Successful recruitment to trials: findings from the SCIMITAR+ Trial.

PubMed

Peckham, Emily; Arundel, Catherine; Bailey, Della; Callen, Tracy; Cusack, Christina; Crosland, Suzanne; Foster, Penny; Herlihy, Hannah; Hope, James; Ker, Suzy; McCloud, Tayla; Romain-Hooper, Crystal-Bella; Stribling, Alison; Phiri, Peter; Tait, Ellen; Gilbody, Simon

2018-01-19

Randomised controlled trials (RCT) can struggle to recruit to target on time. This is especially the case with hard to reach populations such as those with severe mental ill health. The SCIMITAR+ trial, a trial of a bespoke smoking cessation intervention for people with severe mental ill health achieved their recruitment ahead of time and target. This article reports strategies that helped us to achieve this with the aim of aiding others recruiting from similar populations. SCIMITAR+ is a multi-centre pragmatic two-arm parallel-group RCT, which aimed to recruit 400 participants with severe mental ill health who smoke and would like to cut down or quit. The study recruited primarily in secondary care through community mental health teams and psychiatrists with a smaller number of participants recruited through primary care. Recruitment opened in October 2015 and closed in December 2016, by which point 526 participants had been recruited. We gathered information from recruiting sites on strategies which led to the successful recruitment in SCIMITAR+ and in this article present our approach to trial management along with the strategies employed by the recruiting sites. Alongside having a dedicated trial manager and trial management team, we identified three main themes that led to successful recruitment. These were: clinicians with a positive attitude to research; researchers and clinicians working together; and the use of NHS targets. The overriding theme was the importance of relationships between both the researchers and the recruiting clinicians and the recruiting clinicians and the participants. This study makes a significant contribution to the limited evidence base of real-world cases of successful recruitment to RCTs and offers practical guidance to those planning and conducting trials. Building positive relationships between clinicians, researchers and participants is crucial to successful recruitment.

Recruitment dynamics in adaptive social networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shkarayev, Maxim; Shaw, Leah; Schwartz, Ira

2011-03-01

We model recruitment in social networks in the presence of birth and death processes. The recruitment is characterized by nodes changing their status to that of the recruiting class as a result of contact with recruiting nodes. The recruiting nodes may adapt their connections in order to improve recruitment capabilities, thus changing the network structure. We develop a mean-field theory describing the system dynamics. Using mean-field theory we characterize the dependence of the growth threshold of the recruiting class on the adaptation parameter. Furthermore, we investigate the effect of adaptation on the recruitment dynamics, as well as on network topology. The theoretical predictions are confirmed by the direct simulations of the full system.

An Annotated Bibliography of Recruiting Research Conducted by the U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences

DTIC Science & Technology

2000-02-01

function of recruiter performance and youdis’ propensity to enlist. Propensity to enlist is linked to advertising effects and several other...documented in diis report. 15. SUBJECT TERMS Recruiter, enlistment propensity, recruiter production, advertising , Army recruiting, recruitment model...research base in support of enhancing the effectiveness of the recruitment process and the strategies used to attract youth. In support of this

Using re-randomization to increase the recruitment rate in clinical trials - an assessment of three clinical areas.

PubMed

Kahan, Brennan C

2016-12-13

Patient recruitment in clinical trials is often challenging, and as a result, many trials are stopped early due to insufficient recruitment. The re-randomization design allows patients to be re-enrolled and re-randomized for each new treatment episode that they experience. Because it allows multiple enrollments for each patient, this design has been proposed as a way to increase the recruitment rate in clinical trials. However, it is unknown to what extent recruitment could be increased in practice. We modelled the expected recruitment rate for parallel-group and re-randomization trials in different settings based on estimates from real trials and datasets. We considered three clinical areas: in vitro fertilization, severe asthma exacerbations, and acute sickle cell pain crises. We compared the two designs in terms of the expected time to complete recruitment, and the sample size recruited over a fixed recruitment period. Across the different scenarios we considered, we estimated that re-randomization could reduce the expected time to complete recruitment by between 4 and 22 months (relative reductions of 19% and 45%), or increase the sample size recruited over a fixed recruitment period by between 29% and 171%. Re-randomization can increase recruitment most for trials with a short follow-up period, a long trial recruitment duration, and patients with high rates of treatment episodes. Re-randomization has the potential to increase the recruitment rate in certain settings, and could lead to quicker and more efficient trials in these scenarios.

Recruitment of Family Child Care Homes for an Obesity Prevention Intervention Study.

PubMed

Ward, Dianne S; Vaughn, Amber E; Burney, Regan V; Østbye, Truls

2016-08-15

Critical to the success of any intervention study is successful recruitment. The aim of this paper was to examine the recruitment process of a randomized controlled trial evaluating an intervention conducted with family child care home providers. Specifically, the recruitment challenges, the efforts employed to address the challenges, and their impact on participant recruitment are discussed. The study's original recruitment protocol was employed during waves 1 and 2 (out of 5). However, recruitment tracking showed a failure to meet enrollment targets, particularly in wave 2. Low enrollment prompted an all-day retreat to discuss potential revisions and enhancements to recruitment strategies. Four strategies to enhance the recruitment protocol emerged from the retreat: improving recruitment materials to enhance communication, increasing engagement with community partners, addressing provider concerns about participation and study burden, and facilitating parent engagement. The study successfully recruited 166 family child care home providers across the 5 waves. There was a significant impact on the recruitment of waves 3-5 versus waves 1-2 using the enhanced recruitment protocol. There was a dramatic increase in those who "consented" (43% vs. 60%, respectively) and a corresponding decrease in the percent of "interested and eligible" who then "failed to consent" (57% vs. 40%, respectively). Results of these enhanced recruitment strategies demonstrate the many lessons learned about successful recruitment of a difficult-to-reach population, family child care homes; specifically, the importance of building relationships, communicating clearly, and identifying key motivators.

Predicting crappie recruitment in Ohio reservoirs with spawning stock size, larval density, and chlorophyll concentrations

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bunnell, David B.; Hale, R. Scott; Vanni, Michael J.; Stein, Roy A.

2006-01-01

Stock-recruit models typically use only spawning stock size as a predictor of recruitment to a fishery. In this paper, however, we used spawning stock size as well as larval density and key environmental variables to predict recruitment of white crappies Pomoxis annularis and black crappies P. nigromaculatus, a genus notorious for variable recruitment. We sampled adults and recruits from 11 Ohio reservoirs and larvae from 9 reservoirs during 1998-2001. We sampled chlorophyll as an index of reservoir productivity and obtained daily estimates of water elevation to determine the impact of hydrology on recruitment. Akaike's information criterion (AIC) revealed that Ricker and Beverton-Holt stock-recruit models that included chlorophyll best explained the variation in larval density and age-2 recruits. Specifically, spawning stock catch per effort (CPE) and chlorophyll explained 63-64% of the variation in larval density. In turn, larval density and chlorophyll explained 43-49% of the variation in age-2 recruit CPE. Finally, spawning stock CPE and chlorophyll were the best predictors of recruit CPE (i.e., 74-86%). Although larval density and recruitment increased with chlorophyll, neither was related to seasonal water elevation. Also, the AIC generally did not distinguish between Ricker and Beverton-Holt models. From these relationships, we concluded that crappie recruitment can be limited by spawning stock CPE and larval production when spawning stock sizes are low (i.e., CPE , 5 crappies/net-night). At higher levels of spawning stock sizes, spawning stock CPE and recruitment were less clearly related. To predict recruitment in Ohio reservoirs, managers should assess spawning stock CPE with trap nets and estimate chlorophyll concentrations. To increase crappie recruitment in reservoirs where recruitment is consistently poor, managers should use regulations to increase spawning stock size, which, in turn, should increase larval production and recruits to the fishery.

Including Online-Recruited Seeds: A Respondent-Driven Sample of Men Who Have Sex With Men.

PubMed

Lachowsky, Nathan John; Lal, Allan; Forrest, Jamie I; Card, Kiffer George; Cui, Zishan; Sereda, Paul; Rich, Ashleigh; Raymond, Henry Fisher; Roth, Eric A; Moore, David M; Hogg, Robert S

2016-03-15

Technology has changed the way men who have sex with men (MSM) seek sex and socialize, which may impact the implementation of respondent-driven sampling (RDS) among this population. Initial participants (also known as seeds) are a critical consideration in RDS because they begin the recruitment chains. However, little information is available on how the online-recruited seeds may effect RDS implementation. The objectives of this study were to compare (1) online-recruited versus offline-recruited seeds and (2) subsequent recruitment chains of online-recruited versus offline-recruited seeds. Between 2012 and 2014, we recruited MSM using RDS in Vancouver, Canada. RDS weights were used with logistic regression to address each objective. A total of 119 seeds were used, 85 of whom were online-recruited seeds, to recruit an additional 600 MSM. Compared with offline-recruited seeds, online-recruited seeds were less likely to be HIV-positive (OR 0.34, 95% CI 0.13-0.88), to have attended a gay community group (AOR 0.33, 95% CI 0.12-0.90), and to feel gay community involvement was "very important" (AOR 0.16, 95% CI 0.03-0.93). Online-recruited seeds were more likely to ask a sexual partner's HIV status always versus <50% of the time (AOR 5.21, 95% CI 1.17-23.23), to have watched the Pride parade (AOR 6.30, 95% CI 1.69-23.45), and to have sought sex online (AOR 4.29, 95% CI 1.53-12-12.05). Further, compared with recruitment chains started by offline-recruited seeds, recruits from chains started by online-recruited seeds (283/600, 47.2%) were less likely to be HIV-positive (AOR 0.25, 95% CI 0.16-0.40), to report "versatile" versus "bottom" sexual position preference (AOR 0.56, 95% CI 0.35-0.88), and to be in a relationship lasting >1 year (AOR 1.65, 95% CI 1.06-2.56). Recruits of online seeds were more likely to be out as gay for longer (eg, 11-21 vs 1-4 years, AOR 2.22, 95% CI 1.27-3.88) and have fewer Facebook friends (eg, 201-500 vs >500, AOR 1.69, 95% CI 1.02-2.80). Online-recruited seeds were more prevalent, recruited fewer participants, but were different from those recruited offline. This may therefore help create a more diverse overall sample. Our work has shown the value of geosocial networking apps for aiding RDS recruitment efforts, especially when faced with slow participation uptake by other means. Understanding the degree to which networks interact will be an important next step in confirming the efficacy of online RDS recruitment strategies.

Including Online-Recruited Seeds: A Respondent-Driven Sample of Men Who Have Sex With Men

PubMed Central

Lachowsky, Nathan John; Lal, Allan; Forrest, Jamie I; Card, Kiffer George; Cui, Zishan; Sereda, Paul; Rich, Ashleigh; Raymond, Henry Fisher; Roth, Eric A; Moore, David M

2016-01-01

Background Technology has changed the way men who have sex with men (MSM) seek sex and socialize, which may impact the implementation of respondent-driven sampling (RDS) among this population. Initial participants (also known as seeds) are a critical consideration in RDS because they begin the recruitment chains. However, little information is available on how the online-recruited seeds may effect RDS implementation. Objective The objectives of this study were to compare (1) online-recruited versus offline-recruited seeds and (2) subsequent recruitment chains of online-recruited versus offline-recruited seeds. Methods Between 2012 and 2014, we recruited MSM using RDS in Vancouver, Canada. RDS weights were used with logistic regression to address each objective. Results A total of 119 seeds were used, 85 of whom were online-recruited seeds, to recruit an additional 600 MSM. Compared with offline-recruited seeds, online-recruited seeds were less likely to be HIV-positive (OR 0.34, 95% CI 0.13-0.88), to have attended a gay community group (AOR 0.33, 95% CI 0.12-0.90), and to feel gay community involvement was “very important” (AOR 0.16, 95% CI 0.03-0.93). Online-recruited seeds were more likely to ask a sexual partner’s HIV status always versus <50% of the time (AOR 5.21, 95% CI 1.17-23.23), to have watched the Pride parade (AOR 6.30, 95% CI 1.69-23.45), and to have sought sex online (AOR 4.29, 95% CI 1.53-12-12.05). Further, compared with recruitment chains started by offline-recruited seeds, recruits from chains started by online-recruited seeds (283/600, 47.2%) were less likely to be HIV-positive (AOR 0.25, 95% CI 0.16-0.40), to report “versatile” versus “bottom” sexual position preference (AOR 0.56, 95% CI 0.35-0.88), and to be in a relationship lasting >1 year (AOR 1.65, 95% CI 1.06-2.56). Recruits of online seeds were more likely to be out as gay for longer (eg, 11-21 vs 1-4 years, AOR 2.22, 95% CI 1.27-3.88) and have fewer Facebook friends (eg, 201-500 vs >500, AOR 1.69, 95% CI 1.02-2.80). Conclusions Online-recruited seeds were more prevalent, recruited fewer participants, but were different from those recruited offline. This may therefore help create a more diverse overall sample. Our work has shown the value of geosocial networking apps for aiding RDS recruitment efforts, especially when faced with slow participation uptake by other means. Understanding the degree to which networks interact will be an important next step in confirming the efficacy of online RDS recruitment strategies. PMID:26980147

Why is recruitment to trials difficult? An investigation into recruitment difficulties in an RCT of supported employment in patients with severe mental illness

PubMed Central

Howard, Louise; de Salis, Isabel; Tomlin, Zelda; Thornicroft, Graham; Donovan, Jenny

2009-01-01

Background Under-recruitment to randomised controlled trials (RCTs) is often problematic and there may be particular difficulties in recruiting patients with severe mental illness. Aim To evaluate reasons for under-recruitment in an RCT of patients with severe mental illness Methods Qualitative study during the recruitment phase of an RCT of supported employment. Trial staff and recruiting clinicians were interviewed. Data were analyzed thematically using constant comparative techniques. Results Recruitment rates were low. Five main reasons for recruitment difficulties were found. These included: (i) misconceptions about trials, (ii) lack of equipoise, (iii) misunderstanding of the trial arms, (iv) variable interpretations of eligibility criteria, (v) paternalism. Conclusion Reasons for recruitment difficulties in trials involving patients with severe mental illness include issues that occur in trials in general, but others are more specific to these patients. Clinician and patient involvement in the study design may improve recruitment in future similar trials. PMID:18718555

The National Children's Study: Recruitment Outcomes Using the Provider-Based Recruitment Approach.

