i.e., refusal, recruitment, retention, attendance, and attrition rates) were tracked and collected via online surveys, and interviews. MVPA was assessed via accelerometry pre-, during, and post-intervention. RESULTS Among the 24 patients referred to the research team; five declined to participate (refusal rate = 20.8%) and seven were ineligible or unreachable. The recruitment rate was 1.2 participants per month between 2021-09 and 2022-07. One participant withdrew during the baseline phase, and one after the intervention (retention rate = 83.3%). No participant dropouts occurred during the intervention and 98.6% of sessions were completed. Participants' anticipated and retrospective acceptability of the intervention was 3.2/4 (IQR, 0.5) and 3.0/4 (IQR, 0.2), respectively. There was a statistically significant increase in MVPA [Tau-U = 0.32(0.11; 0.51)] from pre- to post-intervention. CONCLUSION Despite a low recruitment rate, which could be explained by circumstances (COVID-19 pandemic), results support feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of the TELE-Bari-ACTIV intervention for increasing MVPA in patients awaiting MBS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aurélie Baillot
- École Interdisciplinaire de Santé, Université du Québec en Outaouais, 283 Boul. Alexandre-Taché, Gatineau, Québec, J8X 3X7, Canada.
- Institut du Savoir Montfort, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
- Centre de Recherche en Médecine Psychosociale, Centre Intégré de Santé et Services, Sociaux de L'Outaouais, Gatineau, Québec, Canada.
| | | | - Paquito Bernard
- Department of Physical Activity Sciences, Université du Québec À Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Centre de Recherche, Institut Universitaire en Santé Mentale de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Josyanne Lapointe
- Department of Physical Activity Sciences, Université du Québec À Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Centre de Recherche, Institut Universitaire en Santé Mentale de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Dale S Bond
- Department of Surgery, Hartford Hospital/HealthCare, Hartford, CT, USA
| | - Ahmed Jérôme Romain
- Centre de Recherche, Institut Universitaire en Santé Mentale de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- School of Kinesiology and Physical Activity Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Pierre Y Garneau
- Department of Surgery, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Laurent Biertho
- Institut Universitaire de Cardiologie et de Pneumologie de Québec et Faculté de Médecine, Université Laval, Québec, Québec, Canada
| | - André Tchernof
- Institut Universitaire de Cardiologie et de Pneumologie de Québec et École de Nutrition, Université Laval, Québec, Québec, Canada
| | - Patricia Blackburn
- Division of Kinesiology, Department of Health Sciences, Université du Québec À Chicoutimi, Chicoutimi, Québec, Canada
| | - Marie-France Langlois
- CHUS Research Center and Division of Endocrinology, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Québec, Canada
| | - Jennifer Brunet
- Institut du Savoir Montfort, Ottawa, ON, Canada
- Faculty of Health Sciences, School of Human Kinetics, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada
- Cancer Therapeutic Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON, Canada
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Haroutounian S, Holzer KJ, Kerns RD, Veasley C, Dworkin RH, Turk DC, Carman KL, Chambers CT, Cowan P, Edwards RR, Eisenach JC, Farrar JT, Ferguson M, Forsythe LP, Freeman R, Gewandter JS, Gilron I, Goertz C, Grol-Prokopczyk H, Iyengar S, Jordan I, Kamp C, Kleykamp BA, Knowles RL, Langford DJ, Mackey S, Malamut R, Markman J, Martin KR, McNicol E, Patel KV, Rice AS, Rowbotham M, Sandbrink F, Simon LS, Steiner DJ, Vollert J. Patient engagement in designing, conducting, and disseminating clinical pain research: IMMPACT recommended considerations. Pain 2024; 165:1013-1028. [PMID: 38198239 PMCID: PMC11017749 DOI: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000003121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2023] [Revised: 08/31/2023] [Accepted: 09/08/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2024]
Abstract
ABSTRACT In the traditional clinical research model, patients are typically involved only as participants. However, there has been a shift in recent years highlighting the value and contributions that patients bring as members of the research team, across the clinical research lifecycle. It is becoming increasingly evident that to develop research that is both meaningful to people who have the targeted condition and is feasible, there are important benefits of involving patients in the planning, conduct, and dissemination of research from its earliest stages. In fact, research funders and regulatory agencies are now explicitly encouraging, and sometimes requiring, that patients are engaged as partners in research. Although this approach has become commonplace in some fields of clinical research, it remains the exception in clinical pain research. As such, the Initiative on Methods, Measurement, and Pain Assessment in Clinical Trials convened a meeting with patient partners and international representatives from academia, patient advocacy groups, government regulatory agencies, research funding organizations, academic journals, and the biopharmaceutical industry to develop consensus recommendations for advancing patient engagement in all stages of clinical pain research in an effective and purposeful manner. This article summarizes the results of this meeting and offers considerations for meaningful and authentic engagement of patient partners in clinical pain research, including recommendations for representation, timing, continuous engagement, measurement, reporting, and research dissemination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simon Haroutounian
- Department of Anesthesiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, United States
| | - Katherine J. Holzer
- Department of Anesthesiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, United States
| | - Robert D. Kerns
- Departments of Psychiatry, Neurology, and Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, United States
| | - Christin Veasley
- Chronic Pain Research Alliance, North Kingstown, RI, United States
| | - Robert H. Dworkin
- Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, Rochester, NY, United States
| | - Dennis C. Turk
- Department of Anesthesiology & Pain Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Kristin L. Carman
- Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), Washington, DC, United States
| | - Christine T. Chambers
- Departments of Psychology & Neuroscience and Pediatrics, Dalhousie University, and Centre for Pediatric Pain Research, IWK Health Centre, Halifax, NS, Canada
| | - Penney Cowan
- American Chronic Pain Association, Rocklin, CA, United States
| | - Robert R. Edwards
- Department of Anesthesiology, Harvard Medical School, Brigham & Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
| | - James C. Eisenach
- Departments of Anesthesiology, Physiology and Pharmacology, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston Salem, NC, United States
| | - John T. Farrar
- Department of Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Informatics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - McKenzie Ferguson
- Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, School of Pharmacy, Edwardsville, IL, United States
| | - Laura P. Forsythe
- Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), Washington, DC, United States
| | - Roy Freeman
- Department of Neurology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Jennifer S. Gewandter
- Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, Rochester, NY, United States
| | - Ian Gilron
- Departments of Anesthesiology & Perioperative Medicine and Biomedical & Molecular Sciences, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, Canada
| | - Christine Goertz
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, United States
| | | | - Smriti Iyengar
- Division of Translational Research, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Isabel Jordan
- Departments of Psychology & Neuroscience and Pediatrics, Dalhousie University, and Centre for Pediatric Pain Research, IWK Health Centre, Halifax, NS, Canada
| | - Cornelia Kamp
- Center for Health and Technology/Clinical Materials Services Unit, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, Rochester, NY, United States
| | - Bethea A. Kleykamp
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Rachel L. Knowles
- Medical Research Council (part of UK Research and Innovation), London, United Kingdom
| | - Dale J. Langford
- Department of Anesthesiology, Critical Care & Pain Management, Hospital for Special Surgery, New York, NY, United States
| | - Sean Mackey
- Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative, and Pain Medicine, Stanford University Medical Center, Stanford, CA, United States
| | | | - John Markman
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, Rochester, NY, United States
| | - Kathryn R. Martin
- Aberdeen Centre for Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Health, School of Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, Scotland, United Kingdom
| | - Ewan McNicol
- Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Kushang V. Patel
- Department of Anesthesiology & Pain Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Andrew S.C. Rice
- Pain Research, Department of Surgery and Cancer, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Michael Rowbotham
- Departments of Anesthesia and Neurology, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
| | - Friedhelm Sandbrink
- National Pain Management, Opioid Safety, and Prescription Drug Monitoring Program, Specialty Care Program Office, Veterans Health Administration, Washington, DC, United States
| | | | - Deborah J. Steiner
- Global Pain, Pain & Neurodegeneration, Eli Lilly and Company, Indianapolis, IN, United States
| | - Jan Vollert
- Pain Research, Department of Surgery and Cancer, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
- Division of Neurological Pain Research and Therapy, Department of Neurology, University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, Campus Kiel, Germany
- Department of Anaesthesiology, Intensive Care and Pain Medicine, University Hospital Muenster, Münster, Germany
- Department of Neurophysiology, Mannheim Center for Translational Neuroscience MCTN, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Ruprecht Karls University, Heidelberg, Germany
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Foucher J, Azizi L, Öijerstedt L, Kläppe U, Ingre C. The usage of population and disease registries as pre-screening tools for clinical trials, a systematic review. Syst Rev 2024; 13:111. [PMID: 38654383 PMCID: PMC11040983 DOI: 10.1186/s13643-024-02533-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2024] [Accepted: 04/12/2024] [Indexed: 04/25/2024] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE This systematic review aims to outline the use of population and disease registries for clinical trial pre-screening. MATERIALS AND METHODS The search was conducted in the time period of January 2014 to December 2022 in three databases: MEDLINE, Embase, and Web of Science Core Collection. References were screened using the Rayyan software, firstly based on titles and abstracts only, and secondly through full text review. Quality of the included studies was assessed using the List of Included Studies and quality Assurance in Review tool, enabling inclusion of publications of only moderate to high quality. RESULTS The search originally identified 1430 citations, but only 24 studies were included, reporting the use of population and/or disease registries for trial pre-screening. Nine disease domains were represented, with 54% of studies using registries based in the USA, and 62.5% of the studies using national registries. Half of the studies reported usage for drug trials, and over 478,679 patients were identified through registries in this review. Main advantages of the pre-screening methodology were reduced financial burden and time reduction. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION The use of registries for trial pre-screening increases reproducibility of the pre-screening process across trials and sites, allowing for implementation and improvement of a quality assurance process. Pre-screening strategies seem under-reported, and we encourage more trials to use and describe their pre-screening processes, as there is a need for standardized methodological guidelines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juliette Foucher
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
- Department of Neurology, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden.
