Abstract
Background/Aims Kaiser Permanente Georgia (KPGA) is one of three sites participating in a randomized controlled trial to evaluate the effect that a direct mailing of Dual-Energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DXA) results will have on patients’ bone health. This abstract describes KPGA’s multi-modal approach to patient recruitment.
Methods Over a 24-month period, KPGA will enroll approximately 2,900 English-speaking men and women age 50 years and older who present to 1 of 5 locations to complete a bone density scan. Patients with significant mental, visual or hearing impairments will be excluded. As part of the study, participants will be asked to complete a 30-minute baseline interview in the clinic immediately following his/her DXA scan. In order to reach our enrollment goal, we have taken a multimodal approach to patient recruitment which includes (1) proactive outreach prior to the DXA appointment, and (2) clinic-based outreach on the day of the DXA appointment. Proactive outreach includes daily review of the DXA appointment database to identify potentially eligible patients. Patients identified by this method receive an invitation letter to participate in the study as well as a follow-up phone call to determine if the patient would like to participate. Clinic-based outreach consists of flyers and posters strategically placed in high impact areas of patient waiting rooms and in-person recruitment that is initiated by the DXA technologist.
Results During the first 8 months of recruitment, we assessed 3,164 patients for eligibility and enrolled 1,001 patients into the study. 344 (16%) did not meet the inclusion criteria, 1,571 (50%) declined to participate, 243 (8%) were missed, and 5 (0.2%) started the baseline interview but could not complete it. Clinic workflow has not been adversely affected by the implementation of our study, and the DXA technologists have provided positive feedback on our clinic-based recruitment measures.
Conclusions Taking a multi-modal approach to patient recruitment may be effective in enrolling large numbers of patients in a randomized controlled trial. Our recruitment approach has been well received by both patients and clinic staff.