PubMed

Hale, Daniel E; Wyatt, Sharon B; Buka, Stephen; Cherry, Debra; Cislo, Kendall K; Dudley, Donald J; McElfish, Pearl Anna; Norman, Gwendolyn S; Reynolds, Simone A; Siega-Riz, Anna Maria; Wadlinger, Sandra; Walker, Cheryl K; Robbins, James M

2016-06-01

In 2009, the National Children's Study (NCS) Vanguard Study tested the feasibility of household-based recruitment and participant enrollment using a birth-rate probability sample. In 2010, the NCS Program Office launched 3 additional recruitment approaches. We tested whether provider-based recruitment could improve recruitment outcomes compared with household-based recruitment. The NCS aimed to recruit 18- to 49-year-old women who were pregnant or at risk for becoming pregnant who lived in designated geographic segments within primary sampling units, generally counties. Using provider-based recruitment, 10 study centers engaged providers to enroll eligible participants at their practice. Recruitment models used different levels of provider engagement (full, intermediate, information-only). The percentage of eligible women per county ranged from 1.5% to 57.3%. Across the centers, 3371 potential participants were approached for screening, 3459 (92%) were screened and 1479 were eligible (43%). Of those 1181 (80.0%) gave consent and 1008 (94%) were retained until delivery. Recruited participants were generally representative of the county population. Provider-based recruitment was successful in recruiting NCS participants. Challenges included time-intensity of engaging the clinical practices, differential willingness of providers to participate, and necessary reliance on providers for participant identification. The vast majority of practices cooperated to some degree. Recruitment from obstetric practices is an effective means of obtaining a representative sample. Copyright © 2016 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

The National Children’s Study: Recruitment Outcomes Using the Provider-Based Recruitment Approach

PubMed Central

Wyatt, Sharon B.; Buka, Stephen; Cherry, Debra; Cislo, Kendall K.; Dudley, Donald J.; McElfish, Pearl Anna; Norman, Gwendolyn S.; Reynolds, Simone A.; Siega-Riz, Anna Maria; Wadlinger, Sandra; Walker, Cheryl K.; Robbins, James M.

2016-01-01

OBJECTIVE: In 2009, the National Children’s Study (NCS) Vanguard Study tested the feasibility of household-based recruitment and participant enrollment using a birth-rate probability sample. In 2010, the NCS Program Office launched 3 additional recruitment approaches. We tested whether provider-based recruitment could improve recruitment outcomes compared with household-based recruitment. METHODS: The NCS aimed to recruit 18- to 49-year-old women who were pregnant or at risk for becoming pregnant who lived in designated geographic segments within primary sampling units, generally counties. Using provider-based recruitment, 10 study centers engaged providers to enroll eligible participants at their practice. Recruitment models used different levels of provider engagement (full, intermediate, information-only). RESULTS: The percentage of eligible women per county ranged from 1.5% to 57.3%. Across the centers, 3371 potential participants were approached for screening, 3459 (92%) were screened and 1479 were eligible (43%). Of those 1181 (80.0%) gave consent and 1008 (94%) were retained until delivery. Recruited participants were generally representative of the county population. CONCLUSIONS: Provider-based recruitment was successful in recruiting NCS participants. Challenges included time-intensity of engaging the clinical practices, differential willingness of providers to participate, and necessary reliance on providers for participant identification. The vast majority of practices cooperated to some degree. Recruitment from obstetric practices is an effective means of obtaining a representative sample. PMID:27251870

Impact of study design on recruitment of patients to a primary care trial: an observational time series analysis of the Birmingham Atrial Fibrillation Treatment of the Aged (BAFTA) study.

PubMed

Fletcher, K; Mant, J; Roalfe, A; Hobbs, F D R

2010-12-01

recruitment targets to randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are often not met. Many interventions are used to improve recruitment but there is little empirical evidence on whether these approaches work. to examine whether changes to the design and conduct of a primary care-based RCT were associated with changes in patient recruitment. an observational time series analysis of recruitment to a primary care-based multi-centre RCT of aspirin versus warfarin for stroke prevention, which involved 330 practices. Several changes to the trial protocol and procedures were made over the 4 years of patient recruitment. For each quarter throughout the recruitment period, the recruitment rate per 1000 total population in active practices was calculated. the recruitment target of 930 patients was exceeded. Fluctuations in recruitment rate occurred during the recruitment period. Following protocol changes aimed to reduce clinical workload, there was a significant increase in recruitment during the final 6 months of the study, during a period when there was not a similarly large increase in the total population available. these findings suggest that the conduct of a trial is an important consideration if studies are to recruit successfully. Expanding the number of centres may not be the most effective way to improve recruitment.

Improving healthcare recruitment: the jupiter medical center experience.

PubMed

Uomo, Paul Dell; Schwieters, Jill

2009-04-01

Hospitals that want to improve their recruitment efforts should: Make recruitment a priority within the organization. Take steps to reduce high vacancy rates and turnover among first-year employees. Develop a recruitment marketing plan for key positions. Establish human resources metrics to track costs and effectiveness of recruiting efforts. Enhance the recruitment process for hiring managers and job candidates.

Benefits of extensive recruitment effort persist during follow-ups and are consistent across age group and survey method. The TRAILS study

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background Extensive recruitment effort at baseline increases representativeness of study populations by decreasing non-response and associated bias. First, it is not known to what extent increased attrition occurs during subsequent measurement waves among subjects who were hard-to-recruit at baseline and what characteristics the hard-to-recruit dropouts have compared to the hard-to-recruit retainers. Second, it is unknown whether characteristics of hard-to-recruit responders in a prospective population based cohort study are similar across age group and survey method. Methods First, we compared first wave (T1) easy-to-recruit with hard-to-recruit responders of the TRacking Adolescents’ Individual Lives Survey (TRAILS), a prospective population based cohort study of Dutch (pre)adolescents (at first wave: n = 2230, mean age = 11.09 (SD 0.56), 50.8% girls), with regard to response rates at subsequent measurement waves. Second, easy-to-recruit and hard-to-recruit participants at the fourth TRAILS measurement wave (n = 1881, mean age = 19.1 (SD 0.60), 52.3% girls) were compared with fourth wave non-responders and earlier stage drop-outs on family composition, socioeconomic position (SEP), intelligence (IQ), education, sociometric status, substance use, and psychopathology. Results First, over 60% of the hard-to-recruit responders at the first wave were retained in the sample eight years later at the fourth measurement wave. Hard-to-recruit dropouts did not differ from hard-to-recruit retainers. Second, extensive recruitment efforts for the web based survey convinced a population of nineteen year olds with similar characteristics as the hard-to-recruit eleven year olds that were persuaded to participate in a school-based survey. Some characteristics associated with being hard-to-recruit (as compared to being easy-to-recruit) were more pronounced among non-responders, resembling the baseline situation (De Winter et al.2005). Conclusions First, extensive recruitment effort at the first assessment wave of a prospective population based cohort study has long lasting positive effects. Second, characteristics of hard-to-recruit responders are largely consistent across age groups and survey methods. PMID:22747967

Strategies and ethical considerations for the recruitment of young men who have sex with men: challenges of a vaccination trial in Mexico.

PubMed

Gutiérrez-Luna, Arturo; Angeles-Llerenas, Angelica; Wirtz, Veronika J; Del Río, Asunción Alvarez; Zamilpa-Mejía, Laura; Aranda-Flores, Carlos; Viramontes, Jose Luis; Lazcano-Ponce, Eduardo

2009-08-01

The importance of recruiting and retaining study participants from minority groups is well recognized; however, there are no established rules for recruitment as its success depends on the setting and population. To describe and analyze recruitment strategies, ethical considerations, and recruitment outcomes from a study to evaluate the efficacy the Human Papilloma Virus vaccine in young men who have sex with men (MSM). The recruitment settings were university and community sites in the state of Morelos, Mexico. Eligibility requirement were men between 18 and 23 years old, who were free of anal-genital lesions as confirmed by clinical exploration, HIV negative, with no history of sexual relations with female partners and with fewer than five male lifetime sexual partners. Recruitment goals were 25 study participants in a four and a half month period. In addition to traditional recruitment strategies (flyers and media advertising, specific training of the recruitment team and adequate choice of recruitment sites)-engagement of local leaders in the MSM community formed a crucial part of the strategy. Special consideration was given to confidentiality and respect for study participants and a Bill of Participant Rights was developed as an explicit commitment to respect and acceptance. In total 723 MSM were initially contacted, 243 filled out the recruitment questionnaire, of which 151 met the criteria to be invited to the clinical examination. After clinical examination and interviews with the recruitment team, 131 fulfilled the inclusion criteria, of whom 73 were enrolled in the study - nearly triple the recruitment goal. Among the initial recruitment strategies (application of the screening questionnaire) attending meetings with MSM activist organizations was the most successful (326), followed by recruitment at bars and dance clubs (107). The recruitment strategies should be formally evaluated for their effectiveness to identify those which are most successful. In addition, future studies should consider the evaluation of study participants' perceptions of the recruitment strategies. Recruiting MSM in a developing country such as Mexico presented multiple challenges. We recommend that future studies actively engage the local MSM community and pay special attention to designing recruitment strategies that guarantee the confidentiality of and respect for participants.

Recruiting to a large-scale physical activity randomised controlled trial - experiences with the gift of hindsight.

PubMed

Copeland, Robert J; Horspool, Kimberley; Humphreys, Liam; Scott, Emma

2016-02-24

Recruitment issues continue to impact a large number of trials. Sharing recruitment information is vital to supporting researchers to accurately predict recruitment and to manage the risk of poor recruitment during study design and implementation. The purpose of this article is to build on the knowledge available to researchers on recruiting to community-based trials. A critical commentary of the recruitment challenges encountered during the Booster Study, a randomised controlled trial in which researchers investigated the effectiveness of a motivational interviewing style intervention on the maintenance of physical activity. An overview of recruitment is provided, as well as strategies employed to recruit prospective participants and possible barriers to recruitment. Two hundred eighty-two people, 47 % of the original target, were recruited through mail-outs, with secondary recruitment pathways yielding no additional participants. The research team encountered problems with recontacting interested participants and providing study materials in non-English languages. A lower response rate to the mail-out and a greater number of non-contactable participants in the full study than in the pilot study resulted in a smaller pool of eligible participants from the brief intervention eligible for recruitment into the randomised controlled trial. Despite using widely accepted recruitment strategies and incorporating new recruitment tactics in response to challenges, the Booster Study investigators failed to randomise a sufficient number of participants. Recruitment in trials of community-based behavioural interventions may have different challenges than trials based on clinical or primary care pathways. Specific challenges posed by the complexity of the study design and problems with staffing and resources were exacerbated by the need to revise upwards the number of mailed invitations as a result of the pilot study. Researchers should ensure study design facilitates recruitment and consider the implications of changing recruitment on the operational aspects of the trial. Where possible, the impact of new strategies should be measured, and recruitment successes and challenges should be shared with those planning similar studies. ISRCTN56495859 (registered on 12 February 2009); NCT00836459 (registered on 3 February 2009).