| | - Louisa Azizi
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Linn Öijerstedt
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Department of Neurology, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Ulf Kläppe
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Department of Neurology, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Caroline Ingre
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Department of Neurology, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
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Natarajan P, Menounos S, Harris L, Monuja M, Gorelik A, Karjalainen T, Buchbinder R, Harris IA, Naylor JM, Adie S. Participant recruitment and attrition in surgical randomised trials with placebo controls versus non-operative controls: a meta-epidemiological study and meta-analysis. BMJ Open 2024; 14:e080258. [PMID: 38637129 PMCID: PMC11029374 DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2023-080258] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2023] [Accepted: 03/22/2024] [Indexed: 04/20/2024] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To compare differences in recruitment and attrition between placebo control randomised trials of surgery, and trials of the same surgical interventions and conditions that used non-operative (non-placebo) controls. DESIGN Meta-epidemiological study. DATA SOURCES Randomised controlled trials were identified from an electronic search of MEDLINE, EMBASE and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials from their inception date to 21 November 2018. STUDY SELECTION Placebo control trials evaluating efficacy of any surgical intervention and non-operative control trials of the same surgical intervention were included in this study. 25 730 records were retrieved from our systemic search, identifying 61 placebo control and 38 non-operative control trials for inclusion in analysis. OUTCOME MEASURES Primary outcome measures were recruitment and attrition. These were assessed in terms of recruitment rate (number of participants enrolled, as a proportion of those eligible) and overall attrition rate (composite of dropout, loss to follow-up and cross-overs, expressed as proportion of total sample size). Secondary outcome measures included participant cross-over rate, dropout and loss to follow-up. RESULTS Unadjusted pooled recruitment and attrition rates were similar between placebo and non-operative control trials. Study characteristics were not significantly different apart from time to primary timepoint which was shorter in studies with placebo controls (365 vs 274 days, p=0.006). After adjusting for covariates (follow-up duration and number of timepoints), the attrition rate of placebo control trials was almost twice as high compared with non-operative controlled-trials (incident rate ratio (IRR) (95% CI) 1.8 (1.1 to 3.0), p=0.032). The incorporation of one additional follow-up timepoint (regardless of follow-up duration) was associated with reduced attrition in placebo control surgical trials (IRR (95% CI) 0.64 (0.52 to 0.79), p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS Placebo control trials of surgery have similar recruitment issues but higher attrition compared with non-operative (non-placebo) control trials. Study design should incorporate strategies such as increased timepoints for given follow-up duration to mitigate losses to follow-up and dropout. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER CRD42019117364.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pragadesh Natarajan
- St George and Sutherland Clinical Campuses, School of Clinical Medicine, UNSW Medicine & Health, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Spiro Menounos
- St George and Sutherland Clinical Campuses, School of Clinical Medicine, UNSW Medicine & Health, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Laura Harris
- St George and Sutherland Clinical Campuses, School of Clinical Medicine, UNSW Medicine & Health, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- St George and Sutherland Centre for Clinical Orthopaedic Research Limited, (SCORe), Kogarah, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Masiath Monuja
- St George and Sutherland Clinical Campuses, School of Clinical Medicine, UNSW Medicine & Health, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- St George and Sutherland Centre for Clinical Orthopaedic Research Limited, (SCORe), Kogarah, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Alexandra Gorelik
- Department of Medicine, Royal Melbourne Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- Musculoskeletal Health and Wiser Health Care Units, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Teemu Karjalainen
- Department of Musculoskeletal Diseases, Tampere University Hospital, Tampere, Finland
| | - Rachelle Buchbinder
- Musculoskeletal Health and Wiser Health Care Units, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Ian A Harris
- South West Sydney Clinical Campuses, School of Clinical Medicine, UNSW Medicine & Health, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Justine M Naylor
- South West Sydney Clinical Campuses, School of Clinical Medicine, UNSW Medicine & Health, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Sam Adie
- St George and Sutherland Clinical Campuses, School of Clinical Medicine, UNSW Medicine & Health, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- St George and Sutherland Centre for Clinical Orthopaedic Research Limited, (SCORe), Kogarah, New South Wales, Australia
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9
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Lee N, Hong Y, Hu S, Kirkpatrick CE, Lee S, Hinnant A. Exploring the Strategic Use of TikTok for Clinical Trial Recruitment: How audiences' Prior Short-Form Video Usage Influences Persuasive Effects. JOURNAL OF HEALTH COMMUNICATION 2024; 29:294-306. [PMID: 38590176 DOI: 10.1080/10810730.2024.2339237] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/10/2024]
Abstract
Guided by the elaboration likelihood model and framing theory, this study explores the potential of short-form video platforms (e.g. TikTok), for targeted clinical trial recruitment. An online experiment compared doctor vs. peer-led videos addressing logistical or psychological barriers to participation, mimicking common TikTok communication tactics. Results indicate that high (vs. low) TikTok users are more persuaded by recruitment messages, and they exhibit stronger intentions to participate in clinical trials. Although doctor-sourced messages generate greater credibility and a more favorable message attitude, peer-sourced messages may be more effective in increasing participation intention. Lastly, doctor-sourced videos that address logistical barriers and peer-sourced videos that discuss psychological barriers result in higher self-efficacy for clinical trial participation. This study contributes to the growing body of research on new media's role in health communication and provides insights into how to strategically utilize TikTok and other short-form video platforms for clinical trial recruitment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Namyeon Lee
- Department of Mass Communication, University of North Carolina at Pembroke, Pembroke, North Carolina, USA
| | - Yoorim Hong
- Strategic Communication, School of Journalism, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, USA
| | - Sisi Hu
- School of Journalism and Strategic Media, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA
| | - Ciera E Kirkpatrick
- Advertising & Public Relations, College of Journalism & Mass Communications, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, Nebraska, USA
| | - Sungkyoung Lee
- Strategic Communication, School of Journalism, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, USA
| | - Amanda Hinnant
- Journalism Studies, School of Journalism, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, USA
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10
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Dasarathy S, Tu W, Bellar A, Welch N, Kettler C, Tang Q, Liangpunsakul S, Gawrieh S, Radaeva S, Mitchell M. Development and evaluation of objective trial performance metrics for multisite clinical studies: Experience from the AlcHep Network. Contemp Clin Trials 2024; 138:107437. [PMID: 38215876 DOI: 10.1016/j.cct.2024.107437] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2023] [Revised: 11/05/2023] [Accepted: 01/08/2024] [Indexed: 01/14/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Recruitment and retention are critical in clinical studies but there are limited objective metrics of trial performance. We tested if development of trial performance metrics will allow for objective evaluation of study quality. Performance metrics were developed using data from the observational cohort (OBS) and randomized clinical trial (RCT) arms of the prospective Alcoholic Hepatitis Network. METHODS Yield-rate (%YR; eligible/screened), recruitment index (RI; mean recruitment time/patient), completion index (CI; average number of days to complete the follow-up/patient), and protocol adherence index (AI; average number of deviations/subject recruited) were determined. RESULTS 2250 patients (1168 for OBS; 1082 for RCT) were screened across 8 sites. Recruitment in the RCT (57% target) was similar to that in the OBS (59% target). Of those screened, 743 (63.6%) subjects in the OBS and 147 (13.6%) subjects in the RCT were enrolled in the study. In OBS study, 253 (34.1%) subjects, and in the RCT, 68 (46.3%) subjects, completed the study or reached a censoring event. Across all sites (range), YR for OBS was 63.6% (41.3-98.3%) and for RCT was 13.6% (5.5-92.6%); RI for OBS was 1.66 (8.79-19.85) and for RCT was 4.05 (19.76-36.43); CI for OBS was 4.87 (22.6-118.3) and for RCT was 8.75 (27.27-161.5); and AR for OBS was 0.56 (0.08-1.04) and for RCT was 1.55 (0.39-3.21. Factors related to participants, research design, study team, and research sponsors contributed to lower performance metrics. CONCLUSIONS Objective measures of clinical trial performance allow for strategies to enhance study quality and development of site-specific improvement plans. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER ClinicalTrials.gov NCT4072822 NCT03850899.
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Affiliation(s)
- Srinivasan Dasarathy
- Department of Gastroenterology & Hepatology and Inflammation and Immunity, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, United States of America.
| | - Wanzhu Tu
- Department of Biostatistics and Health Data Science, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, United States of America
| | - Annette Bellar
- Department of Gastroenterology & Hepatology and Inflammation and Immunity, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, United States of America
| | - Nicole Welch
- Department of Gastroenterology & Hepatology and Inflammation and Immunity, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, United States of America
| | - Carla Kettler
- Department of Biostatistics and Health Data Science, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, United States of America
| | - Qing Tang
- Department of Biostatistics and Health Data Science, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, United States of America
| | - Suthat Liangpunsakul
- Department of Medicine, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, United States of America
| | - Samer Gawrieh
- Department of Medicine, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, United States of America
| | - Svetlana Radaeva
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, United States of America
| | - Mack Mitchell
- Department of Digestive and Liver Diseases, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, United States of America
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11
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Antoun L, Bevan S, Mahmud A, Jones L, Middleton L, Woolley R, Smith P, Fatemah Sairally BZ, Saridogan E, Cooper K, Clark TJ. Lessons learnt from the multi-centre LAparoscopic Versus Abdominal hysterectomy (LAVA) randomised controlled trial. Facts Views Vis Obgyn 2024; 16:35-45. [PMID: 38551473 PMCID: PMC11198880 DOI: 10.52054/fvvo.16.1.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/27/2024] Open
Abstract
Background The LAparoscopic Versus Abdominal hysterectomy (LAVA) randomised controlled trial comparing laparoscopic hysterectomy (LH) and abdominal hysterectomy (AH) closed prematurely on the grounds of futility. Here we identify the challenges faced and lessons learnt. Objectives To explore the views and experiences of clinical/research staff in order to understand how these might act as barriers to trial participation and recruitment. Materials and Methods Review of the trial progress and collation of the views and experiences of clinical/ research staff on all aspects of the trial. Data were collected from transcribed conversations, email, phone, or video conferencing interactions and analysed descriptively. Main outcome measures Site set-up milestones, recruitment rates and reasons provided by clinical/research staff for site's declining to participate. Opinions, preferences and experiences of clinicians/researchers and challenges to participation and recruitment. Results The mean time from initial site contact to opening was 253 days and 68 days to randomise their first participant. 265 patients were screened from 13 sites over 13 months, 154 were eligible, and 75 (59%) were randomised. Of the 53 not randomised, 23 (43%) women preferred LH whilst 6 (11%) preferred AH. The main reasons given for failure to recruit or activate set-up in the 21 sites open or in set-up, were lack of research/ clinical capacity imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic and lack of clinician equipoise. Conclusions The main reasons for the LAVA trial failure were lack of equipoise amongst surgeons and the adverse impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on clinical/research services. What is new? Surgeons' preference for laparoscopic hysterectomy is not shared by most patients. Many patients prefer an open hysterectomy to a laparoscopic one.
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12
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Boeker M, Zöller D, Blasini R, Macho P, Helfer S, Behrens M, Prokosch HU, Gulden C. Effectiveness of IT-supported patient recruitment: study protocol for an interrupted time series study at ten German university hospitals. Trials 2024; 25:125. [PMID: 38365848 PMCID: PMC10870691 DOI: 10.1186/s13063-024-07918-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2021] [Accepted: 01/09/2024] [Indexed: 02/18/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND As part of the German Medical Informatics Initiative, the MIRACUM project establishes data integration centers across ten German university hospitals. The embedded MIRACUM Use Case "Alerting in Care - IT Support for Patient Recruitment", aims to support the recruitment into clinical trials by automatically querying the repositories for patients satisfying eligibility criteria and presenting them as screening candidates. The objective of this study is to investigate whether the developed recruitment tool has a positive effect on study recruitment within a multi-center environment by increasing the number of participants. Its secondary objective is the measurement of organizational burden and user satisfaction of the provided IT solution. METHODS The study uses an Interrupted Time Series Design with a duration of 15 months. All trials start in the control phase of randomized length with regular recruitment and change to the intervention phase with additional IT support. The intervention consists of the application of a recruitment-support system which uses patient data collected in general care for screening according to specific criteria. The inclusion and exclusion criteria of all selected trials are translated into a machine-readable format using the OHDSI ATLAS tool. All patient data from the data integration centers is regularly checked against these criteria. The primary outcome is the number of participants recruited per trial and week standardized by the targeted number of participants per week and the expected recruitment duration of the specific trial. Secondary outcomes are usability, usefulness, and efficacy of the recruitment support. Sample size calculation based on simple parallel group assumption can demonstrate an effect size of d=0.57 on a significance level of 5% and a power of 80% with a total number of 100 trials (10 per site). Data describing the included trials and the recruitment process is collected at each site. The primary analysis will be conducted using linear mixed models with the actual recruitment number per week and trial standardized by the expected recruitment number per week and trial as the dependent variable. DISCUSSION The application of an IT-supported recruitment solution developed in the MIRACUM consortium leads to an increased number of recruited participants in studies at German university hospitals. It supports employees engaged in the recruitment of trial participants and is easy to integrate in their daily work.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Boeker
- Institute of Medical Biometry and Statistics, Medical Faculty and Medical Center, University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
- Chair of Medical Informatics, Institute of Artificial Intelligence and Informatics in Medicine, Klinikum rechts der Isar, School of Medicine and Health, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Daniela Zöller
- Institute of Medical Biometry and Statistics, Medical Faculty and Medical Center, University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
| | - Romina Blasini
- Institute of Medical Informatics, Justus-Liebig-University Gießen, Gießen, Germany
| | - Philipp Macho
- Institute of Medical Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Informatics (IMBEI), Mainz University Medical Center, Mainz, Germany
| | - Sven Helfer
- Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Max Behrens
- Institute of Medical Biometry and Statistics, Medical Faculty and Medical Center, University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
| | - Hans-Ulrich Prokosch
- Chair of Medical Informatics, Department of Medical Informatics, Biometrics and Epidemiology, Friedrich-Alexander Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, Germany
| | - Christian Gulden
- Chair of Medical Informatics, Department of Medical Informatics, Biometrics and Epidemiology, Friedrich-Alexander Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, Germany.
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13
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Beswick E, Johnson M, Newton J, Dakin R, Stenson A, Abrahams S, Carson A, Chandran S, Pal S. Factors impacting trial participation in people with motor neuron disease. J Neurol 2024; 271:543-552. [PMID: 37787812 PMCID: PMC10769905 DOI: 10.1007/s00415-023-12010-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2023] [Revised: 09/12/2023] [Accepted: 09/15/2023] [Indexed: 10/04/2023]
Abstract
Motor neuron disease (MND) is a rapidly progressive neurodegenerative disorder with limited treatment options. Historically, neurological trials have been plagued by suboptimal recruitment and high rates of attrition. The Motor Neuron Disease-Systematic Multi-Arm Randomised Adaptive Trial (MND-SMART) seeks to identify effective disease modifying drugs. This study investigates person-specific factors affecting recruitment and retention. Improved understanding of these factors may improve trial protocol design, optimise recruitment and retention. Participants with MND completed questionnaires and this was supplemented with clinical data. 12 months after completing the questionnaires we used MND-SMART recruitment data to establish if members of our cohort engaged with the trial. 120 people with MND completed questionnaires for this study. Mean age at participation was 66 (SD = 9), 14% (n = 17) were categorised as long survivors, with 68% (n = 81) of participants male and 60% (n = 73) had the ALS sub-type. Of the 120 study participants, 50% (n = 60) were randomised into MND-SMART and 78% (n = 94) expressed interest an in participating. After the 1-year follow-up period 65% (n = 39) of the 60 randomised participants remained in MND-SMART. Older age was significantly associated with reduced likelihood of participation (OR = 0.92, 95% CI = 0.88-0.96, p = 0.000488). The findings show that people with MND are highly motivated to engage in research, but older individuals remain significantly less likely to participate. We recommend the inclusion of studies to explore characteristics of prospective and current participants alongside trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily Beswick
- Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland
- Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic, The University of Edinburgh, 49 Little France Crescent, Edinburgh, EH16 4 SB, Scotland
- Euan MacDonald Centre for MND Research, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland
| | - Micheala Johnson
- Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland
- Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic, The University of Edinburgh, 49 Little France Crescent, Edinburgh, EH16 4 SB, Scotland
- Euan MacDonald Centre for MND Research, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland
| | - Judith Newton
- Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland
- Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic, The University of Edinburgh, 49 Little France Crescent, Edinburgh, EH16 4 SB, Scotland
- Euan MacDonald Centre for MND Research, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland
| | - Rachel Dakin
- Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland
- Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic, The University of Edinburgh, 49 Little France Crescent, Edinburgh, EH16 4 SB, Scotland
- Euan MacDonald Centre for MND Research, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland
| | - Amy Stenson
- Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland
- Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic, The University of Edinburgh, 49 Little France Crescent, Edinburgh, EH16 4 SB, Scotland
- Euan MacDonald Centre for MND Research, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland
| | - Sharon Abrahams
- Euan MacDonald Centre for MND Research, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland
- Human Cognitive Neurosciences, Psychology, School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland
| | - Alan Carson
- Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland
- Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic, The University of Edinburgh, 49 Little France Crescent, Edinburgh, EH16 4 SB, Scotland
| | - Siddharthan Chandran
- Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland
- Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic, The University of Edinburgh, 49 Little France Crescent, Edinburgh, EH16 4 SB, Scotland
- Euan MacDonald Centre for MND Research, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland
- UK Dementia Research Institute, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland
| | - Suvankar Pal
- Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland.
- Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic, The University of Edinburgh, 49 Little France Crescent, Edinburgh, EH16 4 SB, Scotland.
- Euan MacDonald Centre for MND Research, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland.
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Dobbins NJ, Han B, Zhou W, Lan KF, Kim HN, Harrington R, Uzuner Ö, Yetisgen M. LeafAI: query generator for clinical cohort discovery rivaling a human programmer. J Am Med Inform Assoc 2023; 30:1954-1964. [PMID: 37550244 PMCID: PMC10654856 DOI: 10.1093/jamia/ocad149] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2023] [Revised: 07/14/2023] [Accepted: 07/19/2023] [Indexed: 08/09/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Identifying study-eligible patients within clinical databases is a critical step in clinical research. However, accurate query design typically requires extensive technical and biomedical expertise. We sought to create a system capable of generating data model-agnostic queries while also providing novel logical reasoning capabilities for complex clinical trial eligibility criteria. MATERIALS AND METHODS The task of query creation from eligibility criteria requires solving several text-processing problems, including named entity recognition and relation extraction, sequence-to-sequence transformation, normalization, and reasoning. We incorporated hybrid deep learning and rule-based modules for these, as well as a knowledge base of the Unified Medical Language System (UMLS) and linked ontologies. To enable data-model agnostic query creation, we introduce a novel method for tagging database schema elements using UMLS concepts. To evaluate our system, called LeafAI, we compared the capability of LeafAI to a human database programmer to identify patients who had been enrolled in 8 clinical trials conducted at our institution. We measured performance by the number of actual enrolled patients matched by generated queries. RESULTS LeafAI matched a mean 43% of enrolled patients with 27 225 eligible across 8 clinical trials, compared to 27% matched and 14 587 eligible in queries by a human database programmer. The human programmer spent 26 total hours crafting queries compared to several minutes by LeafAI. CONCLUSIONS Our work contributes a state-of-the-art data model-agnostic query generation system capable of conditional reasoning using a knowledge base. We demonstrate that LeafAI can rival an experienced human programmer in finding patients eligible for clinical trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas J Dobbins
- Department of Biomedical Informatics & Medical Education, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Research IT, UW Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Bin Han
- Information School, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Weipeng Zhou
- Department of Biomedical Informatics & Medical Education, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Kristine F Lan
- Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - H Nina Kim
- Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Robert Harrington
- Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Özlem Uzuner
- Department of Information Sciences and Technology, George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia, USA
| | - Meliha Yetisgen
- Department of Biomedical Informatics & Medical Education, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
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Lee D, Rapp V CG, Loureiro J, Patel MT, Mikhailov D, Gusev AI. Decentralized clinical trial design using blood microsampling technology for serum bioanalysis. Bioanalysis 2023; 15:1287-1303. [PMID: 37855231 DOI: 10.4155/bio-2023-0136] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Background: Alternatives to phlebotomy in clinical trials increase options for patients and clinicians by simplifying and increasing accessibility to clinical trials. The authors investigated the technical and logistical considerations of one technology compared with phlebotomy. Methodology: Paired samples were collected from 16 donors via a second-generation serum gel microsampling device and conventional phlebotomy. Microsamples were subject to alternative sample handling conditions and were evaluated for quality, clinical testing and proteome profiling. Results: Timely centrifugation of blood serum microsamples largely preserved analyte stability. Conclusion: Centrifugation timing of serum microsamples impacts the quality of specific clinical chemistry and protein biomarkers. Microsampling devices with remote centrifugation and refrigerated shipping can decrease patient burden, expand clinical trial populations and aid clinical decisions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dana Lee
- Biomarker Development, Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, 220 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Charles G Rapp V
- Biomarker & Bioanalytical Science & Technology, Takeda Pharmaceutical Company, 40 Landsdowne St., Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Joseph Loureiro
- Chemical Biology & Therapeutics, Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, 250 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Michael T Patel
- Biomarker Development, Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, 220 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Dmitri Mikhailov
- Biomarker Development, Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, 220 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Arkady I Gusev
- Biomarker Development, Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, 220 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
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Grieve S, Brunner F, Cabral DF, Connett R, Hirata H, Iwasaki N, Nakagawa Y, Sagir A, Sousa G, Vatine JJ, Vaughan-Spickers N, Xu J, Buckle L, McCabe C. An international study to explore the feasibility of collecting standardised outcome data for Complex Regional Pain Syndrome: recommendations for an international clinical research registry. Br J Pain 2023; 17:468-478. [PMID: 38107759 PMCID: PMC10722111 DOI: 10.1177/20494637231188333] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) is a persistent pain condition with low prevalence. Multi-centre collaborative research is needed to attain sufficient sample sizes for meaningful studies. This international observational study: (1) tested the feasibility and acceptability of collecting outcome data using an agreed core measurement set (2) tested and refined an electronic data management system to collect and manage the data. Methods Adults with CRPS, meeting the Budapest diagnostic clinical criteria, were recruited to the study from 7 international research centres. After informed consent, a questionnaire comprising the core set outcome measures was completed: on paper at baseline (T1), and at 3 or 6 months (T2) using a paper or e-version. Participants and clinicians provided feedback on the data collection process. Clinicians completed the CRPS severity score at T1 and optionally, at T2. Ethical approval was obtained at each international centre. Results Ninety-eight adults were recruited (female n=66; mean age 46.6 years, range 19-89), of whom 32% chose to receive the T2 questionnaire in an electronic format. Fifty-five participants completed both T1 and T2. Eighteen participants and nine clinicians provided feedback on their data collection experience. Conclusion This study confirmed the questionnaire core outcome data are feasible and practicable to collect in clinical practice. The electronic data management system provided a robust means of collecting and managing the data across an international population. The findings have informed the final data collection tools and processes which will comprise the first international, clinical research registry and data bank for CRPS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sharon Grieve
- Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust, Bath, UK
- University of the West of England, Bristol, UK
| | | | - Danylo F Cabral
- University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, Florida, USA
| | | | | | | | | | - Afrin Sagir
- Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
- University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA
| | | | - Jean-Jacques Vatine
- Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
- Reuth Rehabilitation Hospital, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | | | - Jijun Xu
- Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
| | - Lisa Buckle
- Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust, Bath, UK
- University of the West of England, Bristol, UK
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Ma J, Johnson EA, McCrory B. Predicting risk factors for pediatric mortality in clinical trial research: A retrospective, cross-sectional study using a Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project database. J Clin Transl Sci 2023; 7:e211. [PMID: 37900356 PMCID: PMC10603364 DOI: 10.1017/cts.2023.634] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2023] [Revised: 09/08/2023] [Accepted: 09/11/2023] [Indexed: 10/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Incorporating real-world data using "big data" analysis in healthcare are useful to extract specific information for healthcare delivery system improvement. All-cause mortality is an essential measure to enhance patient safety in clinical trial research, especially for underrepresented pediatric participants. Objective This study aimed to determine the associations between pediatric mortality and patient-specific factors using the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) database. Methods Data from the 2019 the HCUP Kids' Inpatient Database (KID) were used to conduct a logistic regression analysis to determine associations between pediatric patients' the chance of survival and their demographic and socioeconomic background, discharge records, and hospital information. Results Total number of diagnoses (OR = 0.84), total number of procedures (OR = 0.86), length of stay (OR = 1.04), age intervals greater than 1 year (OR > 1.0), transfer into the hospital from a different acute care (OR = 0.34), major diagnoses of multiple significant trauma (OR = 0.03) or hepatobiliary system and pancreas (OR = 0.10), region of hospital - west and midwest (OR > 1.0), and medium or larger hospital bed size (OR > 1.0) were all significantly associated with the chance of survival for patients participating in pediatric clinical trials (p < 0.05). Conclusion Real-world clinical trial data analysis showed the potential improvement area including reallocating trial resources to promote trial quality and safe participation for pediatric patients. Pediatric trials need tools that are developed using user-centered design approaches to satisfy the unique needs and requirements of pediatric patients and their caregivers. Safe intrahospital transfer procedures and active dissemination of successful trial best practices are crucial to trial management, adherence, quality, and safety.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiahui Ma
- Montana State University, Norm Asbjornson College of Engineering, Bozeman, MT, USA
| | - Elizabeth A. Johnson
- Montana State University, Mark & Robyn Jones College of Nursing, Bozeman, MT, USA
| | - Bernadette McCrory
- Montana State University, Norm Asbjornson College of Engineering, Bozeman, MT, USA
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Idnay B, Fang Y, Butler A, Moran J, Li Z, Lee J, Ta C, Liu C, Yuan C, Chen H, Stanley E, Hripcsak G, Larson E, Marder K, Chung W, Ruotolo B, Weng C. Uncovering key clinical trial features influencing recruitment. J Clin Transl Sci 2023; 7:e199. [PMID: 37830010 PMCID: PMC10565197 DOI: 10.1017/cts.2023.623] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2023] [Revised: 08/21/2023] [Accepted: 08/22/2023] [Indexed: 10/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Randomized clinical trials (RCT) are the foundation for medical advances, but participant recruitment remains a persistent barrier to their success. This retrospective data analysis aims to (1) identify clinical trial features associated with successful participant recruitment measured by accrual percentage and (2) compare the characteristics of the RCTs by assessing the most and least successful recruitment, which are indicated by varying thresholds of accrual percentage such as ≥ 90% vs ≤ 10%, ≥ 80% vs ≤ 20%, and ≥ 70% vs ≤ 30%. Methods Data from the internal research registry at Columbia University Irving Medical Center and Aggregated Analysis of ClinicalTrials.gov were collected for 393 randomized interventional treatment studies closed to further enrollment. We compared two regularized linear regression and six tree-based machine learning models for accrual percentage (i.e., reported accrual to date divided by the target accrual) prediction. The outperforming model and Tree SHapley Additive exPlanations were used for feature importance analysis for participant recruitment. The identified features were compared between the two subgroups. Results CatBoost regressor outperformed the others. Key features positively associated with recruitment success, as measured by accrual percentage, include government funding and compensation. Meanwhile, cancer research and non-conventional recruitment methods (e.g., websites) are negatively associated with recruitment success. Statistically significant subgroup differences (corrected p-value < .05) were found in 15 of the top 30 most important features. Conclusion This multi-source retrospective study highlighted key features influencing RCT participant recruitment, offering actionable steps for improvement, including flexible recruitment infrastructure and appropriate participant compensation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Betina Idnay
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Yilu Fang
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Alex Butler
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Joyce Moran
- Department of Neurology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, NY Research, New York, NY, USA
| | - Ziran Li
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Junghwan Lee
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Casey Ta
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Cong Liu
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Chi Yuan
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Huanyao Chen
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Edward Stanley
- Compliance Applications, Information Technology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - George Hripcsak
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Elaine Larson
- School of Nursing, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
- New York Academy of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Karen Marder
- Department of Neurology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, NY Research, New York, NY, USA
| | - Wendy Chung
- Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Brenda Ruotolo
- Institutional Review Board for Human Subjects Research, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Chunhua Weng
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
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Werts SJ, Lavelle SA, Crane TE, Thomson CA. Recruitment and Retention Strategies Used in Dietary Randomized Controlled Interventions with Cancer Survivors: A Systematic Review. Cancers (Basel) 2023; 15:4366. [PMID: 37686640 PMCID: PMC10486591 DOI: 10.3390/cancers15174366] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2023] [Revised: 08/28/2023] [Accepted: 08/30/2023] [Indexed: 09/10/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The purpose of this review was to systematically evaluate the quality of reporting of recruitment and retention methods in diet-related intervention trials among cancer survivors. METHODS A systematic search of five databases in Spring 2023 identified dietary intervention randomized controlled trials with a minimum of 50 cancer survivors, an intervention of at least eight weeks, and at least six months of study duration. Outcomes investigated include methodologic description and reporting of recruitment and retention rates. RESULTS Seventeen trials met inclusion criteria. Recruitment methods included cancer registry and clinician referral, hospital records, flyers, and media campaigns, and were reported in 88.2% of studies. Eleven of 17 studies (64.7%) met a priori recruitment goals. Eleven studies identified an a priori retention goal and seven met the goal. Retention goals were met more often for studies of less than one year (71.4%) versus greater than one year (50%), and for studies with remote or hybrid delivery (66.7%) versus only in-person delivery (50%). CONCLUSIONS Recruitment goals and methods are frequently reported; reporting of retention methods and goals is limited. Efforts are needed to improve reporting of retention methods and rates to inform best practices and enhance the rigor of future dietary intervention trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samantha J. Werts
- Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85724, USA;
- University of Arizona Cancer Center, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85724, USA
| | - Sarah A. Lavelle
- College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA;
| | - Tracy E. Crane
- Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33136, USA;
- Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33136, USA
| | - Cynthia A. Thomson
- Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85724, USA;
- University of Arizona Cancer Center, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85724, USA
