Using a Clinical Trial Alert Tool to Improve Patient Recruitment in General Practice
Author Information
Author(s): Heinemann Stephanie, Thüring Sabine, Wedeken Sven, Schäfer Tobias, Scheidt-Nave Christa, Ketterer Mirko, Himmel Wolfgang
Primary Institution: University of Göttingen
Hypothesis
The study aims to evaluate the recruitment performance of practice staff using a clinical trial alert tool.
Conclusion
The clinical trial alert tool successfully identified a large patient sample, although most practices did not reach the recruitment target.
Supporting Evidence
- The CTA tool identified a net sample of 16,067 patients.
- 1,526 patients were successfully enrolled, making up 9% of the net sample.
- 80% of contacted patients agreed to participate in the study.
- Only one practice reached the target of enrolling 200 patients.
Takeaway
The study created a tool that helps doctors find patients for research, but many doctors still didn't manage to recruit enough patients.
Methodology
The study used a clinical trial alert tool to identify and recruit patients for an osteoporosis survey in general practices.
Potential Biases
Men and older patients were underrepresented in the enrolled sample compared to the net sample.
Limitations
The study did not account for whether patients were physically present when their records were accessed, potentially inflating the net sample size.
Participant Demographics
The study included 27 GPs (7 female, 20 male) and 35 practice nurses from 25 general practices.
Statistical Information
P-Value
p<0.0001
Statistical Significance
p<0.0001
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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