Investigating the Effect of Recruitment Variability on Length-Based Recruitment Indices for Antarctic Krill Using an Individual-Based Population Dynamics Model

PubMed Central

Thanassekos, Stéphane; Cox, Martin J.; Reid, Keith

2014-01-01

Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba; herein krill) is monitored as part of an on-going fisheries observer program that collects length-frequency data. A krill feedback management programme is currently being developed, and as part of this development, the utility of data-derived indices describing population level processes is being assessed. To date, however, little work has been carried out on the selection of optimum recruitment indices and it has not been possible to assess the performance of length-based recruitment indices across a range of recruitment variability. Neither has there been an assessment of uncertainty in the relationship between an index and the actual level of recruitment. Thus, until now, it has not been possible to take into account recruitment index uncertainty in krill stock management or when investigating relationships between recruitment and environmental drivers. Using length-frequency samples from a simulated population – where recruitment is known – the performance of six potential length-based recruitment indices is assessed, by exploring the index-to-recruitment relationship under increasing levels of recruitment variability (from ±10% to ±100% around a mean annual recruitment). The annual minimum of the proportion of individuals smaller than 40 mm (F40 min, %) was selected because it had the most robust index-to-recruitment relationship across differing levels of recruitment variability. The relationship was curvilinear and best described by a power law. Model uncertainty was described using the 95% prediction intervals, which were used to calculate coverage probabilities and assess model performance. Despite being the optimum recruitment index, the performance of F40 min degraded under high (>50%) recruitment variability. Due to the persistence of cohorts in the population over several years, the inclusion of F40 min values from preceding years in the relationship used to estimate recruitment in a given year improved its accuracy (mean bias reduction of 8.3% when including three F40 min values under a recruitment variability of 60%). PMID:25470296

Recruitment of black and Latina women to a randomized controlled trial.

PubMed

Martin, Anika; Negron, Rennie; Balbierz, Amy; Bickell, Nina; Howell, Elizabeth A

2013-08-01

Minority women are often not adequately represented in randomized controlled trials, limiting the generalizability of research trial results. We implemented a recruitment strategy for a postpartum depression prevention trial that utilized patient feedback to identify and understand the recruitment barriers of black and Latina postpartum women. Feedback on patients' reasons for trial refusal informed adaptations to the recruitment process. We calculated weekly recruitment rates and analyzed qualitative and quantitative data from patient refusals. Of the 668 women who were approached and completed the consent process, 540 enrolled in the trial and 128 declined participation. Over 52-weeks of recruitment, refusal rates decreased from 40% to 19%. A taxonomy of eight reasons for refusal derived from patient responses identified barriers to recruitment and generated targeted revisions to the recruitment message. A recruitment strategy designed to incorporate and respond to patient feedback improved recruitment of Black and Latina women to a clinical trial.

Recruitment dynamics in adaptive social networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shkarayev, Maxim S.; Schwartz, Ira B.; Shaw, Leah B.

2013-06-01

We model recruitment in adaptive social networks in the presence of birth and death processes. Recruitment is characterized by nodes changing their status to that of the recruiting class as a result of contact with recruiting nodes. Only a susceptible subset of nodes can be recruited. The recruiting individuals may adapt their connections in order to improve recruitment capabilities, thus changing the network structure adaptively. We derive a mean-field theory to predict the dependence of the growth threshold of the recruiting class on the adaptation parameter. Furthermore, we investigate the effect of adaptation on the recruitment level, as well as on network topology. The theoretical predictions are compared with direct simulations of the full system. We identify two parameter regimes with qualitatively different bifurcation diagrams depending on whether nodes become susceptible frequently (multiple times in their lifetime) or rarely (much less than once per lifetime).

Recruitment dynamics in adaptive social networks.

PubMed

Shkarayev, Maxim S; Schwartz, Ira B; Shaw, Leah B

2013-01-01

We model recruitment in adaptive social networks in the presence of birth and death processes. Recruitment is characterized by nodes changing their status to that of the recruiting class as a result of contact with recruiting nodes. Only a susceptible subset of nodes can be recruited. The recruiting individuals may adapt their connections in order to improve recruitment capabilities, thus changing the network structure adaptively. We derive a mean field theory to predict the dependence of the growth threshold of the recruiting class on the adaptation parameter. Furthermore, we investigate the effect of adaptation on the recruitment level, as well as on network topology. The theoretical predictions are compared with direct simulations of the full system. We identify two parameter regimes with qualitatively different bifurcation diagrams depending on whether nodes become susceptible frequently (multiple times in their lifetime) or rarely (much less than once per lifetime).

Overcoming difficulties with equipoise to enable recruitment to a randomised controlled trial of partial ablation versus radical prostatectomy for unilateral localised prostate cancer.

PubMed

Elliott, Daisy; Hamdy, Freddie C; Leslie, Tom A; Rosario, Derek; Dudderidge, Tim; Hindley, Richard; Emberton, Mark; Brewster, Simon; Sooriakumaran, Prasanna; Catto, James W F; Emara, Amr; Ahmed, Hashim; Whybrow, Paul; le Conte, Steffi; Donovan, Jenny L

2018-06-11

To describe how clinicians conceptualised equipoise in the PART (Partial prostate Ablation versus Radical prosTatectomy in intermediate risk, unilateral clinically localised prostate cancer) feasibility study and how this affected recruitment. PART included a QuinteT Recruitment Intervention (QRI) to optimise recruitment. Phase I aimed to understand recruitment, and included scrutinising recruitment data, interviewing the Trial Management Group and recruiters (n=13), and audio-recording recruitment consultations (n=64). Data were analysed using qualitative content and thematic analysis methods. In Phase II, strategies to improve recruitment were developed and delivered. Initially many recruiters found it difficult to maintain a position of equipoise and held preconceptions about which treatment was best for particular patients. They did not feel comfortable about approaching all eligible patients, and when the study was discussed, biases were conveyed through the use of terminology, poorly balanced information and direct treatment recommendations. Individual and group feedback led to presentations to patients becoming clearer and enabled recruiters to reconsider their sense of equipoise. Although the precise impact of the QRI alone cannot be determined, recruitment increased (from mean 1.4 (range=0-4) to 4.5 (range=0-12) patients per month) and the feasibility study reached its recruitment target. Although clinicians find it challenging to recruit participants to a trial comparing different contemporary treatments for prostate cancer, training and support can enable recruiters to become more comfortable with conveying equipoise and providing clearer information to patients. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Using marketing theory to inform strategies for recruitment: a recruitment optimisation model and the txt2stop experience

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background Recruitment is a major challenge for many trials; just over half reach their targets and almost a third resort to grant extensions. The economic and societal implications of this shortcoming are significant. Yet, we have a limited understanding of the processes that increase the probability that recruitment targets will be achieved. Accordingly, there is an urgent need to bring analytical rigour to the task of improving recruitment, thereby increasing the likelihood that trials reach their recruitment targets. This paper presents a conceptual framework that can be used to improve recruitment to clinical trials. Methods Using a case-study approach, we reviewed the range of initiatives that had been undertaken to improve recruitment in the txt2stop trial using qualitative (semi-structured interviews with the principal investigator) and quantitative (recruitment) data analysis. Later, the txt2stop recruitment practices were compared to a previous model of marketing a trial and to key constructs in social marketing theory. Results Post hoc, we developed a recruitment optimisation model to serve as a conceptual framework to improve recruitment to clinical trials. A core premise of the model is that improving recruitment needs to be an iterative, learning process. The model describes three essential activities: i) recruitment phase monitoring, ii) marketing research, and iii) the evaluation of current performance. We describe the initiatives undertaken by the txt2stop trial and the results achieved, as an example of the use of the model. Conclusions Further research should explore the impact of adopting the recruitment optimisation model when applied to other trials. PMID:24886627

Using marketing theory to inform strategies for recruitment: a recruitment optimisation model and the txt2stop experience.

PubMed

Galli, Leandro; Knight, Rosemary; Robertson, Steven; Hoile, Elizabeth; Oladapo, Olubukola; Francis, David; Free, Caroline

2014-05-22

Recruitment is a major challenge for many trials; just over half reach their targets and almost a third resort to grant extensions. The economic and societal implications of this shortcoming are significant. Yet, we have a limited understanding of the processes that increase the probability that recruitment targets will be achieved. Accordingly, there is an urgent need to bring analytical rigour to the task of improving recruitment, thereby increasing the likelihood that trials reach their recruitment targets. This paper presents a conceptual framework that can be used to improve recruitment to clinical trials. Using a case-study approach, we reviewed the range of initiatives that had been undertaken to improve recruitment in the txt2stop trial using qualitative (semi-structured interviews with the principal investigator) and quantitative (recruitment) data analysis. Later, the txt2stop recruitment practices were compared to a previous model of marketing a trial and to key constructs in social marketing theory. Post hoc, we developed a recruitment optimisation model to serve as a conceptual framework to improve recruitment to clinical trials. A core premise of the model is that improving recruitment needs to be an iterative, learning process. The model describes three essential activities: i) recruitment phase monitoring, ii) marketing research, and iii) the evaluation of current performance. We describe the initiatives undertaken by the txt2stop trial and the results achieved, as an example of the use of the model. Further research should explore the impact of adopting the recruitment optimisation model when applied to other trials.

Recruiting from within: Action-Oriented Research Solutions to Internal Student Recruitment in Collegiate Aviation Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bowen, Brent; Carstenson, Larry; Hansen, Frederick

1999-01-01

Discusses student recruitment in aviation education and establishes that internal recruitment methods are the most productive and cost effective. Provides examples of recruitment strategies based on a model of action research. (JOW)

Employee recruitment.

PubMed

Breaugh, James A

2013-01-01

The way an organization recruits can influence the type of employees it hires, how they perform, and their retention rate. This article provides a selective review of research that has addressed recruitment targeting, recruitment methods, the recruitment message, recruiters, the organizational site visit, the job offer, and the timing of recruitment actions. These and other topics (e.g., the job applicant's perspective) are discussed in terms of their potential influence on prehire (e.g., the quality of job applicants) and posthire (e.g., new employee retention) recruitment outcomes. In reviewing research, attention is given to the current state of scientific knowledge, limitations of previous research, and important issues meriting future investigation.

Evaluation of conceptual framework for recruitment of African American patients with breast cancer.

PubMed

Heiney, Sue P; Adams, Swann Arp; Wells, Linda M; Johnson, Hiluv

2010-05-01

To describe the Heiney-Adams Recruitment Framework (H-ARF); to delineate a recruitment plan for a randomized, behavioral trial (RBT) based on H-ARF; and to provide evaluation data on its implementation. All data for this investigation originated from a recruitment database created for an RBT designed to test the effectiveness of a therapeutic group convened via teleconference for African American women with breast cancer. Major H-ARF concepts include social marketing and relationship building. The majority of social marketing strategies yielded 100% participant recruitment. Greater absolute numbers were recruited via Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act waivers. Using H-ARF yielded a high recruitment rate (66%). Application of H-ARF led to successful recruitment in an RBT. The findings highlight three areas that researchers should consider when devising recruitment plans: absolute numbers versus recruitment rate, cost, and efficiency with institutional review board-approved access to protected health information. H-ARF may be applied to any clinical or population-based research setting because it provides direction for researchers to develop a recruitment plan based on the target audience and cultural attributes that may hinder or help recruitment.

Recruitment Techniques and Strategies in a Community-Based Colorectal Cancer Screening Study of Men and Women of African Ancestry.

PubMed

Davis, Stacy N; Govindaraju, Swapamthi; Jackson, Brittany; Williams, Kimberly R; Christy, Shannon M; Vadaparampil, Susan T; Quinn, Gwendolyn P; Shibata, David; Roetzheim, Richard; Meade, Cathy D; Gwede, Clement K

Recruiting ethnically diverse Black participants to an innovative, community-based research study to reduce colorectal cancer screening disparities requires multipronged recruitment techniques. This article describes active, passive, and snowball recruitment techniques, and challenges and lessons learned in recruiting a diverse sample of Black participants. For each of the three recruitment techniques, data were collected on strategies, enrollment efficiency (participants enrolled/participants evaluated), and reasons for ineligibility. Five hundred sixty individuals were evaluated, and 330 individuals were enrolled. Active recruitment yielded the highest number of enrolled participants, followed by passive and snowball. Snowball recruitment was the most efficient technique, with enrollment efficiency of 72.4%, followed by passive (58.1%) and active (55.7%) techniques. There were significant differences in gender, education, country of origin, health insurance, and having a regular physician by recruitment technique (p < .05). Multipronged recruitment techniques should be employed to increase reach, diversity, and study participation rates among Blacks. Although each recruitment technique had a variable enrollment efficiency, the use of multipronged recruitment techniques can lead to successful enrollment of diverse Blacks into cancer prevention and control interventions.

Evaluation of Conceptual Framework for Recruitment of African American Patients With Breast Cancer

PubMed Central

Heiney, Sue P.; Adams, Swann Arp; Wells, Linda M.; Johnson, Hiluv

2010-01-01

Purpose/Objectives To describe the Heiney-Adams Recruitment Framework (H-ARF); to delineate a recruitment plan for a randomized, behavioral trial (RBT) based on H-ARF; and to provide evaluation data on its implementation. Data Sources All data for this investigation originated from a recruitment database created for an RBT designed to test the effectiveness of a therapeutic group convened via teleconference for African American women with breast cancer. Data Synthesis Major H-ARF concepts include social marketing and relationship building. The majority of social marketing strategies yielded 100% participant recruitment. Greater absolute numbers were recruited via Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act waivers. Using H-ARF yielded a high recruitment rate (66%). Conclusions Application of H-ARF led to successful recruitment in an RBT. The findings highlight three areas that researchers should consider when devising recruitment plans: absolute numbers versus recruitment rate, cost, and efficiency with institutional review board–approved access to protected health information. Implications for Nursing H-ARF may be applied to any clinical or population-based research setting because it provides direction for researchers to develop a recruitment plan based on the target audience and cultural attributes that may hinder or help recruitment. PMID:20439201

Recruitment strategies at the Iowa site for parent/infant pairs in a longitudinal dental caries study.