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Wu Q, Wang X, Zhang J, Zhang Y, van Velthoven MH. The effectiveness of a WeChat-based self-assessment with a tailored feedback report on improving complementary feeding and movement behaviour of children aged 6-20 months in rural China: a cluster randomized controlled trial. THE LANCET REGIONAL HEALTH. WESTERN PACIFIC 2023; 37:100796. [PMID: 37273963 PMCID: PMC10239064 DOI: 10.1016/j.lanwpc.2023.100796] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2023] [Revised: 03/31/2023] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Background Appropriate infant feeding and movement behaviour (i.e. physical activity, sedentary behaviour, sleep) play an important role in children's healthy development during the first two years of life. The popular Chinese social media app 'WeChat' has become a potential data collection and health promotion tool. We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a WeChat-based self-assessment with a tailored feedback report on improving complementary feeding practices and movement behaviour of children aged 6-20 months in rural China. Methods We conducted a two-armed cluster randomized control trial in Datong County, Qinghai Province, China. There were 106 clusters from 257 villages allocated (1:1) to two groups: the feeding group, which received a complementary feeding recommendations feedback report; the movement behaviour group, which received movement behaviour recommendations feedback report. The feeding group acted as a control for the movement behaviour group and vice versa. Children aged 6-20 months and their primary caregivers were invited to be participants. WeChat was used to collect the data on outcomes and to deliver the interventions. Participants received the interventions by filling out the WeChat self-assessment questionnaire and reading tailored feedback reports at baseline, at the first 1-month follow-up and at the second 2-month follow-up. Outcome measures included changes in the prevalence of minimum dietary diversity (MDD), minimum meal frequency (MMF), minimum acceptable diet (MAD); and the proportion of children who met physical activity time (PAT), outdoor time (OT) and screen time (ST) recommendation between the two groups at the two follow-ups. This study is registered at Chinese Clinical Trial Registry-ChiCTR2200062529. Findings Between September 28th and October 12th 2022, we recruited 1610 children in 106 clusters, of which 53 clusters (800 children) were randomized to the feeding group and 53 clusters (810 children) to the movement behaviour group. All caregivers of children completed questionnaires at three time points without loss to follow-up. From baseline to the second follow-up, the prevalence of MDD (OR: 1.62 [95% CI, 1.16-2.28; p = 0.0058]), MMF (OR: 1.45 [95% CI, 1.03-2.04; p = 0.032]) and MAD (OR: 1.51 [95% CI, 1.12-2.05; p = 0.0081]) in the feeding group were significantly higher than that in the movement behaviour group. The proportion of children who met PAT during the last 24 h at the second follow-up (OR: 2.22 [95% CI, 1.26-2.17; p < 0.0001]) and OT at the second follow-up (OR: 1.94 [95% CI, 1.49-2.54; p < 0.0001]) significantly improved in the movement behaviour group compared to the feeding group. Furthermore, ST in the movement behaviour group showed a significant increase only at the first follow-up (OR: 1.36 [95% CI, 1.02-1.82; p = 0.036]). Interpretation WeChat-based self-assessment with tailored feedback was an effective channel to deliver feeding and movement behaviour recommendations in rural China in our study. This approach can be applied to change feeding practices of caregivers of young children alongside routine child health care in rural China. Funding Capital Institute of Pediatrics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiong Wu
- Department of Integrated Early Childhood Development, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Xiaotong Wang
- Department of Integrated Early Childhood Development, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Jian Zhang
- Department of Integrated Early Childhood Development, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Yanfeng Zhang
- Department of Integrated Early Childhood Development, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
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Shiely F, Murphy D, Millar SR. Clinical research nurse predictions of trial failure, recruitment and retention: a case for their early inclusion in trial design. Trials 2023; 24:458. [PMID: 37464255 DOI: 10.1186/s13063-023-07504-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2023] [Accepted: 07/09/2023] [Indexed: 07/20/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Clinical research nurses are a key part of the clinical trial team but typically get involved later in the trial, usually during recruitment. The purpose of our study was to establish if CRNs who read the trial protocol can predict the performance of the trial. METHODS We randomly selected 18 trial protocols with three statuses, terminated, withdrawn, and completed, from ClinicalTrials.gov, between 2014 and 2018 inclusive. We gave the protocols to five CRNs, asked them to make a judgement and provide a reason for that judgement (via a 12-item questionnaire) on the status of the trial (terminated, withdrawn or completed), if the trial met its recruitment target, if it recruited on time, and if it retained its participants. We also asked if it was likely a CRN was involved in the design of the trial. The CRNs were blinded to the study outcomes, did not receive any training on how to read a protocol and were prohibited from using/abstained from using the internet while completing the task. RESULTS Twenty-three questionnaires on 23 trial protocols (18 different trials) were completed by 5 CRNs. The CRNs correctly predicted the trial status 48%, 95% CI: 29-67% (11/23) of the time; successful/unsuccessful recruitment 74%, 95% CI: 54-87% (17/23) of the time; on-time recruitment 70%, 95% CI: 49-84% (16/23) of the time; and participant retention 52%, 95% CI: 33-71% (12/23). CRNs identified 100% (sensitivity) of sites that hit their target and 63%, 95% CI: 36-84% (specificity) of sites that missed their target. CONCLUSIONS CRNs are very good judges of trial recruitment and site performance issues and are a vital part of the clinical trial team. Taken with the ESP (Estimating Site Performance) study, we have made a strong case for broadening the trial team at the trial design stage. Early engagement of a broad skillset can potentially offset problems of recruitment, retention and trial failure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frances Shiely
- Trials Research and Methodologies Unit, HRB Clinical Research Facility, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland.
- HRB Trials Methodology Research Network (HRB TMRN), Cork, Ireland.
- School of Public Health, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland.
| | - Danielle Murphy
- Trials Research and Methodologies Unit, HRB Clinical Research Facility, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland
- HRB Trials Methodology Research Network (HRB TMRN), Cork, Ireland
| | - Seán R Millar
- School of Public Health, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland
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22
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Zhang M, Sit JW, Choi KC, Chan CW. A theory-driven, culture-tailored educational intervention for cervical cancer screening among rural Chinese females: A feasibility and pilot study. Asia Pac J Oncol Nurs 2023; 10:100218. [PMID: 37288349 PMCID: PMC10242496 DOI: 10.1016/j.apjon.2023.100218] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2023] [Accepted: 03/20/2023] [Indexed: 06/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Objective This study aimed to evaluate the feasibility and preliminarily estimate the effects of a theory-driven, culture-tailored, community-based educational intervention promoting cervical cancer screening among rural females. Methods An experimental study with the two-arm parallel, nonrandomized control trial design was implemented, followed by individual semi-structured interviews. Thirty rural females between 26 and 64 were recruited, with 15 in each group. Both groups were exposed to the usual care about cervical cancer screening promotion from the local clinics, while participants in the intervention group additionally received five educational sessions in 5 weeks. Data were collected at baseline and immediately postintervention. Results All participants completed the study, and the retention rate was 100%. Participants in the intervention group had more significant increments in cervical cancer screening-related self-efficacy (P < 0.001), knowledge (P < 0.001), and intention levels (P = 0.003) than those in the control group. Most participants showed acceptance and satisfaction with this educational intervention. Conclusions This study revealed that the theory-driven, culture-tailored, community-based educational intervention was feasible among the rural populations to promote cervical cancer screening. A large-scale interventional study with a prolonged follow-up duration is warranted to explore this educational intervention's effectiveness further.
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Alhaddad AY, Aly H, Gad H, Elgassim E, Mohammed I, Baagar K, Al-Ali A, Sadasivuni KK, Cabibihan JJ, Malik RA. Longitudinal Studies of Wearables in Patients with Diabetes: Key Issues and Solutions. SENSORS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2023; 23:s23115003. [PMID: 37299733 DOI: 10.3390/s23115003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2023] [Revised: 05/09/2023] [Accepted: 05/16/2023] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Glucose monitoring is key to the management of diabetes mellitus to maintain optimal glucose control whilst avoiding hypoglycemia. Non-invasive continuous glucose monitoring techniques have evolved considerably to replace finger prick testing, but still require sensor insertion. Physiological variables, such as heart rate and pulse pressure, change with blood glucose, especially during hypoglycemia, and could be used to predict hypoglycemia. To validate this approach, clinical studies that contemporaneously acquire physiological and continuous glucose variables are required. In this work, we provide insights from a clinical study undertaken to study the relationship between physiological variables obtained from a number of wearables and glucose levels. The clinical study included three screening tests to assess neuropathy and acquired data using wearable devices from 60 participants for four days. We highlight the challenges and provide recommendations to mitigate issues that may impact the validity of data capture to enable a valid interpretation of the outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ahmad Yaser Alhaddad
- Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Qatar University, Doha 2713, Qatar
| | - Hussein Aly
- KINDI Center for Computing Research, Qatar University, Doha 2713, Qatar
| | - Hoda Gad
- Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar, Doha 24144, Qatar
| | | | - Ibrahim Mohammed
- Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar, Doha 24144, Qatar
- Department of Internal Medicine, Albany Medical Center Hospital, Albany, NY 12208, USA
| | | | - Abdulaziz Al-Ali
- KINDI Center for Computing Research, Qatar University, Doha 2713, Qatar
| | | | - John-John Cabibihan
- Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Qatar University, Doha 2713, Qatar
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Fairhurst C, Parkinson G, Hewitt C, Maturana C, Wiley L, Rose F, Torgerson D, Hugill-Jones J, Booth A, Bissell L, Tew G. Enclosing a pen in a postal questionnaire follow-up to increase response rate: a study within a trial. NIHR OPEN RESEARCH 2023; 2:53. [PMID: 36876302 PMCID: PMC7614271 DOI: 10.3310/nihropenres.13324.2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/05/2023] [Indexed: 10/26/2023]
Abstract
Background Poor response rates to follow-up questionnaires can adversely affect the progress of a randomised controlled trial and the validity of its results. This embedded 'study within a trial' aimed to investigate the impact of including a pen with the postal 3-month questionnaire completed by the trial participants on the response rates to this questionnaire. Methods This study was a two-armed randomised controlled trial nested in the Gentle Years Yoga (GYY) trial. Participants in the intervention group of the GYY trial were allocated 1:1 using simple randomisation to either receive a pen (intervention) or no pen with their 3-month questionnaire (control). The primary outcome was the proportion of participants sent a 3-month questionnaire who returned it. Secondary outcomes were time taken to return the questionnaire, proportion of participants sent a reminder to return the questionnaire, and completeness of the questionnaire. Binary outcomes were analysed using logistic regression, time to return by Cox Proportional Hazards regression and number of items completed by linear regression. Results There were 111 participants randomised to the pen group and 118 to the no pen group who were sent a 3-month questionnaire. There was no evidence of a difference in return rates between the two groups (pen 107 (96.4%), no pen 117 (99.2%); OR 0.23, 95% CI 0.02 to 2.19, p=0.20). Furthermore, there was no evidence of a difference between the two groups in terms of time to return the questionnaire (HR 0.90, 95% CI 0.69 to 1.18, p=0.47), the proportion of participants sent a reminder (OR 0.85, 95% CI 0.48 to 1.53, p=0.60) nor the number of items completed (mean difference 0.51, 95% CI -0.04 to 1.06, p=0.07). Conclusion The inclusion of a pen with the postal 3-month follow-up questionnaire did not have a statistically significant effect on response rate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caroline Fairhurst
- York Trials Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Gillian Parkinson
- York Trials Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Catherine Hewitt
- York Trials Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Camila Maturana
- York Trials Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Laura Wiley
- York Trials Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Fiona Rose
- York Trials Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - David Torgerson
- York Trials Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Jessica Hugill-Jones
- York Trials Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Alison Booth
- York Trials Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Laura Bissell
- British Wheel of Yoga Qualifications, Sleaford, NG34 7RU, UK
| | - Garry Tew
- York St John University, York, YO31 7EX, UK
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Soltero EG, Lopez C, Musaad SM, O'Connor TM, Thompson D. Fit24, a digital health intervention to reduce type 2 diabetes risk among Hispanic youth: Protocol for a feasibility pilot study. Contemp Clin Trials 2023; 127:107117. [PMID: 36775009 PMCID: PMC10065958 DOI: 10.1016/j.cct.2023.107117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2022] [Revised: 02/06/2023] [Accepted: 02/08/2023] [Indexed: 02/12/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Poor physical activity (PA) and sleep behaviors in Hispanic adolescents contributes to increased risk for type 2 diabetes. Commonly owned digital devices and services like smartphones and text-messaging are highly used among adolescents and are promising intervention tools for reaching this age group. Personal activity trackers assess activity and sleep, making them ideal tools for addressing these behaviors. We propose to examine the feasibility of a 12-week intervention that uses theoretically grounded text messages and a Fitbit device to improve PA and sleep among Hispanic adolescents with obesity, as compared to a wait-list control group with a Fitbit device only. METHODS Participants (N = 48; 14-16 years) will be randomized (1:1) to the intervention or wait-list control group. Youth in the intervention will receive a Fitbit Charge 5 and daily text messages. Youth in the wait-list control group will receive a Fitbit Charge 5 and information on PA and sleep guidelines. RESULTS Feasibility will be examined by collecting process evaluation data on the following criteria: (1) recruit 48 Hispanic adolescents 14-16 years; (2) retain 85% of participants for post-assessments; (3) Fitbit wear ≥4 days/week and respond to 80% of text messages when prompted; (4) ≤10% technical issues; and (5) obtain 80% satisfaction from participants. DISCUSSION This study will advance our knowledge on the feasibility of digital prevention strategies to promote PA and sleep behaviors to reduce T2D risk among Hispanic youth. If feasible, this approach has the potential to be a scalable, cost-effective diabetes prevention strategy among high-risk youth. TRIAL REGISTRATION NCT04953442, registered on July 8, 2021.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erica G Soltero
- USDA/ARS Children's Nutrition Research Center, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, 1100 Bates St., Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
| | - Callie Lopez
- USDA/ARS Children's Nutrition Research Center, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, 1100 Bates St., Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Salma M Musaad
- USDA/ARS Children's Nutrition Research Center, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, 1100 Bates St., Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Teresia M O'Connor
- USDA/ARS Children's Nutrition Research Center, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, 1100 Bates St., Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Debbe Thompson
- USDA/ARS Children's Nutrition Research Center, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, 1100 Bates St., Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA
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Ramsay G, Haime Z, Crellin NE, Stansfeld JL, Priebe S, Long M, Moncrieff J. Recruitment to a trial of antipsychotic reduction: impact of an acceptability study. BMC Med Res Methodol 2023; 23:78. [PMID: 36991350 PMCID: PMC10053425 DOI: 10.1186/s12874-023-01881-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2022] [Accepted: 03/03/2023] [Indexed: 03/31/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Pre-trial acceptability studies may boost recruitment, especially in trials comparing distinctly different interventions. We evaluated the impact of an acceptability study on recruitment to a randomised trial of antipsychotic reduction versus maintenance treatment and explored demographic and clinical predictors of subsequent enrolment. METHODS Participants with a diagnosis of a schizophrenia spectrum disorder who were taking antipsychotic medication were interviewed about their views of taking part in a future trial. RESULTS In a sample of 210 participants, 151 (71.9%) expressed an interest in taking part in the future trial, 16 (7.6%) said they might be interested, and 43 (20.5%) said they were not. Altruistic reasons were most commonly given for wanting to take part, and concern about randomisation for not wanting to. Ultimately 57 people enrolled in the trial (27.1% of the original sample). Eighty-five people who initially expressed an interest did not enrol due to declining or not being eligible (for clinical reasons). Women and people from a white ethnic background were more likely to enrol in the trial, but no illness or treatment-related characteristics were associated with enrolment. CONCLUSION An acceptability study can be a useful tool for recruitment to challenging trials, but it may over-estimate recruitment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Georgina Ramsay
- Research and Development, North East London NHS Foundation Trust, Ilford, Essex, UK
| | - Zoë Haime
- University College London, Bloomsbury , UK
| | | | - Jacki L Stansfeld
- Research and Development, North East London NHS Foundation Trust, Ilford, Essex, UK
- University College London, Bloomsbury , UK
| | - Stefan Priebe
- Unit for Social and Community Psychiatry, Queen Mary University of London, Mile End, East London, UK
| | - Maria Long
- Research and Development, North East London NHS Foundation Trust, Ilford, Essex, UK
- University College London, Bloomsbury , UK
| | - Joanna Moncrieff
- Research and Development, North East London NHS Foundation Trust, Ilford, Essex, UK.