PubMed

Daly, Jeanette M; Levy, Barcey T; Xu, Yinghui; Levy, Steven M; Fontana, Margherita

2016-06-01

Recruitment of parent/infant pairs can be more difficult and challenging than recruitment of adult subjects alone as the parent has to consider themselves along with the infant to be study participants. In order to determine which recruitment methods most effectively resulted in accrual of subjects, recruitment efforts at the University of Iowa were evaluated, one of three clinical sites involved in a longitudinal prospective study of dental caries. Enrollment goals were 300 parent/infant pairs within a year. Recruitment strategies included (1) a direct mailing to potential subjects who were University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics patients and potentially met inclusion criteria; (2) face-to-face recruitment visits at medical offices; (3) provision of recruitment materials to staff at off-campus agencies and medical offices serving low-income individuals; (4) a campus-wide mass e-mail; (5) recruitment materials to daycare centers and neighborhood centers; and (6) recruitment at a children's museum. From these recruitment efforts, 515 potential participants expressed interest and were screened for this study and 348 (68%) were enrolled during an 11-month time period. The face-to-face strategy had the highest recruitment rate of 25%, followed by direct individual mailings at 9% and follow-up telephone calls at 7%. For the face-to-face strategy, the contact at the children's museum was most successful compared to the other office settings. The lowest rate of recruitment of 0.09% was attained with the mass e-mail. However, in terms of actual numbers recruited, the mass e-mail remained an important modality since it yielded 21 recruits and was much less time-intensive. An intensive, multi-pronged recruitment strategy proved successful in meeting enrollment goals and resulted in finishing the enrollment prior to the projected study deadline. Effective recruitment approaches are imperative for a study's success and each recruitment strategy needs to be budgeted and planned for in a study. Investigators may need to adapt their approach to attain the needed number of subjects. Planning needs to include the numbers needed to be approached to attain your recruitment goal, how you will recruit, who will be responsible, and the costs and time commitment for various strategies. © The Author(s) 2016.

Recruiting Adolescent Research Participants: In-Person Compared to Social Media Approaches.

PubMed

Moreno, Megan A; Waite, Alan; Pumper, Megan; Colburn, Trina; Holm, Matt; Mendoza, Jason

2017-01-01

Recruiting adolescent participants for research is challenging. The purpose of this study was to compare traditional in-person recruitment methods to social media recruitment. We recruited adolescents aged 14-18 years for a pilot physical activity intervention study, including a wearable physical activity tracking device and a Facebook group. Participants were recruited (a) in person from a local high school and an adolescent medicine clinic and (b) through social media, including Facebook targeted ads, sponsored tweets on Twitter, and a blog post. Data collected included total exposure (i.e., reach), engagement (i.e., interaction), and effectiveness. Effectiveness included screening and enrollment for each recruitment method, as well as time and resources spent on each recruitment method. In-person recruitment reached a total of 297 potential participants of which 37 enrolled in the study. Social media recruitment reached a total of 34,272 potential participants of which 8 enrolled in the study. Social media recruitment methods utilized an average of 1.6 hours of staff time and cost an average of $40.99 per participant enrolled, while in-person recruitment methods utilized an average of 0.75 hours of staff time and cost an average of $19.09 per participant enrolled. Social media recruitment reached more potential participants, but the cost per participant enrolled was higher compared to traditional methods. Studies need to consider benefits and downsides of traditional and social media recruitment methods based on study goals and population.

Motor unit recruitment for dynamic tasks: current understanding and future directions.

PubMed

Hodson-Tole, Emma F; Wakeling, James M

2009-01-01

Skeletal muscle contains many muscle fibres that are functionally grouped into motor units. For any motor task there are many possible combinations of motor units that could be recruited and it has been proposed that a simple rule, the 'size principle', governs the selection of motor units recruited for different contractions. Motor units can be characterised by their different contractile, energetic and fatigue properties and it is important that the selection of motor units recruited for given movements allows units with the appropriate properties to be activated. Here we review what is currently understood about motor unit recruitment patterns, and assess how different recruitment patterns are more or less appropriate for different movement tasks. During natural movements the motor unit recruitment patterns vary (not always holding to the size principle) and it is proposed that motor unit recruitment is likely related to the mechanical function of the muscles. Many factors such as mechanics, sensory feedback, and central control influence recruitment patterns and consequently an integrative approach (rather than reductionist) is required to understand how recruitment is controlled during different movement tasks. Currently, the best way to achieve this is through in vivo studies that relate recruitment to mechanics and behaviour. Various methods for determining motor unit recruitment patterns are discussed, in particular the recent wavelet-analysis approaches that have allowed motor unit recruitment to be assessed during natural movements. Directions for future studies into motor recruitment within and between functional task groups and muscle compartments are suggested.

The Use of Social Media in Recruitment for Medical Research Studies: A Scoping Review.

PubMed

Topolovec-Vranic, Jane; Natarajan, Karthik

2016-11-07

Recruiting an adequate number of participants into medical research studies is challenging for many researchers. Over the past 10 years, the use of social media websites has increased in the general population. Consequently, social media websites are a new, powerful method for recruiting participants into such studies. The objective was to answer the following questions: (1) Is the use of social media more effective at research participant recruitment than traditional methods? (2) Does social media recruit a sample of research participants comparable to that recruited via other methods? (3) Is social media more cost-effective at research participant recruitment than traditional methods? Using the MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and EMBASE databases, all medical research studies that used social media and at least one other method for recruitment were identified. These studies were then categorized as either interventional studies or observational studies. For each study, the effectiveness of recruitment, demographic characteristics of the participants, and cost-effectiveness of recruitment using social media were evaluated and compared with that of the other methods used. The social media sites used in recruitment were identified, and if a study stated that the target population was "difficult to reach" as identified by the authors of the study, this was noted. Out of 30 studies, 12 found social media to be the most effective recruitment method, 15 did not, and 3 found social media to be equally effective as another recruitment method. Of the 12 studies that found social media to be the best recruitment method, 8 were observational studies while 4 were interventional studies. Of the 15 studies that did not find social media to be the best recruitment method, 7 were interventional studies while 8 were observational studies. In total, 8 studies stated that the target population was "hard-to-reach," and 6 of these studies found social media to be the most effective recruitment method. Out of 14 studies that reported demographic data for participants, 2 studies found that social media recruited a sample comparable to that recruited via traditional methods and 12 did not. Out of 13 studies that reported cost-effectiveness, 5 studies found social media to be the most cost-effective recruitment method, 7 did not, and 1 study found social media equally cost-effective as compared with other methods. Only 12 studies out of 30 found social media to be the most effective recruitment method. There is evidence that social media can be the best recruitment method for hard-to-reach populations and observational studies. With only 30 studies having compared recruitment through social media with other methods, more studies need to be done that report the effectiveness of recruitment for each strategy, demographics of participants recruited, and cost-effectiveness of each method. ©Jane Topolovec-Vranic, Karthik Natarajan. Originally published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research (http://www.jmir.org), 07.11.2016.

The Use of Social Media in Recruitment for Medical Research Studies: A Scoping Review

PubMed Central

2016-01-01

Background Recruiting an adequate number of participants into medical research studies is challenging for many researchers. Over the past 10 years, the use of social media websites has increased in the general population. Consequently, social media websites are a new, powerful method for recruiting participants into such studies. Objective The objective was to answer the following questions: (1) Is the use of social media more effective at research participant recruitment than traditional methods? (2) Does social media recruit a sample of research participants comparable to that recruited via other methods? (3) Is social media more cost-effective at research participant recruitment than traditional methods? Methods Using the MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and EMBASE databases, all medical research studies that used social media and at least one other method for recruitment were identified. These studies were then categorized as either interventional studies or observational studies. For each study, the effectiveness of recruitment, demographic characteristics of the participants, and cost-effectiveness of recruitment using social media were evaluated and compared with that of the other methods used. The social media sites used in recruitment were identified, and if a study stated that the target population was “difficult to reach” as identified by the authors of the study, this was noted. Results Out of 30 studies, 12 found social media to be the most effective recruitment method, 15 did not, and 3 found social media to be equally effective as another recruitment method. Of the 12 studies that found social media to be the best recruitment method, 8 were observational studies while 4 were interventional studies. Of the 15 studies that did not find social media to be the best recruitment method, 7 were interventional studies while 8 were observational studies. In total, 8 studies stated that the target population was “hard-to-reach,” and 6 of these studies found social media to be the most effective recruitment method. Out of 14 studies that reported demographic data for participants, 2 studies found that social media recruited a sample comparable to that recruited via traditional methods and 12 did not. Out of 13 studies that reported cost-effectiveness, 5 studies found social media to be the most cost-effective recruitment method, 7 did not, and 1 study found social media equally cost-effective as compared with other methods. Conclusions Only 12 studies out of 30 found social media to be the most effective recruitment method. There is evidence that social media can be the best recruitment method for hard-to-reach populations and observational studies. With only 30 studies having compared recruitment through social media with other methods, more studies need to be done that report the effectiveness of recruitment for each strategy, demographics of participants recruited, and cost-effectiveness of each method. PMID:27821383

5 CFR 575.109 - Payment of recruitment incentives.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 5 Administrative Personnel 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Payment of recruitment incentives. 575... RECRUITMENT, RELOCATION, AND RETENTION INCENTIVES; SUPERVISORY DIFFERENTIALS; AND EXTENDED ASSIGNMENT INCENTIVES Recruitment Incentives § 575.109 Payment of recruitment incentives. (a) An authorized agency...

International Student Recruitment: Trends and Challenges

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Falcone, Santa

2017-01-01

This paper provides a review of current trends in international student recruitment. Focusing specifically on recruitment of Chinese students, important aspects of China's educational system relevant to recruitment are presented. Barriers to Chinese student recruitment are then discussed. Successful, employed, international graduates validate…

Costs and difficulties of recruiting patients to provide e-health support: pilot study in one primary care trust.

PubMed

Jones, Ray B; O'Connor, Anita; Brelsford, Jade; Parsons, Neil; Skirton, Heather

2012-03-29

Better use of e-health services by patients could improve outcomes and reduce costs but there are concerns about inequalities of access. Previous research in outpatients suggested that anonymous personal email support may help patients with long term conditions to use e-health, but recruiting earlier in their 'journey' may benefit patients more. This pilot study explored the feasibility and cost of recruiting patients for an e-health intervention in one primary care trust. The sample comprised 46 practices with total patient population of 250,000. We approached all practices using various methods, seeking collaboration to recruit patients via methods agreed with each practice. A detailed research diary was kept of time spent recruiting practices and patients. Researcher time was used to estimate costs. Patients who consented to participate were offered email support for their use of the Internet for health. Eighteen practices agreed to take part; we recruited 27 patients, most (23/27) from five practices. Practices agreed to recruit patients for an e-health intervention via waiting room leaflets (16), posters (16), practice nurses (15), doctors giving patients leaflets (5), a study website link (7), inclusion in planned mailshots (2), and a special mailshot to patients selected from practice computers (1). After low recruitment response we also recruited directly in five practices through research assistants giving leaflets to patients in waiting rooms. Ten practices recruited no patients. Those practices that were more difficult to recruit were less likely to recruit patients. Leaving leaflets for practice staff to distribute and placing posters in the practice were not effective in recruiting patients. Leaflets handed out by practice nurses and website links were more successful. The practice with lowest costs per patient recruited (£70) used a special mailshot to selected patients. Recruitment via general practice was not successful and was therefore expensive. Direct to consumer methods and recruitment of patients in outpatients to offer email support may be more cost effective. If recruitment in general practice is required, contacting practices by letter and email, not following up non-responding practices, and recruiting patients with selected conditions by special mailshot may be the most cost-effective approach.