- University College London, Bloomsbury , UK.
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Site-specific factors associated with clinical trial recruitment efficiency in general practice settings: a comparative descriptive analysis. Trials 2023; 24:164. [PMID: 36869362 PMCID: PMC9985191 DOI: 10.1186/s13063-023-07177-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2022] [Accepted: 02/17/2023] [Indexed: 03/05/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Recruitment of participants is crucial to the success of randomised control trials (RCTs) but can be challenging and expensive. Current research on trial efficiency is often focused at the patient-level with an emphasis on effective recruitment strategies. Less is known about selection of study sites to optimise recruitment. We examine site-level factors that are associated with patient recruitment and cost efficiency using data from an RCT conducted across 25 general practices (GP) in Victoria, Australia. METHODS Data on number of participants screened, excluded, eligible, recruited, and randomised from each study site were extracted from a clinical trial. Details regarding site characteristics, recruitment practices, and staff time commitment were collected using a three-part survey. The key outcomes assessed were recruitment efficiency (ratio of screened to randomised), average time, and cost for each participant recruited and randomised. To identify practice-level factors associated with efficient recruitment and lower cost, outcomes were dichotomised (25th percentile vs others) and each practice-level factor assessed against the outcomes to determine its association. RESULTS Across 25 GP study sites, 1968 participants were screened of which 299 (15.2%) were recruited and randomised. The mean recruitment efficiency was 7.2, varying from 1.4 to 19.8 across sites. The strongest factor associated with efficiency was assigning clinical staff to identify potential participants (57.14% vs. 22.2%). The more efficient sites were smaller practices and were more likely to be rural locations and in areas of lower socioeconomic status. The average time used for recruitment was 3.7 h (SD2.4) per patient randomised. The mean cost per patient randomised was $277 (SD161), and this varied from $74 to $797 across sites. The sites identified with the 25% lowest recruitment cost (n = 7) were more experienced in research participation and had high levels of nurse and/or administrative support. CONCLUSION Despite the small sample size, this study quantified the time and cost used to recruit patients and provides helpful indications of site-level characteristics that can help improve feasibility and efficiency of conducting RCT in GP settings. Characteristics indicative of high levels of support for research and rural practices, which often tends to be overlooked, were observed to be more efficient in recruiting.
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Greenberg JK, Frumkin MR, Javeed S, Zhang JK, Dai R, Molina CA, Pennicooke BH, Agarwal N, Santiago P, Goodwin ML, Jain D, Pallotta N, Gupta MC, Buchowski JM, Leuthardt EC, Ghogawala Z, Kelly MP, Hall BL, Piccirillo JF, Lu C, Rodebaugh TL, Ray WZ. Feasibility and Acceptability of a Preoperative Multimodal Mobile Health Assessment in Spine Surgery Candidates. Neurosurgery 2023; 92:538-546. [PMID: 36700710 PMCID: PMC10158869 DOI: 10.1227/neu.0000000000002245] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2022] [Accepted: 09/19/2022] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Rapid growth in smartphone use has expanded opportunities to use mobile health (mHealth) technology to collect real-time patient-reported and objective biometric data. These data may have important implication for personalized treatments of degenerative spine disease. However, no large-scale study has examined the feasibility and acceptability of these methods in spine surgery patients. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of a multimodal preoperative mHealth assessment in patients with degenerative spine disease. METHODS Adults undergoing elective spine surgery were provided with Fitbit trackers and sent preoperative ecological momentary assessments (EMAs) assessing pain, disability, mood, and catastrophizing 5 times daily for 3 weeks. Objective adherence rates and a subjective acceptability survey were used to evaluate feasibility of these methods. RESULTS The 77 included participants completed an average of 82 EMAs each, with an average completion rate of 86%. Younger age and chronic pulmonary disease were significantly associated with lower EMA adherence. Seventy-two (93%) participants completed Fitbit monitoring and wore the Fitbits for an average of 247 hours each. On average, participants wore the Fitbits for at least 12 hours per day for 15 days. Only worse mood scores were independently associated with lower Fitbit adherence. Most participants endorsed positive experiences with the study protocol, including 91% who said they would be willing to complete EMAs to improve their preoperative surgical guidance. CONCLUSION Spine fusion candidates successfully completed a preoperative multimodal mHealth assessment with high acceptability. The intensive longitudinal data collected may provide new insights that improve patient selection and treatment guidance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob K. Greenberg
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Madelyn R. Frumkin
- Department of Psychology and Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Saad Javeed
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Justin K. Zhang
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Ruixuan Dai
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Camilo A. Molina
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Brenton H. Pennicooke
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Nitin Agarwal
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Paul Santiago
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Matthew L. Goodwin
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Deeptee Jain
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Nicholas Pallotta
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Munish C. Gupta
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Jacob M. Buchowski
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Eric C. Leuthardt
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Zoher Ghogawala
- Department of Neurosurgery, Lahey Hospital and Medical Center, Burlington, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Michael P. Kelly
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Rady Children's Hospital, San Diego, California, USA
| | - Bruce L. Hall
- Department of Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Jay F. Piccirillo
- Department of Otolaryngology, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Chenyang Lu
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Thomas L. Rodebaugh
- Department of Psychology and Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Wilson Z. Ray
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
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Atif N, Rauf N, Nazir H, Maryam H, Mumtaz S, Zulfiqar S, Shouket R, Rowther AA, Malik A, Rahman A, Surkan PJ. Non-specialist-delivered psychosocial intervention for prenatal anxiety in a tertiary care setting in Pakistan: a qualitative process evaluation. BMJ Open 2023; 13:e069988. [PMID: 36822801 PMCID: PMC9950893 DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2022-069988] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2022] [Accepted: 01/16/2023] [Indexed: 02/25/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES A manualised cognitive-behavioural therapy-based psychosocial intervention for prenatal anxiety called Happy Mother Healthy Baby is being tested for its effectiveness through a randomised control trial in Pakistan. The aim of this study was to evaluate the intervention delivery process and the research process. DESIGN Qualitative methods were used to explore in depth the intervention delivery and research process. SETTING This process evaluation was embedded within a randomised control trial conducted in a tertiary care facility in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. PARTICIPANTS Data were collected through in-depth interviews (n=35) with the trial participants and focus group discussions (n=3) with the research staff. Transcripts were analysed using a Framework Analysis. RESULTS The evaluation of the intervention delivery process indicated that it can be effectively delivered by non-specialist providers trained and supervised by a specialist. The intervention was perceived to be culturally acceptable and appropriately addressing problems related to prenatal anxiety. Lack of awareness of 'talking' therapies and poor family support were potential barriers to participant engagement. The evaluation of the research process highlighted that culturally appropriate consent procedures facilitated recruitment of participants, while incentivisation and family involvement facilitated sustained engagement and retention. Lack of women's empowerment and mental health stigma were potential barriers to implementation of the programme. CONCLUSION We conclude that non-specialists can feasibly deliver an evidence-based intervention integrated into routine antenatal care in a tertiary hospital. Non-specialist providers are likely to be more cost effective and less stigmatising. Inclusion of family is key for participant recruitment, retention and engagement with the intervention. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER NCT03880032.
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Affiliation(s)
- Najia Atif
- Human Development Research Foundation, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Nida Rauf
- Human Development Research Foundation, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Huma Nazir
- Human Development Research Foundation, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Hadia Maryam
- Human Development Research Foundation, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Sidra Mumtaz
- Human Development Research Foundation, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | | | - Rabail Shouket
- Human Development Research Foundation, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Armaan A Rowther
- Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Abid Malik
- Human Development Research Foundation, Islamabad, Pakistan
- Public Mental Health Department, Health Services Academy, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Atif Rahman
- Institute of Population Health, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
| | - Pamela J Surkan
- Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
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Mazzochi AT, Dennis M, Chun HYY. Electronic informed consent: effects on enrolment, practical and economic benefits, challenges, and drawbacks-a systematic review of studies within randomized controlled trials. Trials 2023; 24:127. [PMID: 36810093 PMCID: PMC9942032 DOI: 10.1186/s13063-022-06959-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2022] [Accepted: 11/24/2022] [Indexed: 02/23/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Enrolment is one of the most challenging aspects of conducting clinical trials, preceded by the process of informed consent (IC). Different strategies to improve recruitment in clinical trials have been used, including electronic IC. During COVID-19 pandemic, barriers to enrolment have been evident. Although digital technologies were acknowledged as the future of clinical research and potential advantages were shown for recruitment, electronic informed consent (e-IC) has not yet been globally adopted. The purpose of this review is to investigate the effect of using e-IC on enrolment, practical and economic benefits, challenges, and drawbacks when compared to traditional informed consent, through a systematic review. METHODS Embase, Global Health Library, Medline, and The Cochrane Library databases were searched. No limit was set for publication date, age, sex, or study design. We included all studies within a randomized controlled trial (RCT), published in English, Chinese or Spanish, evaluating the electronic consent process used in the parent RCT. Studies were included if any of the three components ((i) information provision, (ii) participant's comprehension, (iii) signature) of the IC process was designed as electronic, whether administered remotely or face-to-face. The primary outcome was the rate of enrolment to the parent trial. Secondary outcomes were summarized according to the various findings reported on the use of electronic consent. RESULTS From a total of 9069 titles, 12 studies were included in the final analysis with a total of 8864 participants. Five studies of high heterogeneity and risk of bias showed mixed results on the efficacy of e-IC on enrolment. Data of included studies suggested e-IC could improve comprehension and recall of study-related information. Meta-analysis could not be conducted due to different study designs and outcome measures and the predominantly qualitative findings. CONCLUSION Few published studies have investigated the impact of e-IC on enrolment and findings were mixed. e-IC may improve participant's comprehension and recall of information. High-quality studies are needed to evaluate the potential benefit of e-IC to increase clinical trial enrolment. TRIAL REGISTRATION PROSPERO CRD42021231035 . Registration date: 19-Feb-2021.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana Teresita Mazzochi
- Usher Institute, University of Edinburgh, Old Medical School, Teviot Place, Edinburgh, EH8 9AG, UK.
| | - Martin Dennis
- grid.4305.20000 0004 1936 7988Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Ho-Yan Yvonne Chun
- grid.4305.20000 0004 1936 7988Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
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Eeckhout D, Aelbrecht K, Van Der Straeten C. Informed Consent: Research Staff's Perspectives and Practical Recommendations to Improve Research Staff-Participant Communication. J Empir Res Hum Res Ethics 2023; 18:3-12. [PMID: 36562147 DOI: 10.1177/15562646221146043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Informed consent (IC) is the process of communication between research staff and potential research participants. However, ensuring that participants clearly understand what research participation entails, raises significant challenges. The aim of this study is to provide insight into some communication barriers that research staff are confronted with and make practical recommendations to improve communication between research staff and participants. A qualitative research study using semi-structured interviews (n = 13) with research staff from Ghent University Hospital was conducted. Data were transcribed verbatim and coded thematically. Our results indicate that communication- and process-related factors affect the IC process. Emergent recommendations include communication training, more interactive information materials and the use of digital alternatives, increasing general knowledge about research participation and patient- and public involvement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Delphine Eeckhout
- Department Health Innovation and Research Institute (HIRUZ), 60200Ghent University Hospital, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Karolien Aelbrecht
- Center for Medical Genetics Ghent (CMGG), 60200Ghent University Hospital, Ghent, Belgium
- Department of Biomolecular Medicine, 54498Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, 26656Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Catherine Van Der Straeten
- Department Health Innovation and Research Institute (HIRUZ), 60200Ghent University Hospital, Ghent, Belgium
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Protocol for the Feasibility Randomised Controlled Trial of Being a Parent- Enjoying Family Life (BAP-EFL): A peer-led group intervention for parents and caregivers with significant emotional and interpersonal difficulties. Contemp Clin Trials 2023; 124:107014. [PMID: 36410690 DOI: 10.1016/j.cct.2022.107014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2022] [Revised: 11/14/2022] [Accepted: 11/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Group-format parenting interventions are well-established at reducing challenging child behavior and risk for psychopathology. However, there is significantly less evidence about the performance of these interventions for parents with significant emotional and interpersonal difficulties, including personality disorder. This protocol presents the rationale and design of a two-arm parallel group feasibility Randomised Controlled Trial and nested process evaluation of Being a Parent (BaP)- Enjoying Family Life, a novel peer-led intervention. The trial compares BaP-Enjoying Family Life to the well-established Empowering Parents Empowering Communities-Being a Parent (EPEC-Being a Parent) in a sample of parents who experience significant emotional and interpersonal difficulties and who are concerned about their child's, aged 2-11 years, behavior. 72 parents will be recruited and randomised to receive either BaP-Enjoying Family Life or EPEC-Being a Parent group-format interventions. The primary aim of this study is to examine the feasibility and acceptability of BaP-Enjoying Family Life and the proposed trial methods. Secondary clinical outcomes include child behavioral difficulties, parenting, parental reflective function, parent wellbeing, satisfaction and self-efficacy. An observational assessment of parent and index child will also assess changes in the home environment. Outcome measures will be collected pre-intervention, post-intervention and at 6-month follow up. A parallel process evaluation will use qualitative data from interviews to assess parents' experience of the intervention delivery and trial methods. Findings will be evaluated against pre-determined feasibility criteria. The results will be used to determine the planning of a definitive clinical trial. The wider methodological and clinical implications are also discussed.
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Hilliard F, Goldstein E, Nervik K, Croes K, Ossorio PN, Zgierska AE. Voices of Women With Lived Experience of Substance Use During Pregnancy: A Qualitative Study of Motivators and Barriers to Recruitment and Retention in Research. FAMILY & COMMUNITY HEALTH 2023; 46:1-12. [PMID: 36383229 PMCID: PMC10321245 DOI: 10.1097/fch.0000000000000349] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Despite concerns about negative neurocognitive effects of in utero substance exposure on child and brain development, research in this area is limited. This study gathered perspectives of persons with lived experience of substance use (eg, alcohol, prescription and illicit opioids, and other illicit substances) during a previous pregnancy to determine facilitators and barriers to research engagement in this vulnerable population. We conducted structured, in-depth, individual interviews and 2 focus groups of adult persons with lived experience of substance use during a previous pregnancy. Questions were developed by clinical, research, bioethics, and legal experts, with input from diverse stakeholders. They inquired about facilitators and barriers to research recruitment and retention, especially in long-term studies, with attention to bio-sample and neuroimaging data collection and legal issues. Interviews and focus groups were audio-recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using inductive coding qualitative analysis methods. Ten participants completed in-depth interviews and 7 participated in focus groups. Three main themes emerged as potential barriers to research engagement: shame of using drugs while pregnant, fear of punitive action, and mistrust of health care and research professionals. Facilitative factors included trustworthiness, compassion, and a nonjudgmental attitude among research personnel. Inclusion of gender-concordant recovery peer support specialists as research team members was the most frequently identified facilitator important for helping participants reduce fears and bolster trust in research personnel. In this qualitative study, persons with lived experience of substance use during a previous pregnancy identified factors critical for engaging this population in research, emphasizing the involvement of peer support specialists as research team members.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florence Hilliard
- University of Wisconsin, School of Medicine and Public Health, Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, 1100 Delaplaine Ct, Madison, WI 53715
| | - Ellen Goldstein
- University of Wisconsin, School of Medicine and Public Health, Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, 1100 Delaplaine Ct, Madison, WI 53715
| | - Kendra Nervik
- University of Wisconsin, Department of Sociology, 8128 William H. Sewell Social Sciences Building, 1180 Observatory Drive, Madison, WI, 53706-1393
| | - Kenneth Croes
- University of Wisconsin Survey Center, Sterling Hall, 475 N. Charter Street, Madison, WI 53706
| | - Pilar N. Ossorio
- University of Wisconsin Law School, 975 Bascom Mall, Rm. 9103, Madison, WI 53706-1399
- Morgridge Institute for Research, 330 N. Orchard St, Madison, WI 53715
| | - Aleksandra E. Zgierska
- Pennsylvania State University, College of Medicine, Departments of Family and Community Medicine, Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, and Public Health Sciences, 700 HMC Crescent Road, Hershey, PA 17033
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Pertl K, Petluri R, Wiest K, Hoffman K, McCarty D, Levander XA, Chan B, Martin SA, Korthuis PT. Recruitment challenges for a prospective telehealth cohort study. Contemp Clin Trials Commun 2022; 31:101043. [PMID: 36475092 PMCID: PMC9715261 DOI: 10.1016/j.conctc.2022.101043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2022] [Revised: 11/10/2022] [Accepted: 11/27/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The COVID-19 pandemic presents challenges in participant recruitment strategies for clinical research involving people with opioid use disorders recently engaged in treatment. We describe challenges to participant recruitment in a trial comparing virtual buprenorphine treatment platform to office-based buprenorphine treatment. Methods The parent study was a cohort trial of telehealth delivered buprenorphine treatment compared to office-based buprenorphine treatment, however, due to the pandemic potential participant recruitment for both arms became virtual. Between 9/27/2021 and 7/11/2022, telephone, email, flyers, and word-of-mouth were used to recruit study participants from each treatment setting. Recruitment tracking documents recorded the primary outcomes: number of outreach attempts and most effective contact methods. Results Treatment settings provided contact information for 1485 potential study participants. Information was incorrect or disconnected for 282 (19%) individuals, 695 (47%) did not respond to outreach, and 508 (34%) responded to outreach. Of these responders, 369 were interested in study participation, 259 completed the online informed consent and screening assessment, and 148 met eligibility criteria and enrolled in the study. A total of 3804 virtual outreach attempts across 1485 potential participants were made, resulting in an average of 2.7 attempts per contact and a mean of 25.7 attempts per enrolled participant (n = 148). Conclusion Conducting research during the COVID-19 pandemic required shifting from in-person to virtual recruitment strategies to contact and engage potential study participants. Virtual recruitment for this population during a pandemic appears to be less efficient and hindered efforts to meet recruitment goals.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Kim Hoffman
- OHSU – PSU School of Public Health, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA,Corresponding author. Department of General Internal Medicine, 3181 S.W. Sam Jackson Park Road, Portland, OR, 97239-3098, USA.
| | - Dennis McCarty
- OHSU – PSU School of Public Health, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA
| | - Ximena A. Levander
- Addiction Medicine Section, Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA
| | - Brian Chan
- Addiction Medicine Section, Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA
| | - Stephen A. Martin
- Boulder Care, Portland, OR, USA,Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, UMass Chan Medical School, Worcester, MA, USA
| | - P. Todd Korthuis
- OHSU – PSU School of Public Health, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA,Addiction Medicine Section, Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA
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Sjömark J, Svanberg A, Viirman F, Larsson M, Poromaa I, Skalkidou A, Jonsson M, Parling T. Antepartum and labour-related single predictors of non-participation, dropout and lost to follow up in a randomised controlled trial comparing internet-based cognitive-behaviour therapy with treatment as usual for women with negative birth experiences and/or post-traumatic stress following childbirth. BMJ Open 2022; 12:e063214. [PMID: 36442895 PMCID: PMC9710351 DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2022-063214] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Internet-based interventions are often hampered by high dropout rates. The number of individuals who decline to participate or dropout are reported, but reasons for dropout are not. Identification of barriers to participation and predictors of dropout may help improve the efficacy of internet-based clinical trials. The aim was to investigate a large number of possible predictors for non-participation and dropout in a randomised controlled trial for women with a negative birth experience and/or post-traumatic stress following childbirth. SETTING A childbirth clinic at a university hospital in Sweden. PARTICIPANTS The sample included 1523 women who gave birth between September 2013 and February 2018. All women who rated an overall negative birth experience on a Likert scale, and/or had an immediate caesarean section (CS), and/or severe postpartum haemorrhage (≥ 2000 mL) were eligible. METHODS Demographic, antepartum, and labour-related/postpartum predictors were investigated for non-participation (eligible but denied participation), pre-treatment dropout (prior to intervention start), treatment dropout, and loss to follow-up. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression were used in the data analysis. RESULTS A majority (80.3 %) were non-participants. Non-participation was predicted by lower level of education, being foreign-born, no experience of counselling for fear of childbirth, multiparity, vaginal delivery (vs CS and vacuum-assisted delivery) and absence of: preeclampsia, anal sphincter injury and intrapartum fetal distress. Pretreatment dropout was predicted by the absence of severe haemorrhage. Treatment dropout was predicted by vaginal delivery (vs immediate CS), vertex presentation and good overall birth experience. Loss to follow-up was predicted by vaginal delivery (vs immediate CS or vacuum-assisted delivery) and absence of intrapartum fetal distress. CONCLUSIONS Mothers with no obstetric complications were more likely to not participate and dropout at different time points. Both demographic, antepartum and obstetrical variables are important to attend to while designing procedures to maximise participation in internet-delivered cognitive-behavioral therapy. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER ISRCTN39318241.