Recruitment Variability of Coral Reef Sessile Communities of the Far North Great Barrier Reef

PubMed Central

Luter, Heidi M.; Duckworth, Alan R.; Wolff, Carsten W.; Evans-Illidge, Elizabeth; Whalan, Steve

2016-01-01

One of the key components in assessing marine sessile organism demography is determining recruitment patterns to benthic habitats. An analysis of serially deployed recruitment tiles across depth (6 and 12 m), seasons (summer and winter) and space (meters to kilometres) was used to quantify recruitment assemblage structure (abundance and percent cover) of corals, sponges, ascidians, algae and other sessile organisms from the northern sector of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR). Polychaetes were most abundant on recruitment titles, reaching almost 50% of total recruitment, yet covered <5% of each tile. In contrast, mean abundances of sponges, ascidians, algae, and bryozoans combined was generally less than 20% of total recruitment, with percentage cover ranging between 15–30% per tile. Coral recruitment was very low, with <1 recruit per tile identified. A hierarchal analysis of variation over a range of spatial and temporal scales showed significant spatio-temporal variation in recruitment patterns, but the highest variability occurred at the lowest spatial scale examined (1 m—among tiles). Temporal variability in recruitment of both numbers of taxa and percentage cover was also evident across both summer and winter. Recruitment across depth varied for some taxonomic groups like algae, sponges and ascidians, with greatest differences in summer. This study presents some of the first data on benthic recruitment within the northern GBR and provides a greater understanding of population ecology for coral reefs. PMID:27049650

Recruiting a Diverse Group of Middle School Girls Into the Trial of Activity for Adolescent Girls

PubMed Central

Elder, John P.; Shuler, LaVerne; Moe, Stacey G.; Grieser, Mira; Pratt, Charlotte; Cameron, Sandra; Hingle, Melanie; Pickrel, Julie L.; Saksvig, Brit I.; Schachter, Kenneth; Greer, Susan; Bothwell, Elizabeth K. Guth

2009-01-01

BACKGROUND School-based study recruitment efforts are both time consuming and challenging. This paper highlights the recruitment strategies employed by the national, multisite Trial of Activity for Adolescent Girls (TAAG), a study designed to measure the effectiveness of an intervention to reduce the decline of physical activity levels among middle school—aged girls. TAAG provided a unique opportunity to recruit large cohorts of randomly sampled girls within 36 diverse middle schools across the United States. METHODS Key elements of the formative planning, coordination, and design of TAAG’s recruitment efforts included flexibility, tailoring, and the use of incentives. Various barriers, including a natural disaster, political tension, and district regulations, were encountered throughout the recruitment process, but coordinated strategies and frequent communication between the 6 TAAG sites were helpful in tailoring the recruitment process at the 36 intervention and control schools. RESULTS Progressively refined recruitment strategies and specific attention to the target audience of middle school girls resulted in overall study recruitment rates of 80%, 85%, and 89%, for the baseline, posttest, and follow-up period, respectively. DISCUSSION The steady increase in recruitment rates over time is attributed to an emphasis on successful strategies and a willingness to modify less successful methods. Open and consistent communication, an increasingly coordinated recruitment strategy, interactive recruitment presentations, and participant incentives resulted in an effective recruitment campaign. PMID:18808471

20 CFR 656.21 - Supervised recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Supervised recruitment. 656.21 Section 656.21... Supervised recruitment. (a) Supervised recruitment. Where the Certifying Officer determines it appropriate, post-filing supervised recruitment may be required of the employer for the pending application or...

5 CFR 575.107 - Agency recruitment incentive plan and approval levels.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 5 Administrative Personnel 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Agency recruitment incentive plan and... SERVICE REGULATIONS RECRUITMENT, RELOCATION, AND RETENTION INCENTIVES; SUPERVISORY DIFFERENTIALS; AND EXTENDED ASSIGNMENT INCENTIVES Recruitment Incentives § 575.107 Agency recruitment incentive plan and...

Online Recruitment Methods for Web-Based and Mobile Health Studies: A Review of the Literature

PubMed Central

Armin, Julie; Gordon, Judith S

2015-01-01

Background Internet and mobile health (mHealth) apps hold promise for expanding the reach of evidence-based health interventions. Research in this area is rapidly expanding. However, these studies may experience problems with recruitment and retention. Web-based and mHealth studies are in need of a wide-reaching and low-cost method of recruitment that will also effectively retain participants for the duration of the study. Online recruitment may be a low-cost and wide-reaching tool in comparison to traditional recruitment methods, although empirical evidence is limited. Objective This study aims to review the literature on online recruitment for, and retention in, mHealth studies. Methods We conducted a review of the literature of studies examining online recruitment methods as a viable means of obtaining mHealth research participants. The data sources used were PubMed, CINAHL, EbscoHost, PyscINFO, and MEDLINE. Studies reporting at least one method of online recruitment were included. A narrative approach enabled the authors to discuss the variability in recruitment results, as well as in recruitment duration and study design. Results From 550 initial publications, 12 studies were included in this review. The studies reported multiple uses and outcomes for online recruitment methods. Web-based recruitment was the only type of recruitment used in 67% (8/12) of the studies. Online recruitment was used for studies with a variety of health domains: smoking cessation (58%; 7/12) and mental health (17%; 2/12) being the most common. Recruitment duration lasted under a year in 67% (8/12) of the studies, with an average of 5 months spent on recruiting. In those studies that spent over a year (33%; 4/12), an average of 17 months was spent on recruiting. A little less than half (42%; 5/12) of the studies found Facebook ads or newsfeed posts to be an effective method of recruitment, a quarter (25%; 3/12) of the studies found Google ads to be the most effective way to reach participants, and one study showed better outcomes with traditional (eg in-person) methods of recruitment. Only one study recorded retention rates in their results, and half (50%; 6/12) of the studies recorded survey completion rates. Conclusions Although online methods of recruitment may be promising in experimental research, more empirical evidence is needed to make specific recommendations. Several barriers to using online recruitment were identified, including participant retention. These unique challenges of virtual interventions can affect the generalizability and validity of findings from Web-based and mHealth studies. There is a need for additional research to evaluate the effectiveness of online recruitment methods and participant retention in experimental mHealth studies. PMID:26202991

Online Recruitment Methods for Web-Based and Mobile Health Studies: A Review of the Literature.

PubMed

Lane, Taylor S; Armin, Julie; Gordon, Judith S

2015-07-22

Internet and mobile health (mHealth) apps hold promise for expanding the reach of evidence-based health interventions. Research in this area is rapidly expanding. However, these studies may experience problems with recruitment and retention. Web-based and mHealth studies are in need of a wide-reaching and low-cost method of recruitment that will also effectively retain participants for the duration of the study. Online recruitment may be a low-cost and wide-reaching tool in comparison to traditional recruitment methods, although empirical evidence is limited. This study aims to review the literature on online recruitment for, and retention in, mHealth studies. We conducted a review of the literature of studies examining online recruitment methods as a viable means of obtaining mHealth research participants. The data sources used were PubMed, CINAHL, EbscoHost, PyscINFO, and MEDLINE. Studies reporting at least one method of online recruitment were included. A narrative approach enabled the authors to discuss the variability in recruitment results, as well as in recruitment duration and study design. From 550 initial publications, 12 studies were included in this review. The studies reported multiple uses and outcomes for online recruitment methods. Web-based recruitment was the only type of recruitment used in 67% (8/12) of the studies. Online recruitment was used for studies with a variety of health domains: smoking cessation (58%; 7/12) and mental health (17%; 2/12) being the most common. Recruitment duration lasted under a year in 67% (8/12) of the studies, with an average of 5 months spent on recruiting. In those studies that spent over a year (33%; 4/12), an average of 17 months was spent on recruiting. A little less than half (42%; 5/12) of the studies found Facebook ads or newsfeed posts to be an effective method of recruitment, a quarter (25%; 3/12) of the studies found Google ads to be the most effective way to reach participants, and one study showed better outcomes with traditional (eg in-person) methods of recruitment. Only one study recorded retention rates in their results, and half (50%; 6/12) of the studies recorded survey completion rates. Although online methods of recruitment may be promising in experimental research, more empirical evidence is needed to make specific recommendations. Several barriers to using online recruitment were identified, including participant retention. These unique challenges of virtual interventions can affect the generalizability and validity of findings from Web-based and mHealth studies. There is a need for additional research to evaluate the effectiveness of online recruitment methods and participant retention in experimental mHealth studies.

Recruitment to publicly funded trials--are surgical trials really different?

PubMed

Cook, Jonathan A; Ramsay, Craig R; Norrie, John

2008-09-01

Good recruitment is integral to the conduct of a high-quality randomised controlled trial. It has been suggested that recruitment is particularly difficult for evaluations of surgical interventions, a field in which there is a dearth of evidence from randomised comparisons. While there is anecdotal speculation to support the inference that recruitment to surgical trials is more challenging than for medical trials we are unaware of any formal assessment of this. In this paper, we compare recruitment to surgical and medical trials using a cohort of publicly funded trials. Overall recruitment to trials was assessed using of a cohort of publicly funded trials (n=114). Comparisons were made by using the Recruitment Index, a simple measure of recruitment activity for multicentre randomised controlled trials. Recruitment at the centre level was also investigated through three example surgical trials. The Recruitment Index was found to be higher, though not statistically significantly, in the surgical group (n=18, median=38.0 IQR (10.7, 77.4)) versus (n=81, median=34.8 IQR (11.7, 98.0)) days per recruit for the medical group (median difference 1.7 (-19.2, 25.1); p=0.828). For the trials where the comparison was between a surgical and a medical intervention, the Recruitment Index was substantially higher (n=6, 68.3 (23.5, 294.8)) versus (n=93, 34.6 (11.7, 90.0); median difference 25.9 (-35.5, 221.8); p=0.291) for the other trials. There was no clear evidence that surgical trials differ from medical trials in terms of recruitment activity. There was, however, support for the inference that medical versus surgical trials are more difficult to recruit to. Formal exploration of the recruitment data through a modelling approach may go some way to tease out where important differences exist.

Exploring selection and recruitment processes for newly qualified nurses: a sequential-explanatory mixed-method study.

PubMed

Newton, Paul; Chandler, Val; Morris-Thomson, Trish; Sayer, Jane; Burke, Linda

2015-01-01

To map current selection and recruitment processes for newly qualified nurses and to explore the advantages and limitations of current selection and recruitment processes. The need to improve current selection and recruitment practices for newly qualified nurses is highlighted in health policy internationally. A cross-sectional, sequential-explanatory mixed-method design with 4 components: (1) Literature review of selection and recruitment of newly qualified nurses; and (2) Literature review of a public sector professions' selection and recruitment processes; (3) Survey mapping existing selection and recruitment processes for newly qualified nurses; and (4) Qualitative study about recruiters' selection and recruitment processes. Literature searches on the selection and recruitment of newly qualified candidates in teaching and nursing (2005-2013) were conducted. Cross-sectional, mixed-method data were collected from thirty-one (n = 31) individuals in health providers in London who had responsibility for the selection and recruitment of newly qualified nurses using a survey instrument. Of these providers who took part, six (n = 6) purposively selected to be interviewed qualitatively. Issues of supply and demand in the workforce, rather than selection and recruitment tools, predominated in the literature reviews. Examples of tools to measure values, attitudes and skills were found in the nursing literature. The mapping exercise found that providers used many selection and recruitment tools, some providers combined tools to streamline process and assure quality of candidates. Most providers had processes which addressed the issue of quality in the selection and recruitment of newly qualified nurses. The 'assessment centre model', which providers were adopting, allowed for multiple levels of assessment and streamlined recruitment. There is a need to validate the efficacy of the selection tools. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Reflections on the ethics of recruiting foreign-trained human resources for health

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background Developed countries' gains in health human resources (HHR) from developing countries with significantly lower ratios of health workers have raised questions about the ethics or fairness of recruitment from such countries. By attracting and/or facilitating migration for foreign-trained HHR, notably those from poorer, less well-resourced nations, recruitment practices and policies may be compromising the ability of developing countries to meet the health care needs of their own populations. Little is known, however, about actual recruitment practices. In this study we focus on Canada (a country with a long reliance on internationally trained HHR) and recruiters working for Canadian health authorities. Methods We conducted interviews with health human resources recruiters employed by Canadian health authorities to describe their recruitment practices and perspectives and to determine whether and how they reflect ethical considerations. Results and discussion We describe the methods that recruiters used to recruit foreign-trained health professionals and the systemic challenges and policies that form the working context for recruiters and recruits. HHR recruiters' reflections on the global flow of health workers from poorer to richer countries mirror much of the content of global-level discourse with regard to HHR recruitment. A predominant market discourse related to shortages of HHR outweighed discussions of human rights and ethical approaches to recruitment policy and action that consider global health impacts. Conclusions We suggest that the concept of corporate social responsibility may provide a useful approach at the local organizational level for developing policies on ethical recruitment. Such local policies and subsequent practices may inform public debate on the health equity implications of the HHR flows from poorer to richer countries inherent in the global health worker labour market, which in turn could influence political choices at all government and health system levels. PMID:21251293

Costs of Recruiting Couples to a Clinical Trial

PubMed Central

Sadler, Georgia Robins; Ko, Celine M.; Malcarne, Vanessa L.; Banthia, Rajni; Gutierrez, Ivan; Varni, James W.

2009-01-01

Multiple barriers contribute to the slow recruitment of participants to research studies, which in turn extends the time required to translate promising scientific discoveries into proven therapeutic interventions. A small but growing literature is developing on the extraordinary costs of recruiting participants to studies, and thereby demonstrating that underestimating the cost of participant recruitment can contribute to these recruitment problems. These recruitment challenges and costs are exacerbated when the participants’ study eligibility is determined by relatively narrowly defined illness parameters. Recruitment challenges are further compounded when dyads (two individuals engaged in a sociologically significant relationship, such as husbands and wives, siblings or extended families) must be recruited to an illness-focused study. For these latter groups, there are no data to guide researchers in how to anticipate those participant recruitment costs. This paper describes the staff costs for a variety of strategies used to recruit participants to a randomized supportive care study for couples who were within 18 months of a prostate cancer diagnosis. Pegged to the value of the U.S. dollar for the period, the average cost of staff time was $288 per recruited and enrolled dyad, plus a promised additional $100 incentive for study retention. Within the strategies used, the staff costs per recruited dyad ranged from $ 152 to $1,688. Accrual per strategy ranged from zero to 107 enrolled couples. When asked for secondary sources of information about the study, many participants reported more than one source of study referral, reflective of the multifaceted recruitment strategies deployed. In spite of innovative, culturally competent, and broad based recruitment methods, attainment of a diverse sample was difficult to accomplish in this study. Having estimates of the actual cost of recruiting dyads to research studies can help investigators prepare realistic study budgets. PMID:17218166

Strategies for improving patient recruitment to focus groups in primary care: a case study reflective paper using an analytical framework.

PubMed

Dyas, Jane V; Apekey, Tanefa; Tilling, Michelle; Siriwardena, A Niroshan

2009-09-22

Recruiting to primary care studies is complex. With the current drive to increase numbers of patients involved in primary care studies, we need to know more about successful recruitment approaches. There is limited evidence on recruitment to focus group studies, particularly when no natural grouping exists and where participants do not regularly meet. The aim of this paper is to reflect on recruitment to a focus group study comparing the methods used with existing evidence using a resource for research recruitment, PROSPeR (Planning Recruitment Options: Strategies for Primary Care). The focus group formed part of modelling a complex intervention in primary care in the Resources for Effective Sleep Treatment (REST) study. Despite a considered approach at the design stage, there were a number of difficulties with recruitment. The recruitment strategy and subsequent revisions are detailed. The researchers' modifications to recruitment, justifications and evidence from the literature in support of them are presented. Contrary evidence is used to analyse why some aspects were unsuccessful and evidence is used to suggest improvements. Recruitment to focus group studies should be considered in two distinct phases; getting potential participants to contact the researcher, and converting those contacts into attendance. The difficulty of recruitment in primary care is underemphasised in the literature especially where people do not regularly come together, typified by this case study of patients with sleep problems. We recommend training GPs and nurses to recruit patients during consultations. Multiple recruitment methods should be employed from the outset and the need to build topic related non-financial incentives into the group meeting should be considered. Recruitment should be monitored regularly with barriers addressed iteratively as a study progresses.

A summation of online recruiting practices for health care organizations.

PubMed

Gautam, Kanak S

2005-01-01

Worker shortage is among the foremost challenges facing US health care today. Health care organizations are also confronted with rising costs of recruiting and compensating scarce workers in times of declining reimbursement. Many health care organizations are adopting online recruitment as a nontraditional, low-cost method for hiring staff. Online recruitment is the fastest growing method of recruitment today, and has advantages over traditional recruiting in terms of cost, reach, and time-saving. Several health care organizations have achieved great success in recruiting online. Yet awareness of online recruiting remains lower among health care managers than managers in other industries. Many health care organizations still search for job candidates within a 30-mile radius using traditional methods. This article describes the various aspects of online recruitment for health care organizations. It is meant to help health care managers currently recruiting online by answering frequently asked questions (eg, Should I be advertising on national job sites? Why is my Web site not attracting job seekers? Is my online ad effective?). It is also meant to educate health care managers not doing online recruiting so that they try recruiting online. The article discusses the salient aspects of online recruiting: (a) using commercial job boards; (b) building one's own career center; (c) building one's own job board; (d) collecting and storing resumes; (e) attracting job seekers to one's Web site; (f) creating online job ads; (g) screening and evaluating candidates online; and (h) building long-term relationships with candidates. Job seekers in health care are adopting the Internet faster than health care employers. To recruit successfully during the current labor shortage, it is imperative that employers adopt and expand online recruiting.

Enabling recruitment success in bariatric surgical trials: pilot phase of the By-Band-Sleeve study.

PubMed

Paramasivan, S; Rogers, C A; Welbourn, R; Byrne, J P; Salter, N; Mahon, D; Noble, H; Kelly, J; Mazza, G; Whybrow, P; Andrews, R C; Wilson, C; Blazeby, J M; Donovan, J L

2017-11-01

Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) involving surgical procedures are challenging for recruitment and infrequent in the specialty of bariatrics. The pilot phase of the By-Band-Sleeve study (gastric bypass versus gastric band versus sleeve gastrectomy) provided the opportunity for an investigation of recruitment using a qualitative research integrated in trials (QuinteT) recruitment intervention (QRI). The QRI investigated recruitment in two centers in the pilot phase comparing bypass and banding, through the analysis of 12 in-depth staff interviews, 84 audio recordings of patient consultations, 19 non-participant observations of consultations and patient screening data. QRI findings were developed into a plan of action and fed back to centers to improve information provision and recruitment organization. Recruitment proved to be extremely difficult with only two patients recruited during the first 2 months. The pivotal issue in Center A was that an effective and established clinical service could not easily adapt to the needs of the RCT. There was little scope to present RCT details or ensure efficient eligibility assessment, and recruiters struggled to convey equipoise. Following presentation of QRI findings, recruitment in Center A increased from 9% in the first 2 months (2/22) to 40% (26/65) in the 4 months thereafter. Center B, commencing recruitment 3 months after Center A, learnt from the emerging issues in Center A and set up a special clinic for trial recruitment. The trial successfully completed pilot recruitment and progressed to the main phase across 11 centers. The QRI identified key issues that enabled the integration of the trial into the clinical setting. This contributed to successful recruitment in the By-Band-Sleeve trial-currently the largest in bariatric practice-and offers opportunities to optimize recruitment in other trials in bariatrics.

Reflections on the ethics of recruiting foreign-trained human resources for health.

PubMed

Runnels, Vivien; Labonté, Ronald; Packer, Corinne

2011-01-20

Developed countries' gains in health human resources (HHR) from developing countries with significantly lower ratios of health workers have raised questions about the ethics or fairness of recruitment from such countries. By attracting and/or facilitating migration for foreign-trained HHR, notably those from poorer, less well-resourced nations, recruitment practices and policies may be compromising the ability of developing countries to meet the health care needs of their own populations. Little is known, however, about actual recruitment practices. In this study we focus on Canada (a country with a long reliance on internationally trained HHR) and recruiters working for Canadian health authorities. We conducted interviews with health human resources recruiters employed by Canadian health authorities to describe their recruitment practices and perspectives and to determine whether and how they reflect ethical considerations. We describe the methods that recruiters used to recruit foreign-trained health professionals and the systemic challenges and policies that form the working context for recruiters and recruits. HHR recruiters' reflections on the global flow of health workers from poorer to richer countries mirror much of the content of global-level discourse with regard to HHR recruitment. A predominant market discourse related to shortages of HHR outweighed discussions of human rights and ethical approaches to recruitment policy and action that consider global health impacts. We suggest that the concept of corporate social responsibility may provide a useful approach at the local organizational level for developing policies on ethical recruitment. Such local policies and subsequent practices may inform public debate on the health equity implications of the HHR flows from poorer to richer countries inherent in the global health worker labour market, which in turn could influence political choices at all government and health system levels.

'To be honest, I haven't even thought about it' - recruitment in small-scale, qualitative research in primary care.

PubMed

Jessiman, Wendy C

2013-11-01

To review strategies for successful recruitment in small-scale, qualitative research in primary care by exploring those used in a variety of settings and providing a reflective analysis of the strategies used in one such study. Recruitment of participants in small-scale, qualitative research in primary care is problematic. Researchers need to be more aware of the issues involved, but there is little practical guidance available to help them devise efficient strategies for maximising recruitment. This paper draws on a study conducted in the Highlands of Scotland examining the emotional wellbeing of pregnant and non-pregnant women. This was a qualitative study using diaries and interviews over a period of nine months. Ten women were recruited over a period of more than two years. The author reviews the strategies for successful recruitment based on both a review of the available literature as well as the experience of one study. Recruitment of subjects to a study is one of the major elements of a research proposal and requires significant effort, yet there is little to guide researchers through this difficult process. The challenge of recruitment is seldom debated and studies rarely report problems encountered or outline approaches that proved particularly successful. The importance of successful recruitment is discussed and the arguably typical recruitment difficulties encountered by researchers conducting a study in the Highlands of Scotland are outlined. The elements that comprised successful recruitment in this and other studies are appraised. Although focused specifically on recruitment in small-scale, qualitative studies in primary care, this paper raises broader issues about the recruitment of participants in all types of research. Recruitment has implications for the trustworthiness and dependability of the data and hence the findings of research. Despite this, there remains a lack of evidence about what enhances research recruitment, leaving researchers to rely on guesswork and anecdotes. In a climate of evidence-based practice, researchers should be encouraged to include a formal evaluation of recruitment strategies in their studies and to report their findings. As recruitment has implications for the trustworthiness and dependability of research, researchers need to consider a wide range of recruitment strategies and include a formal evaluation of their recruitment strategies when reporting on their research.

The Students-Recruiting-Students Undergraduate Engineering Recruiting Programme.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gattis, Carol; Nachtmann, Heather; Youngblood, Alisha D.

2003-01-01

Describes the Students-Recruiting-Students (SRS) program developed to recruit high school students into the Industrial Engineering Department at the University of Arkansas. Presents four phases of the program along with seven years of program results. Encourages successful development of similar recruiting programs. (KHR)

Recruiters Reaffirm Their Need for Specialized Business Generalists.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Theeke, Herman; And Others

1993-01-01

Conducted telephone survey of 21 organizations which had hired Central Michigan University business graduates. Findings were contrary to trend in literature of renewed interest in recruiting liberal arts undergraduates. Found that recruiters had intensified recruiting of business graduates. Recruiters were interested in number of student…

28 CFR 54.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Recruitment. 54.510 Section 54.510... in Employment in Education Programs or Activities Prohibited § 54.510 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment...

49 CFR 25.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 49 Transportation 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Recruitment. 25.510 Section 25.510 Transportation... Education Programs or Activities Prohibited § 25.510 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment and hiring of employees...

28 CFR 92.8 - Providing recruitment services.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Providing recruitment services. 92.8... POLICING SERVICES (COPS) Police Recruitment Program Guidelines § 92.8 Providing recruitment services. The... populations to a police department. The recruitment strategies employed may include: (a) A process for...

5 CFR 575.114 - Recruitment bonus service agreements in effect before May 1, 2005.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 5 Administrative Personnel 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Recruitment bonus service agreements in... MANAGEMENT CIVIL SERVICE REGULATIONS RECRUITMENT, RELOCATION, AND RETENTION INCENTIVES; SUPERVISORY DIFFERENTIALS; AND EXTENDED ASSIGNMENT INCENTIVES Recruitment Incentives § 575.114 Recruitment bonus service...

6 CFR 17.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 6 Domestic Security 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Recruitment. 17.510 Section 17.510 Domestic... in Employment in Education Programs or Activities Prohibited § 17.510 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment...

14 CFR 1253.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 5 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Recruitment. 1253.510 Section 1253.510... in Employment in Education Programs or Activities Prohibited § 1253.510 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment...

20 CFR 655.154 - Additional positive recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Additional positive recruitment. 655.154... recruitment. (a) Where to conduct additional positive recruitment. The employer must conduct positive recruitment within a multistate region of traditional or expected labor supply where the CO finds that there...

Hurricanes and coral bleaching linked to changes in coral recruitment in Tobago.

PubMed

Mallela, J; Crabbe, M J C

2009-10-01

Knowledge of coral recruitment patterns helps us understand how reefs react following major disturbances and provides us with an early warning system for predicting future reef health problems. We have reconstructed and interpreted historical and modern-day recruitment patterns, using a combination of growth modelling and in situ recruitment experiments, in order to understand how hurricanes, storms and bleaching events have influenced coral recruitment on the Caribbean coastline of Tobago. Whilst Tobago does not lie within the main hurricane belt results indicate that regional hurricane events negatively impact coral recruitment patterns in the Southern Caribbean. In years following hurricanes, tropical storms and bleaching events, coral recruitment was reduced when compared to normal years (p=0.016). Following Hurricane Ivan in 2004 and the 2005-2006 bleaching event, coral recruitment was markedly limited with only 2% (n=6) of colonies estimated to have recruited during 2006 and 2007. Our experimental results indicate that despite multiple large-scale disturbances corals are still recruiting on Tobago's marginal reef systems, albeit in low numbers.

Predator biomass, prey density, and species composition effects on group size in recruit coral reef fishes

USGS Publications Warehouse

DeMartini, Edward E.; Anderson, Todd W.; Friedlander, Alan M.; Beets, James P.

2011-01-01

Group incidence and size are described for recruit parrotfishes, wrasses, and damselfishes on Hawaiian reefs over 3 years (2006–2008) at sites spanning the archipelago (20–28°N, 155–177°W). Coral-poor and coral-rich areas were surveyed at sites with both low (Hawaii Island) and high (Midway Atoll) predator densities, facilitating examination of relations among predator and recruit densities, habitat, and group metrics. Predator and recruit densities varied spatially and temporally, with a sixfold range in total recruit densities among years. Group (≥2 recruits) metrics varied with time and tracked predator and recruit densities and the proportion of schooling species. Groups often included heterospecifics whose proportion increased with group size. A non-saturating relationship between group size and recruit density suggests that the anti-predator benefits of aggregation exceeded competitive costs. Grouping behavior may have overarching importance for recruit survival—even at high recruit densities—and merits further study on Hawaiian reefs and elsewhere.