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Affiliation(s)
- Josefin Sjömark
- Department of Women's and Children's Health, Uppsala Universitet, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Agneta Svanberg
- Department of Women's and Children's Health, Uppsala Universitet, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Frida Viirman
- Department of Women's and Children's Health, Uppsala Universitet, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Margareta Larsson
- Department of Women's and Children's Health, Uppsala Universitet, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Inger Poromaa
- Department of Women's and Children's Health, Uppsala Universitet, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Alkistis Skalkidou
- Department of Women's and Children's Health, Uppsala Universitet, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Maria Jonsson
- Department of Women's and Children's Health, Uppsala Universitet, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Thomas Parling
- Department of Women's and Children's Health, Uppsala Universitet, Uppsala, Sweden
- Centre for Psychiatry Research, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet & Stockholm Health Care Services Region Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden
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Duprez V, Vandepoel I, Lemaire V, Wuyts D, Van Hecke A. A training intervention to enhance self-management support competencies among nurses: A non-randomized trial with mixed-methods evaluation. Nurse Educ Pract 2022; 65:103491. [DOI: 10.1016/j.nepr.2022.103491] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2022] [Revised: 09/20/2022] [Accepted: 10/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Fairhurst C, Parkinson G, Hewitt C, Maturana C, Wiley L, Rose F, Torgerson D, Hugill-Jones J, Booth A, Bissell L, Tew G. Enclosing a pen in a postal questionnaire follow-up to increase response rate: a study within a trial [version 1; peer review: 2 approved]. NIHR OPEN RESEARCH 2022; 2:53. [PMID: 36876302 PMCID: PMC7614271 DOI: 10.3310/nihropenres.13324.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/07/2023]
Abstract
Background Poor response rates to follow-up questionnaires can adversely affect the progress of a randomised controlled trial and the validity of its results. This embedded 'study within a trial' aimed to investigate the impact of including a pen with the postal 3-month questionnaire completed by the trial participants on the response rates to this questionnaire. Methods This study was a two-armed randomised controlled trial nested in the Gentle Years Yoga (GYY) trial. Participants in the intervention group of the GYY trial were allocated 1:1 using simple randomisation to either receive a pen (intervention) or no pen with their 3-month questionnaire (control). The primary outcome was the proportion of participants sent a 3-month questionnaire who returned it. Secondary outcomes were time taken to return the questionnaire, proportion of participants sent a reminder to return the questionnaire, and completeness of the questionnaire. Binary outcomes were analysed using logistic regression, time to return by Cox Proportional hazards regression and number of items completed by linear regression. Results There were 111 participants randomised to the pen group and 118 to the no pen group who were sent a 3-month questionnaire. There was no evidence of a difference in return rates between the two groups (pen 107 (96.4%), no pen 117 (99.2%); OR 0.23, 95% CI 0.02 to 2.19, p=0.20). Furthermore, there was no evidence of a difference between the two groups in terms of time to return the questionnaire (HR 0.90, 95% CI 0.69 to 1.18, p=0.47), the proportion of participants sent a reminder (OR 0.85, 95% CI 0.48 to 1.53, p=0.60) nor the number of items completed (mean difference 0.51, 95% CI-0.04 to 1.06, p=0.07). Conclusion The inclusion of a pen with the postal 3-month follow-up questionnaire did not have a statistically significant effect on response rate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caroline Fairhurst
- York Trials Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Gillian Parkinson
- York Trials Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Catherine Hewitt
- York Trials Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Camila Maturana
- York Trials Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Laura Wiley
- York Trials Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Fiona Rose
- York Trials Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - David Torgerson
- York Trials Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Jessica Hugill-Jones
- York Trials Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Alison Booth
- York Trials Unit, Department of Health Sciences, University of York, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Laura Bissell
- British Wheel of Yoga Qualifications, Sleaford, NG34 7RU, UK
| | - Garry Tew
- York St John University, York, YO31 7EX, UK
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Zhang J, Wu Q, Wang X, Zhang Y, Helena van Velthoven M. High response rate and low cost of WeChat-based data collection of infant and young child feeding data in rural Qinghai Province, China. J Glob Health 2022; 12:11011. [PMID: 36269216 PMCID: PMC9586143 DOI: 10.7189/jogh.12.11011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Measuring the infant and young child feeding (IYCF) indicators is key to effectively tracking the progress of child health programs and making evidence-based decisions. WeChat is the most popular mobile social media platform in China and has become a promising tool for collecting health data. This study aims to explore the response rate and costs of a WeChat-based questionnaire on IYCF information in rural China. Methods We conducted two cross-sectional surveys with caregivers of children aged 6-23 months in two rural counties in Qinghai Province (Menyuan and Datong County), China, from January to March 2022. Both surveys used the same WeChat IYCF questionnaire to collect household information, infant feeding practices, and caregivers’ feeding knowledge. Village doctors sent a quick response (QR) code to caregivers that was linked to the WeChat IYCF questionnaire. Participating caregivers scanned the QR code using their own WeChat account on their smartphone and filled in the questionnaire online. If they could not use WeChat themselves, village doctors administered the questionnaire. Once caregivers finished the questionnaires, they received a personalized report with infant feeding recommendations. Results We recruited 1274 caregivers of children aged 6-23 months in Menyuan County and 1748 caregivers in Datong County. The total response rate in the two counties was 98.2%; 77.6% of questionnaires were self-administered by caregivers and 20.6% were interviewer-administered by village doctors. The questionnaires were filled in twice by 209 (6.9%) caregivers. The cost of these two WeChat IYCF surveys was much lower than the cost of a previously conducted face-to-face survey: 11.8 yuan (US$1.85) in Menyuan County and 7.5 yuan (US$1.18) in Datong County for the WeChat survey vs 112.7 yuan (US$17.70) for the face-to-face survey in Huzhu County. Conclusions This study showed that using WeChat for IYCF surveys can achieve a very high response rate at a low cost in rural China. Village doctors played a very important role in achieving this high response rate. Providing feedback to caregivers may improve their feeding practices and this intervention could be incorporated into the data collection process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian Zhang
- Department of Integrated Early Childhood Development, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Qiong Wu
- Department of Integrated Early Childhood Development, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Xiaotong Wang
- Department of Integrated Early Childhood Development, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Yanfeng Zhang
- Department of Integrated Early Childhood Development, Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China
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Maura J, Ahmad SS, de Mamani AW. The impact of familial involvement on dropout in a culturally informed group therapy for people diagnosed with 'schizophrenia'. PSYCHOSIS 2022; 16:52-64. [PMID: 38617133 PMCID: PMC11008700 DOI: 10.1080/17522439.2022.2118358] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2022] [Accepted: 08/23/2022] [Indexed: 04/16/2024]
Abstract
Background Individuals with schizophrenia diagnoses are high-risk for dropout from mental health treatments, yet few studies have examined whether familial involvement in therapy impacts dropout. Methods We examined whether familial involvement and other demographic variables predicted dropout among 101 patients enrolled in culturally informed group therapy for schizophrenia (CIGT-S), which incorporates collectivistic principles and spiritual coping into treatment. We reviewed records and conducted follow-up calls to identify reasons for dropout, and performed survival analyses to identify when dropout was likely. Results Familial involvement was linked to greater engagement with treatment and lower dropout, signifying a mechanism for improving treatment attendance in this group. Ethnic minorities and patients with higher symptom severity demonstrated higher rates of dropout. Most patients dropped out of CIGT-S before treatment began. However, significantly lower levels of dropout were observed among those who made it to session 9 (end of the spirituality module). An inability to maintain contact with participants was the most cited reason for dropout within records, and structural reasons (e.g., moving away) were commonly cited among participants who were successfully followed-up with. Discussion Future work may identify whether family functioning or the quality of familial relationships may predict familial involvement and, consequently, treatment attendance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Maura
- Department of Psychology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington and Harborview Medical Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
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The ethical anatomy of payment for research participants. MEDICINE, HEALTH CARE AND PHILOSOPHY 2022; 25:449-464. [PMID: 35610403 PMCID: PMC9427899 DOI: 10.1007/s11019-022-10092-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
In contrast to most publications on the ethics of paying research subjects, which start by identifying and analyzing major ethical concerns raised by the practice (in particular, risks of undue inducement and exploitation) and end with a set of—more or less well-justified—ethical recommendations for using payment schemes immune to these problems, this paper offers a systematic, principle-based ethical analysis of the practice. It argues that researchers have a prima facie moral obligation to offer payment to research subjects, which stems from the principle of social beneficence. This principle constitutes an ethical “spine” of the practice. Other ethical principles of research ethics (respect for autonomy, individual beneficence, and justice/fairness) make up an ethical “skeleton” of morally sound payment schemes by providing additional moral reasons for offering participants (1) recompense for reasonable expenses; and (2a) remuneration conceptualized as a reward for their valuable contribution, provided (i) it meets standards of equality, adequacy and non-exploitation, and (ii) it is not overly attractive (i.e., it does not constitute undue inducement for participation or retention, and does not encourage deceptive behaviors); or (2b) remuneration conceptualized as a market-driven price, provided (i) it is necessary and designed to help the study achieve its social and scientific goals, (ii) it does not reinforce wider social injustices and inequalities; (iii) it meets the requirement of non-exploitation; and (iv) it is not overly attractive. The principle of justice provides a strong ethical reason for not offering recompenses for lost wages (or loss of other reasonably expected profits).
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Marthinsen GN, Helseth S, Småstuen M, Bjorvatn B, Bandlien SM, Fegran L. Sleep patterns and psychosocial health of parents of preterm and full-born infants: a prospective, comparative, longitudinal feasibility study. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth 2022; 22:546. [PMID: 35794538 PMCID: PMC9258469 DOI: 10.1186/s12884-022-04862-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2022] [Accepted: 06/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The early birth and hospitalization of a preterm infant in neonatal intensive care unit can produce several emotional and behavioural responses including sleep problems for parents. Few studies have explored sleep and its associations with health and HRQoL over time in this vulnerable parent population. This purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of a prospective, comparative, longitudinal study of the sleep patterns and psychosocial health of preterm and full-born infants’ parents during the first postpartum year. Methods A prospective, comparative, longitudinal feasibility study was conducted. Parents of preterm infants were compared to parents of full-born infants to identify if there were differences in outcomes between the groups. The parents were instructed to wear actigraphs and complete sleep diaries for two consecutive weeks, and responded to a digital questionnaire covering stress, insomnia, fatigue, depression, social support, self-efficacy, and health-related quality of life. Survey data were collected at infant ages of 2, 6, and 12 months, actigraphy and sleep diary data were collected at infant age of 2 months only. Descriptive analysis was used to describe recruitment and attrition rates. Differences between completers and dropouts were analysed with a chi-square test (categorical data) and Mann–Whitney–Wilcoxon test for two independent samples (continuous variables). Results Between June 2019 and March 2020, 25 parents of a preterm infant and 78 parents of a full-born infant were recruited from four neonatal intensive care units and two maternity wards, respectively, in four Norwegian hospitals. Feasibility was predefined as recruiting ≥ 75 parents each of preterm and full-born infants. The target for the full-born group was reached. However, the preterm group recruitment was challenging. Actigraphs, sleep diaries, and questionnaires were evaluated as feasible for use in a future study. Attrition rates were high in both groups at 6 and 12 months. No parent-related characteristics were associated with participation at 6 months. At 12 months, dropouts had a statistically significantly lower age in the full-born group (both parents) and higher age and body mass index in the preterm group (fathers). Conclusions A longitudinal study is feasible; however, procedural changes, including using active methods and contacting participants, are necessary to increase the recruitment of preterm infants’ parents. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12884-022-04862-1.
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Kennedy N, Nelson S, Jerome RN, Edwards TL, Stroud M, Wilkins CH, Harris PA. Recruitment and retention for chronic pain clinical trials: a narrative review. Pain Rep 2022; 7:e1007. [PMID: 38304397 PMCID: PMC10833632 DOI: 10.1097/pr9.0000000000001007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2021] [Revised: 03/22/2022] [Accepted: 04/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Opioid misuse is at a crisis level. In response to this epidemic, the National Institutes of Health has funded $945 million in research through the Helping to End Addiction Long-term (HEAL) Pain Management Initiative, including funding to the Vanderbilt Recruitment Innovation Center (RIC) to strategize methods to catalyze participant recruitment. The RIC, recognizing the challenges presented to clinical researchers in recruiting individuals experiencing pain, conducted a review of evidence in the literature on successful participant recruitment methods for chronic pain trials, in preparation for supporting the HEAL Pain trials. Study design as it affects recruitment was reviewed, with issues such as sufficient sample size, impact of placebo, pain symptom instability, and cohort characterization being identified as problems. Potential solutions found in the literature include targeted electronic health record phenotyping, use of alternative study designs, and greater clinician education and involvement. For retention, the literature reports successful strategies that include maintaining a supportive staff, allowing virtual study visits, and providing treatment flexibility within the trial. Community input on study design to identify potential obstacles to recruitment and retention was found to help investigators avoid pitfalls and enhance trust, especially when recruiting underrepresented minority populations. Our report concludes with a description of generalizable resources the RIC has developed or adapted to enhance recruitment and retention in the HEAL Pain studies. These resources include, among others, a Recruitment and Retention Plan Template, a Competing Trials Tool, and MyCap, a mobile research application that interfaces with Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap).
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Affiliation(s)
- Nan Kennedy
- Vanderbilt Institute for Clinical and Translational Research, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Sarah Nelson
- Vanderbilt Institute for Clinical and Translational Research, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Rebecca N. Jerome
- Vanderbilt Institute for Clinical and Translational Research, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Terri L. Edwards
- Vanderbilt Institute for Clinical and Translational Research, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Mary Stroud
- Vanderbilt Institute for Clinical and Translational Research, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Consuelo H. Wilkins
- Vanderbilt Institute for Clinical and Translational Research, Nashville, TN, USA
- Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA
- Department of Internal Medicine, Meharry Medical College, Nashville, TN, USA
- Office of Health Equity, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Paul A. Harris
- Vanderbilt Institute for Clinical and Translational Research, Nashville, TN, USA
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA
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Rafee A, Riepenhausen S, Neuhaus P, Meidt A, Dugas M, Varghese J. ELaPro, a LOINC-mapped core dataset for top laboratory procedures of eligibility screening for clinical trials. BMC Med Res Methodol 2022; 22:141. [PMID: 35568796 PMCID: PMC9107639 DOI: 10.1186/s12874-022-01611-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2021] [Accepted: 04/20/2022] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Screening for eligible patients continues to pose a great challenge for many clinical trials. This has led to a rapidly growing interest in standardizing computable representations of eligibility criteria (EC) in order to develop tools that leverage data from electronic health record (EHR) systems. Although laboratory procedures (LP) represent a common entity of EC that is readily available and retrievable from EHR systems, there is a lack of interoperable data models for this entity of EC. A public, specialized data model that utilizes international, widely-adopted terminology for LP, e.g. Logical Observation Identifiers Names and Codes (LOINC®), is much needed to support automated screening tools. Objective The aim of this study is to establish a core dataset for LP most frequently requested to recruit patients for clinical trials using LOINC terminology. Employing such a core dataset could enhance the interface between study feasibility platforms and EHR systems and significantly improve automatic patient recruitment. Methods We used a semi-automated approach to analyze 10,516 screening forms from the Medical Data Models (MDM) portal’s data repository that are pre-annotated with Unified Medical Language System (UMLS). An automated semantic analysis based on concept frequency is followed by an extensive manual expert review performed by physicians to analyze complex recruitment-relevant concepts not amenable to automatic approach. Results Based on analysis of 138,225 EC from 10,516 screening forms, 55 laboratory procedures represented 77.87% of all UMLS laboratory concept occurrences identified in the selected EC forms. We identified 26,413 unique UMLS concepts from 118 UMLS semantic types and covered the vast majority of Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) disease domains. Conclusions Only a small set of common LP covers the majority of laboratory concepts in screening EC forms which supports the feasibility of establishing a focused core dataset for LP. We present ELaPro, a novel, LOINC-mapped, core dataset for the most frequent 55 LP requested in screening for clinical trials. ELaPro is available in multiple machine-readable data formats like CSV, ODM and HL7 FHIR. The extensive manual curation of this large number of free-text EC as well as the combining of UMLS and LOINC terminologies distinguishes this specialized dataset from previous relevant datasets in the literature. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12874-022-01611-y.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ahmed Rafee
- Institute of Medical Informatics, University of Münster, Münster, Germany. .,Department of Internal Medicine (D), University Hospital of Münster, Münster, Germany.
| | - Sarah Riepenhausen
- Institute of Medical Informatics, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Philipp Neuhaus
- Institute of Medical Informatics, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Alexandra Meidt
- Institute of Medical Informatics, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Martin Dugas
- Institute of Medical Informatics, Heidelberg University Hospital, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Julian Varghese
- Institute of Medical Informatics, University of Münster, Münster, Germany.