The 1984 ARI Survey of Army Recruits: User’s Manual

DTIC Science & Technology

1986-05-01

KCEY WOROS (Caiu.a on toaa.. aide linaloiiaial ai .,, Ida &r bloog naea Army Recruiting, New Recruit Survey Enlistment Motivations . -’Recruit...designed in 1982 to answer questions concerning the demo- graphics and enlistment motivations of new Army recruits. In addition to the ability to track...SURVIY OF ARMY RECRUITS: USER’S MANUAL EXECUTIVE SUMMArY ~Reguirement: To obtain information on the characteristics, enlistment motivations , attitudes

Facebook targeted advertisement for research recruitment: A primer for nurse researchers.

PubMed

Carter-Harris, Lisa

2016-11-01

Recruiting participants for research studies can be challenging and costly. Innovative recruitment methods are needed. Facebook targeted advertisement offers a low-cost alternative to traditional methods that has been successfully used in research study recruitment. This primer offers nurse researchers a method utilizing social media as a recruitment tool and details Facebook targeted advertisement for research recruitment. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Bio-inspired online variable recruitment control of fluidic artificial muscles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jenkins, Tyler E.; Chapman, Edward M.; Bryant, Matthew

2016-12-01

This paper details the creation of a hybrid variable recruitment control scheme for fluidic artificial muscle (FAM) actuators with an emphasis on maximizing system efficiency and switching control performance. Variable recruitment is the process of altering a system’s active number of actuators, allowing operation in distinct force regimes. Previously, FAM variable recruitment was only quantified with offline, manual valve switching; this study addresses the creation and characterization of novel, on-line FAM switching control algorithms. The bio-inspired algorithms are implemented in conjunction with a PID and model-based controller, and applied to a simulated plant model. Variable recruitment transition effects and chatter rejection are explored via a sensitivity analysis, allowing a system designer to weigh tradeoffs in actuator modeling, algorithm choice, and necessary hardware. Variable recruitment is further developed through simulation of a robotic arm tracking a variety of spline position inputs, requiring several levels of actuator recruitment. Switching controller performance is quantified and compared with baseline systems lacking variable recruitment. The work extends current variable recruitment knowledge by creating novel online variable recruitment control schemes, and exploring how online actuator recruitment affects system efficiency and control performance. Key topics associated with implementing a variable recruitment scheme, including the effects of modeling inaccuracies, hardware considerations, and switching transition concerns are also addressed.

A Qualitative Study of Motivations for Minority Recruitment in Cancer Clinical Trials Across Five NCI-Designated Cancer Centers.

PubMed

Simoni, Zachary R; Martin, Michelle; Wenzel, Jennifer A; Cook, Elise D; Konety, Badrinath; Vickers, Selwyn M; Chen, Moon S; Foaud, Mona N; Durant, Raegan W

2016-11-08

Minority enrollment in cancer clinical trials is traditionally low. In light of this fact, numerous studies have investigated barriers to recruitment and retention within minority populations. However, very little research has investigated the importance of clinicians' and researchers' motivations for minority recruitment in cancer clinical trials. Therefore, we sought to examine motivations for minority recruitment across four professional stakeholder groups (principal investigators, clinicians, research staff, and Cancer Center leaders) at five National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers. This study is based on the data from 91 qualitative interviews conducted across the five NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers to investigate stakeholders' motivations for minority recruitment in cancer clinical trials. Emergent themes include (a) minority recruitment increases generalizability of cancer clinical trials, (b) minority recruitment is motivated by social justice, (c) some institutions promote minority recruitment through the use of supplemental financial support, (d) federal funding requirements for minority inclusion in clinical research motivate investigators to focus on minority recruitment, and (e) some stakeholders favor a more race-neutral approach to participant recruitment rather than an emphasis on targeted minority recruitment. The perspectives of clinical and research stakeholders potentially inform the assessment of existing strategies and the development of new strategies to increase motivation for minority recruitment in cancer clinical trials.

Lessons learned from recruiting young female students to a randomised controlled trial of chlamydia screening.

PubMed

Ivaz, Stella; Brennan, Sarah; Dean, Sally; Hay, Sima; Hay, Phillip; Kerry, Sally; Oakeshott, Pippa

2006-04-01

Recruitment is a problem in many trials. Two female medical students offered to help with recruiting problems in a community-based trial of chlamydia screening to prevent pelvic inflammatory disease. We need to recruit 2500 sexually active female students and ask them to provide a self-taken low vaginal swab and complete a questionnaire with follow-up after a year. To identify recruitment difficulties in a community-based trial of chlamydia screening and to investigate how they might be overcome. Descriptive study. London South Bank and Kingston Universities. The students observed the recruitment methods used for the first 4 months of the trial. This comprised single researchers recruiting individual women in student bars and common rooms. With the researchers they piloted a new method of group recruitment with pairs of researchers making announcements at the end of lectures after first sending out all male students and those aged>25 years. This involved extra time planning and liaising with the lecturers in advance of recruitment sessions. The recruitment rate had been averaging only 25 participants per week. Many students were ineligible: never been sexually active, too old, recently been tested for chlamydia. Many eligible students were reluctant to take part because of embarrassment or anxiety about providing a swab. Using a new method of group recruitment after lectures we recruited 192 participants in 2 weeks. For a study on a sensitive topic, two researchers recruiting women in groups after lectures may be a more effective and cost-effective way than individual recruitment by researchers working alone.

Paid and Unpaid Online Recruitment for Health Interventions in Young Adults.

PubMed

Musiat, Peter; Winsall, Megan; Orlowski, Simone; Antezana, Gaston; Schrader, Geoffrey; Battersby, Malcolm; Bidargaddi, Niranjan

2016-12-01

There is a growing need to identify new and innovative approaches to recruit representative samples of young adults in health intervention research. The current study used a data set of screening information from an online well-being intervention trial of young adults, to investigate cost-effectiveness of different recruitment strategies and whether the clinical and demographic characteristics of participants differed depending on paid or unpaid online recruitment sources. Data were collected from 334 18- to 25-year-old Australians. The study was advertised through a variety of paid and unpaid online recruitment channels (e.g., Google, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, recruitment agency), with response rates to different recruitment channels tracked using unique Web links. Well-being of participants was measured using the Mental Health Continuum Short Form. Analyses consisted of independent t tests and χ 2 tests. Overall, unpaid recruitment channels had a considerably higher yield than paid recruitment channels. Of paid recruitment channels, a recruitment agency and paid Facebook advertisements attracted the largest number of individuals. This study also found differences between paid and unpaid online recruitment channels with regard to the well-being and mood of participants. Although the success of online recruitment channels is likely subject to a complex interplay between the number of exposures, the targeted sample, the wording, and placement of the advertisement, as well as study characteristics, our study demonstrated that unpaid recruitment channels are more effective than paid channels and that paid and unpaid channels may result in samples with different characteristics. Copyright © 2016 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. All rights reserved.

Online and Offline Recruitment of Young Women for a Longitudinal Health Survey: Findings From the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health 1989-95 Cohort.

PubMed

Loxton, Deborah; Powers, Jennifer; Anderson, Amy E; Townsend, Natalie; Harris, Melissa L; Tuckerman, Ryan; Pease, Stephanie; Mishra, Gita; Byles, Julie

2015-05-04

In 2012, we set out to recruit a cohort of at least 10,000 women aged 18-23 from across Australia. With recent research demonstrating the inadequacy of traditional approaches to recruiting women in this age group, we elected to conduct open recruiting. Our aim was to report on the overall success of open recruiting and to evaluate the relative success of a variety of recruitment methods in terms of numbers and demographics. We used referrals, Facebook, formal advertising, and incentives in order to recruit the cohort. In all, 17,069 women were recruited for the longitudinal online survey, from 54,685 initiated surveys. Of these women, most (69.94%, n=11,799) who joined the longitudinal cohort were recruited via Facebook, 12.72% (n=2145) via the fashion promotion, 7.02% (n=1184) by referral, 4.9% (n=831) via other Web activities, and 5.4% (n=910) via traditional media. Facebook was by far the most successful strategy, enrolling a cohort of women with a similar profile to the population of Australian women in terms of age, area of residence, and relationship status. Women recruited via fashion promotion were the least representative. All strategies underrepresented less educated women-a finding that is consistent with more traditional means of recruiting. In conclusion, flexibility in recruitment design, embracing new and traditional media, adopting a dynamic responsive approach, and monitoring the results of recruiting in terms of sample composition and number recruited led to the successful establishment of a new cohort.

Comparison of stress fractures of male and female recruits during basic training in the Israeli anti-aircraft forces.

PubMed

Gam, Arnon; Goldstein, Liav; Karmon, Yuval; Mintser, Igor; Grotto, Itamar; Guri, Alex; Goldberg, Avishay; Ohana, Nissim; Onn, Erez; Levi, Yehezkel; Bar-Dayan, Yaron

2005-08-01

In military basic training, stress fractures are a common orthopedic problem. Female recruits have a significantly higher incidence of stress fractures than do male recruits. Because the Israeli Defense Forces opened traditionally male roles in combat units to female recruits, their high risk for stress fractures is of concern. To compare the prevalence of stress fractures during Israeli Defense Forces anti-aircraft basic training among otherwise healthy young male and female recruits, in terms of anatomic distribution and severity. Ten mixed gender batteries, including 375 male recruits and 138 female recruits, carried out basic training in the Israeli anti-aircraft corps between November 1999 and January 2003. Each battery was monitored prospectively for 10 weeks of a basic training course. During that time, recruits who were suspected of having an overuse injury went through a protocol that included an orthopedic specialist physical examination followed by a radionuclide technetium bone scan, which was assessed by consultant nuclear medicine experts. The assessment included the anatomic site and the severity of the fractures, labeled as either high severity or low severity. Stress fractures were significantly more common among female recruits than among male recruits. A total of 42 male (11.2%) and 33 female (23.91%) recruits had positive bone scans for stress fractures (female:male relative ratio, 2.13; p < 0.001). Pelvic, femur, and tibia fractures were significantly more common among female recruits than among male recruits (p < 0.005). Female recruits had significantly more severe fractures in the tibia (p < 0.05). However, there was no significant difference in the severity of stress fractures in the femur or metatarsals between male and female recruits, as assessed by radionuclide uptake. We recommend that different training programs be assigned according to gender, in which female recruits would have a lower level of target strain or a more moderate incline of strain in the training program throughout basic training.

Value of recruitment strategies used in a primary care practice-based trial.

PubMed

Ellis, Shellie D; Bertoni, Alain G; Bonds, Denise E; Clinch, C Randall; Balasubramanyam, Aarthi; Blackwell, Caroline; Chen, Haiying; Lischke, Michael; Goff, David C

2007-05-01

"Physicians-recruiting-physicians" is the preferred recruitment approach for practice-based research. However, yields are variable; and the approach can be costly and lead to biased, unrepresentative samples. We sought to explore the potential efficiency of alternative methods. We conducted a retrospective analysis of the yield and cost of 10 recruitment strategies used to recruit primary care practices to a randomized trial to improve cardiovascular disease risk factor management. We measured response and recruitment yields and the resources used to estimate the value of each strategy. Providers at recruited practices were surveyed about motivation for participation. Response to 6 opt-in marketing strategies was 0.40% (53/13290), ranging from 0% to 2.86% by strategy; 33.96% (18/53) of responders were recruited to the study. Of those recruited from opt-out strategies, 8.68% joined the study, ranging from 5.35% to 41.67% per strategy. A strategy that combined both opt-in and opt-out approaches resulted in a 51.14% (90/176) response and a 10.80% (19/90) recruitment rate. Cost of recruitment was $613 per recruited practice. Recruitment approaches based on in-person meetings (41.67%), previous relationships (33.33%), and borrowing an Area Health Education Center's established networks (10.80%), yielded the most recruited practices per effort and were most cost efficient. Individual providers who chose to participate were motivated by interest in improving their clinical practice (80.5%); contributing to CVD primary prevention (54.4%); and invigorating their practice with new ideas (42.1%). This analysis provides suggestions for future recruitment efforts and research. Translational studies with limited funds could consider multi-modal recruitment approaches including in-person presentations to practice groups and exploitation of previous relationships, which require the providers to opt-out, and interactive opt-in approaches which rely on borrowed networks. These approaches can be supplemented with non-relationship-based opt-out strategies such as cold calls strategically targeted to underrepresented provider groups.

Recruiting Pregnant Patients for Survey Research: A Head to Head Comparison of Social Media-Based Versus Clinic-Based Approaches

PubMed Central

Haefner, Jessica K; Kolenic, Giselle E; Chang, Tammy; Davis, Matthew M; Moniz, Michelle H

2016-01-01

Background Recruiting a diverse sample of pregnant women for clinical research is a challenging but crucial task for improving obstetric services and maternal and child health outcomes. Objective To compare the feasibility and cost of recruiting pregnant women for survey research using social media-based and clinic-based approaches. Methods Advertisements were used to recruit pregnant women from the social media website Facebook. In-person methods were used to recruit pregnant women from the outpatient clinic of a large, tertiary care center. In both approaches, potential respondents were invited to participate in a 15-minute Web-based survey. Each recruitment method was monitored for 1 month. Using bivariate statistics, we compared the number, demographic characteristics, and health characteristics of women recruited and the cost per completed survey for each recruitment method. Results The social media-based approach recruited 1178 women and the clinic-based approach recruited 219 women. A higher proportion of subjects recruited through social media identified as African American (29.4%, 207/705 vs 11.2%, 20/179), reported household incomes

The spatial scale for cisco recruitment dynamics in Lake Superior during 1978-2007

USGS Publications Warehouse

Rook, Benjamin J.; Hansen, Michael J.; Gorman, Owen T.