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Murphy E, Shiely F, Treweek S. How much is the lack of retention evidence costing trial teams in Ireland and the UK? Trials 2022; 23:396. [PMID: 35550607 PMCID: PMC9097420 DOI: 10.1186/s13063-022-06223-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2021] [Accepted: 03/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Evidence to support the use of many retention strategies in clinical trials is lacking. Despite this, trial teams still need to have some form of retention strategy in their trials to try and avoid high attrition rates. This study aimed to estimate how much this lack of retention evidence might be costing trials in Ireland and the UK. METHODS We selected the top ten most routinely used retention strategies by Clinical Trial Units in the UK and made assumptions as to how each of these strategies was most likely to be implemented and the costs involved in doing this. We applied our costing model to a hypothetical trial scenario in both Ireland and the UK as well as to three published trial protocols. We developed the costing model and calculated the costs in Microsoft Excel. RESULTS Retention strategies were often poorly specified, meaning we had to make assumptions about implementation and in some cases about the strategy itself. Based on our assumptions, some retention strategies can be extremely expensive; some of the costliest strategies included "data collection scheduled with routine care" (€900-€32,503.25), "a timeline of participant visits for sites"-with integrated participant reminder (€304.74-€14,803.70), and "routine site visits by CTU staff" and "investigator meetings face to face", both costing (€777.67-€14,753.48). Others such as "telephone reminders for questionnaire response" (€34.58-€568.62), "a timeline of participant visits for sites"-site reminder alone (€79.18-€112.23), and "targeted recruitment of sites/GPs" (€30-€1620) were less costly compared to the other strategies. DISCUSSION The resources invested in the use of some retention strategies may outweigh known or imagined benefits on retention. Where benefits are currently unknown, evaluation should be a priority. CONCLUSION More evaluation of the effectiveness and cost of trial retention strategies is needed to avoid widespread use of strategies that are both expensive and ineffective.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ellen Murphy
- Trials Research and Methodologies Unit (TRAMS), Health Research Board Clinical Research Facility at University College Cork, Cork, Ireland.
| | - Frances Shiely
- Trials Research and Methodologies Unit (TRAMS), Health Research Board Clinical Research Facility at University College Cork, Cork, Ireland.,School of Public Health, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland
| | - Shaun Treweek
- Health Services Research Unit, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK
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Alonzo CN, Komesidou R, Wolter JA, Curran M, Ricketts J, Hogan TP. Building Sustainable Models of Research-Practice Partnerships Within Educational Systems. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SPEECH-LANGUAGE PATHOLOGY 2022; 31:1-13. [PMID: 35239411 PMCID: PMC9567312 DOI: 10.1044/2021_ajslp-21-00181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2021] [Revised: 09/24/2021] [Accepted: 11/30/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE To describe the 9-year journey of a group of language and literacy researchers in establishing and cultivating Research-Practice Partnerships (RPPs). Those interested in incorporating implementation science frameworks in their research may benefit from reading our exploration into this type of work and our lessons learned. METHOD We showcase how a group of researchers, who are committed to collaboration with school practitioners, navigated building and scaling RPPs within educational systems necessary for our long-term implementation work. We provide details and illustrative examples for three, distinct, mutually beneficial, and sustainable partnerships. RESULTS Three different practice organizations are represented: (1) a single metropolitan school, (2) a small metropolitan school district, and (3) a large metropolitan school district, highlighting specific priorities and needs depending on the type of practice organization. Each partnership has distinct research and practice goals related to improving language and literacy outcomes in children. We describe how the researchers assisted with meeting the partner practice organizations' goals and engaged in capacity building while producing rigorous scientific knowledge to inform clinical and educational practice. Additionally, we discuss how research priorities and strategies were pivoted in the past year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, illustrating our commitment to the partnerships and how to respond to challenges to guarantee long-term sustainability. CONCLUSION By discussing three distinctive partnerships, we demonstrate the various ways researchers can approach RPPs and grow them into mutually beneficial collaborations and support implementation goals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Crystle N. Alonzo
- School of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences, San Diego State University, CA
| | - Rouzana Komesidou
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, MGH Institute of Health Professions, Boston, MA
| | - Julie A. Wolter
- School of Speech, Language, Hearing, and Occupational Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula
| | - Maura Curran
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, MGH Institute of Health Professions, Boston, MA
| | - Jessie Ricketts
- Department of Psychology, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, United Kingdom
| | - Tiffany P. Hogan
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, MGH Institute of Health Professions, Boston, MA
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de Jong AJ, van Rijssel TI, Zuidgeest MGP, van Thiel GJMW, Askin S, Fons-Martínez J, De Smedt T, de Boer A, Santa-Ana-Tellez Y, Gardarsdottir H. Opportunities and Challenges for Decentralized Clinical Trials: European Regulators' Perspective. Clin Pharmacol Ther 2022; 112:344-352. [PMID: 35488483 PMCID: PMC9540149 DOI: 10.1002/cpt.2628] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2022] [Accepted: 03/20/2022] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Decentralized clinical trials (DCTs) have the potential to improve accessibility, diversity, and retention in clinical trials by moving trial activities to participants’ homes and local surroundings. In this study, we conducted semi‐structured interviews with 20 European regulators to identify regulatory challenges and opportunities for the implementation of DCTs in the European Union. The key opportunities for DCTs that were recognized by regulators include a reduced participation burden, which could facilitate the participation of underserved patients. In addition, regulators indicated that data collected in DCTs are expected to be more representative of the real world. Key challenges recognized by regulators for DCTs include concerns regarding investigator oversight and participants’ safety when physical examinations and face‐to‐face contact are limited. To facilitate future learning, hybrid clinical trials with both on‐site and decentralized elements are proposed by the respondents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amos J de Jong
- Division of Pharmacoepidemiology and Clinical Pharmacology, Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Tessa I van Rijssel
- Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Mira G P Zuidgeest
- Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Ghislaine J M W van Thiel
- Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Scott Askin
- Regulatory Affairs Innovation, Novartis Pharma AG, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Jaime Fons-Martínez
- The Foundation for the Promotion of Health and Biomedical Research of Valencia Region, Valencia, Spain
| | - Tim De Smedt
- Global Regulatory Affairs, UCB Pharma, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Anthonius de Boer
- Division of Pharmacoepidemiology and Clinical Pharmacology, Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.,Dutch Medicines Evaluation Board, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Yared Santa-Ana-Tellez
- Division of Pharmacoepidemiology and Clinical Pharmacology, Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Helga Gardarsdottir
- Division of Pharmacoepidemiology and Clinical Pharmacology, Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.,Department of Clinical Pharmacy, Division Laboratory and Pharmacy, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands.,Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Iceland, Reykjavik, Iceland
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Maheu C, Lok V, Galica J, Tse M, Maltus E, Giguère L, Tock WL, Lebel S. Motivation to Consent and Adhere to the FORT Randomized Controlled Trial. Curr Oncol 2022; 29:2848-2863. [PMID: 35448206 PMCID: PMC9025660 DOI: 10.3390/curroncol29040232] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2022] [Revised: 04/11/2022] [Accepted: 04/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The aim of this qualitative study was to identify the motivational factors that influence cancer survivors to participate and adhere to the fear of cancer recurrence (FCR) FORT randomized controlled trial (RCT). Fifteen women diagnosed with breast and gynecological cancer who took part in the FORT RCT were interviewed about their experience to consent and adhere to the trial. The transcribed interviews were content analyzed within a relational autonomy framework. The analysis revealed that the participants’ motivation to consent and adhere to the FORT RCT was structured around thirteen subthemes grouped into four overarching themes: (1) Personal Influential Factors; (2) Societal Motivations; (3) Structural Influences; and (4) Gains in Emotional Support. The unique structures of the trial such as the group format, the friendships formed with other participants in their group and with the group leaders, and the right timing of the trial within their cancer survivorship trajectory all contributed to their motivation to consent and adhere to the FORT RCT. While their initial motivation to participate was mostly altruistic, it was their personal gains obtained over the course of the trial that contributed to their adherence. Potential gains in emotional and social support from psycho-oncology trials should be capitalized when approaching future participants as a mean to improve on motivations to consent and adhere.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christine Maheu
- Ingram School of Nursing, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 0G4, Canada;
- Correspondence:
| | - Valerie Lok
- Jewish General Hospital, Montreal, QC H3T 1E2, Canada;
| | - Jacqueline Galica
- School of Nursing, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON K7L 3N6, Canada;
| | - Mali Tse
- School of Nursing, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada;
| | - Emma Maltus
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada;
| | - Lauriane Giguère
- Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada;
| | - Wing Lam Tock
- Ingram School of Nursing, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 0G4, Canada;
| | - Sophie Lebel
- School of Psychology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada;
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Understanding potential barriers and enablers to a perioperative early phase cell therapy trial. Cytotherapy 2022; 24:629-638. [PMID: 35396169 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcyt.2021.08.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2021] [Revised: 08/23/2021] [Accepted: 08/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AIMS Early-phase cell therapy clinical trials depend on patient and physician involvement, yet barriers can impede their participation. METHODS To optimize engagement for a planned cell therapy trial to prevent perioperative cardiac complications, the authors conducted semi-structured interviews with at-risk patients and physicians who could potentially be involved in the study. The authors used the theoretical domains framework to systematically identify potential barriers and enablers. RESULTS Forty-one interviews were conducted to reach data saturation, and four overall potential barriers to participation (themes) were identified. Theme 1 emphasizes that patients and physicians need accessible information to better understand the benefits and risks of the novel therapy and trial procedures and to address misconceptions. Theme 2 underscores the need for clarity on whether the trial's primary purpose is safety or efficacy, as this may influence patient and physician decisions. Theme 3 recognizes the resource and logistic realities for patients (e.g., convenient follow-up appointments) and physicians (e.g., personnel to assist in trial procedures, competing priorities). Theme 4 describes the importance of social influences (e.g., physicians and family, peers/colleagues) that may affect decisions to participate and the importance of patient preferences (e.g., availability of physicians to discuss the trial, including caregivers in discussions). CONCLUSIONS Prospectively addressing these issues may help optimize feasibility prior to conducting an expensive, resource-intensive trial.
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Christiansen JM, Meyer AM, Pickert L, Pfister R, Polidori MC. Challenges in the performance of real-life studies in older patients: focus on long-term care facilities. GERIATRIC CARE 2022. [DOI: 10.4081/gc.2022.10384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Research on geriatric conditions and atypical disease presentation in poorly studied patients’ groups is becoming increasingly important. Aim of the present investigation was addressing prevalence and prognostic significance of aortic valve stenosis (AVS) in older residents of long-term care facilities (LTCF). For the planned recruitment of 500 LTCF guests of a German metropolitan area, study investigators were trained and in the performance of a cardiologic examination and of the comprehensive geriatric assessment- based multidimensional prognostic index (MPI). After five attempts to obtain permission to conduct the study in 30 institutions, patients’ recruitment was stopped with 22 participants included from one institution. AVS was suspected in two patients, in agreement with the reported prevalence data. The MPI value correlated with social support (P=0.002) and geriatric syndromes (P=0.004). This structured attempt at investigating presence and prognostic signature of AVS in older LTCF guests was challenged by logistic obstacles strongly hindering diagnosis of potentially treatable conditions which, if undisclosed, negatively impact on survival and quality of life.
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Pugmire J, Lever Taylor J, Wilkes M, Wolfberg A, Zahradka N. Participant Experiences of a COVID-19 Virtual Clinical Study Using the Current Health Remote Monitoring Platform: A Case Study and Qualitative Analysis (Preprint). JMIR Form Res 2022; 6:e37567. [PMID: 35671408 PMCID: PMC9258733 DOI: 10.2196/37567] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2022] [Revised: 05/19/2022] [Accepted: 05/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Background During the COVID-19 pandemic, individuals with a positive viral test were enrolled in a study, within 48 hours, to remotely monitor their vital signs to characterize disease progression and recovery. A virtual trial design was adopted to reduce risks to participants and the research community in a study titled Risk Stratification and Early Alerting Regarding COVID-19 Hospitalization (RiskSEARCH). The Food and Drug Administration–cleared Current Health platform with a wearable device is a continuous remote patient monitoring technology that supports hospital-at-home care and is used as a data collection tool. Enrolled participants wore the Current Health wearable device continuously for up to 30 days and took a daily symptom survey via a tablet that was provided. A qualitative substudy was conducted in parallel to better understand virtual trial implementation, including barriers and facilitators for participants. Objective This study aimed to understand the barriers and facilitators of the user experience of interacting with a virtual care platform and research team, while participating in a fully virtual study using qualitative and quantitative data. Methods Semistructured interviews were conducted to understand participants’ experience of participating in a virtual study during a global pandemic. The schedule included their experience of enrollment and their interactions with equipment and study staff. A total of 3 RiskSEARCH participants were interviewed over telephone, and transcriptions were inductively coded and analyzed using thematic analysis. Themes were mapped onto the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF) to identify and describe the factors that influenced study adherence. Quantitative metrics, including adherence to wearable and scheduled tasks collected as part of the RiskSEARCH main study, were paired with the interviews to present an overall picture of participation. Results All participants exceeded our definition of a fully adherent participant and reported that participation was feasible and had a low burden. The symptoms progressively resolved during the trial. Inductive thematic analysis identified 13 main themes from the interview data, which were deductively mapped onto 11 of the 14 TDF domains, highlighting barriers and facilitators for each. Conclusions Participants in the RiskSEARCH substudy showed high levels of adherence and engagement throughout participation. Although participants experienced some challenges in setting up and maintaining the Current Health kit (eg, charging devices), they reported feeling that the requirements of participation were both reasonable and realistic. We demonstrated that the TDF can be used for inductive thematic analysis. We anticipate expanding this work in future virtual studies and trials to identify barriers and enabling factors for implementation.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Matt Wilkes
- Current Health Ltd, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
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