2012-01-01

The cisco Coregonus artedi was once the most abundant fish species in the Great Lakes, but currently cisco populations are greatly reduced and management agencies are attempting to restore the species throughout the basin. To increase understanding of the spatial scale at which density‐independent and density‐dependent factors influence cisco recruitment dynamics in the Great Lakes, we used a Ricker stock–recruitment model to identify and quantify the appropriate spatial scale for modeling age‐1 cisco recruitment dynamics in Lake Superior. We found that the recruitment variation of ciscoes in Lake Superior was best described by a five‐parameter regional model with separate stock–recruitment relationships for the western, southern, eastern, and northern regions. The spatial scale for modeling was about 260 km (range = 230–290 km). We also found that the density‐independent recruitment rate and the rate of compensatory density dependence varied among regions at different rates. The density‐independent recruitment rate was constant among regions (3.6 age‐1 recruits/spawner), whereas the rate of compensatory density dependence varied 16‐fold among regions (range = −0.2 to −2.9/spawner). Finally, we found that peak recruitment and the spawning stock size that produced peak recruitment varied among regions. Both peak recruitment (0.5–7.1 age‐1 recruits/ha) and the spawning stock size that produced peak recruitment (0.3–5.3 spawners/ha) varied 16‐fold among regions. Our findings support the hypothesis that the factors driving cisco recruitment operate within four different regions of Lake Superior, suggest that large‐scale abiotic factors are more important than small‐scale biotic factors in influencing cisco recruitment, and suggest that fishery managers throughout Lake Superior and the entire Great Lakes basin should address cisco restoration and management efforts on a regional scale in each lake.

Cost-effectiveness of health research study participant recruitment strategies: a systematic review.

PubMed

Huynh, Lynn; Johns, Benjamin; Liu, Su-Hsun; Vedula, S Swaroop; Li, Tianjing; Puhan, Milo A

2014-10-01

A large fraction of the cost of conducting clinical trials is allocated to recruitment of participants. A synthesis of findings from studies that evaluate the cost and effectiveness of different recruitment strategies will inform investigators in designing cost-efficient clinical trials. To systematically identify, assess, and synthesize evidence from published comparisons of the cost and yield of strategies for recruitment of participants to health research studies. We included randomized studies in which two or more strategies for recruitment of participants had been compared. We focused our economic evaluation on studies that randomized participants to different recruitment strategies. We identified 10 randomized studies that compared recruitment strategies, including monetary incentives (cash or prize), direct contact (letters or telephone call), and medical referral strategies. Only two of the 10 studies compared strategies for recruiting participants to clinical trials. We found that allocating additional resources to recruit participants using monetary incentives or direct contact yielded between 4% and 23% additional participants compared to using neither strategy. For medical referral, recruitment of prostate cancer patients by nurses was cost-saving compared to recruitment by consultant urologists. For all underlying study designs, monetary incentives cost more than direct contact with potential participants, with a median incremental cost per recruitment ratio of Int$72 (Int$-International dollar, a theoretical unit of currency) for monetary incentive strategy compared to Int$28 for direct contact strategy. Only monetary incentives and source of referral were evaluated for recruiting participants into clinical trials. We did not review studies that presented non-monetary cost or lost opportunity cost. We did not adjust for the number of study recruitment sites or the study duration in our economic evaluation analysis. Systematic and explicit reporting of cost and effectiveness of recruitment strategies from randomized comparisons is required to aid investigators to select cost-efficient strategies for recruiting participants to health research studies including clinical trials. © The Author(s) 2014.

Do Verbal and Tactile Cueing Selectively Alter Gluteus Maximus and Hamstring Recruitment During a Supine Bridging Exercise in Active Females? A Randomized Controlled Trial.

PubMed

Hollman, John H; Berling, Tyler A; Crum, Ellen O; Miller, Kelsie M; Simmons, Brent T; Youdas, James W

2018-03-01

Hip extension with hamstring-dominant rather than gluteus maximus-dominant recruitment may increase anterior femoracetabular forces and contribute to conditions that cause hip pain. Cueing methods during hip extension exercises may facilitate greater gluteus maximus recruitment. We examined whether specific verbal and tactile cues facilitate gluteus maximus recruitment while inhibiting hamstring recruitment during a bridging exercise. Randomized controlled trial. Biomechanics laboratory. 30 young adult women (age 24 [3] y; BMI 22.2 [2.4] kg/m 2 ). Participants were tested over 2 sessions, 1 week apart, while performing 5 repetitions of a bridging exercise. At their second visit, participants in the experimental group received verbal and tactile cues intended to facilitate gluteus maximus recruitment and inhibit hamstring recruitment. Control group participants received no additional cues beyond original instructions. Gluteus maximus and hamstring recruitment were measured with surface electromyography, normalized to maximal voluntary isometric contractions (MVICs). Gluteus maximus recruitment was unchanged in the control group and increased from 16.8 to 33.0% MVIC in the cueing group (F = 33.369, P < .001). Hamstring recruitment was unchanged in the control group but also increased from 16.5 to 29.8% MVIC in the cueing group (F = 6.400, P = .02). The effect size of the change in gluteus maximus recruitment in the cueing group (Cohen's d = 1.5, 95% CI = 0.9 to 2.2) was not significantly greater than the effect size in hamstring recruitment (Cohen's d = 0.8, 95% CI = 0.1 to 1.5). Verbal and tactile cues hypothesized to facilitate gluteus maximus recruitment yielded comparable increases in both gluteus maximus and hamstring recruitment. If one intends to promote hip extension by facilitating gluteus maximus recruitment while inhibiting hamstring recruitment during bridging exercises, the cueing methods employed in this study may not produce desired effects.

eHealth Recruitment Challenges

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thompson, Debbe; Canada, Ashanti; Bhatt, Riddhi; Davis, Jennifer; Plesko, Lisa; Baranowski, Tom; Cullen, Karen; Zakeri, Issa

2006-01-01

Little is known about effective eHealth recruitment methods. This paper presents recruitment challenges associated with enrolling African-American girls aged 8-10 years in an eHealth obesity prevention program, their effect on the recruitment plan, and potential implications for eHealth research. Although the initial recruitment strategy was…

45 CFR 618.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Recruitment. 618.510 Section 618.510 Public... Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment and hiring of employees. Where a recipient has been found to be presently...

43 CFR 41.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 43 Public Lands: Interior 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Recruitment. 41.510 Section 41.510 Public... in Employment in Education Programs or Activities Prohibited § 41.510 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment...

13 CFR 113.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 13 Business Credit and Assistance 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Recruitment. 113.510 Section 113... Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment and hiring of employees. Where a recipient has been found to be presently...

45 CFR 2555.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Recruitment. 2555.510 Section 2555.510 Public... Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment and hiring of employees. Where a recipient has been found to be presently...

18 CFR 1317.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Recruitment. 1317.510... Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment and hiring of employees. Where a recipient has been found to be presently...

32 CFR 196.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 32 National Defense 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Recruitment. 196.510 Section 196.510 National... Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment and hiring of employees. Where a recipient has been found to be presently...

34 CFR 106.23 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 34 Education 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Recruitment. 106.23 Section 106.23 Education... Discrimination on the Basis of Sex in Admission and Recruitment Prohibited § 106.23 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment. A recipient to which this subpart applies shall not discriminate on the basis of sex...

44 CFR 19.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 44 Emergency Management and Assistance 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Recruitment. 19.510 Section... Programs or Activities Prohibited § 19.510 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment and hiring of employees. Where a...

10 CFR 1042.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 10 Energy 4 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Recruitment. 1042.510 Section 1042.510 Energy DEPARTMENT... Education Programs or Activities Prohibited § 1042.510 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment and hiring of employees...

45 CFR 86.53 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Recruitment. 86.53 Section 86.53 Public Welfare... in Employment in Education Programs or Activities Prohibited § 86.53 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment...

34 CFR 106.53 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 34 Education 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Recruitment. 106.53 Section 106.53 Education... Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment and hiring of employees. Where a recipient has been found to be presently...

44 CFR 19.310 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 44 Emergency Management and Assistance 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Recruitment. 19.310 Section... RECEIVING FEDERAL FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE Discrimination on the Basis of Sex in Admission and Recruitment Prohibited § 19.310 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment. A recipient to which §§ 19.300 through 19...

36 CFR 1211.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Recruitment. 1211.510 Section... Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment and hiring of employees. Where a recipient has been found to be presently...

Veterans' Preference: A Barrier to the Recruitment of Women?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kennedy, R. Bryan

1988-01-01

Examined recruitment data for the United States Missile Command from years 1978-1984 to ascertain whether or not the Veterans' Readjustment Program presented a barrier to recruitment of women. Found adverse effects on recruitment of women, noting recruitment efforts successful with one population may present barriers to another. (Author/ABL)

31 CFR 28.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 31 Money and Finance: Treasury 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Recruitment. 28.510 Section 28.510... Basis of Sex in Employment in Education Programs or Activities Prohibited § 28.510 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment...

20 CFR 655.156 - Recruitment report.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Recruitment report. 655.156 Section 655.156... the United States (H-2A Workers) Post-Acceptance Requirements § 655.156 Recruitment report. (a) Requirements of a recruitment report. The employer must prepare, sign, and date a written recruitment report...

41 CFR 101-4.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 41 Public Contracts and Property Management 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 true Recruitment. 101-4.510... Employment in Education Programs or Activities Prohibited § 101-4.510 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment and hiring...

36 CFR 1211.310 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Recruitment. 1211.310 Section... Discrimination on the Basis of Sex in Admission and Recruitment Prohibited § 1211.310 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment. A recipient to which §§ 1211.300 through 1211.310 apply shall not discriminate on the...

45 CFR 2555.310 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Recruitment. 2555.310 Section 2555.310 Public... Discrimination on the Basis of Sex in Admission and Recruitment Prohibited § 2555.310 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment. A recipient to which §§ 2555.300 through 2555.310 apply shall not discriminate on the...

7 CFR 15a.23 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Recruitment. 15a.23 Section 15a.23 Agriculture Office... FEDERAL FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE Discrimination on the Basis of Sex in Admission and Recruitment Prohibited § 15a.23 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment. A recipient to which this subpart applies shall...

10 CFR 5.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Recruitment. 5.510 Section 5.510 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY... Prohibited § 5.510 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment and hiring of employees. Where a recipient has been found...

32 CFR 196.310 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 32 National Defense 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Recruitment. 196.310 Section 196.310 National... Discrimination on the Basis of Sex in Admission and Recruitment Prohibited § 196.310 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment. A recipient to which §§ 196.300 through 196.310 apply shall not discriminate on the...

10 CFR 5.310 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Recruitment. 5.310 Section 5.310 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY... FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE Discrimination on the Basis of Sex in Admission and Recruitment Prohibited § 5.310 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment. A recipient to which §§ 5.300 through 5.310 apply shall not...

13 CFR 113.310 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 13 Business Credit and Assistance 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Recruitment. 113.310 Section 113... Discrimination on the Basis of Sex in Admission and Recruitment Prohibited § 113.310 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment. A recipient to which §§ 113.300 through 113.310 apply shall not discriminate on the...

29 CFR 36.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 29 Labor 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 true Recruitment. 36.510 Section 36.510 Labor Office of the... Activities Prohibited § 36.510 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment and hiring of employees. Where a recipient has...

24 CFR 3.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Recruitment. 3.510 Section 3.510... Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in the recruitment and hiring of employees. Where a recipient has been found to be presently...

45 CFR 83.12 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Recruitment. 83.12 Section 83.12 Public Welfare... § 83.12 Recruitment. (a) Comparable recruitment. A federally supported entity shall, with respect to... demonstrate that such action is part of a recruitment program which does not have the effect of discriminating...

18 CFR 1317.310 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 18 Conservation of Power and Water Resources 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Recruitment. 1317.310... Discrimination on the Basis of Sex in Admission and Recruitment Prohibited § 1317.310 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment. A recipient to which §§ 1317.300 through 1317.310 apply shall not discriminate on the...

28 CFR 92.11 - Content of the recruitment and retention programs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Content of the recruitment and retention... ORIENTED POLICING SERVICES (COPS) Police Recruitment Program Guidelines § 92.11 Content of the recruitment... program and applicant needs throughout the recruitment process. The process should be based on an...

45 CFR 618.310 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Recruitment. 618.310 Section 618.310 Public... Discrimination on the Basis of Sex in Admission and Recruitment Prohibited § 618.310 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment. A recipient to which §§ 618.300 through 618.310 apply shall not discriminate on the...

29 CFR 36.310 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 29 Labor 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 true Recruitment. 36.310 Section 36.310 Labor Office of the... FEDERAL FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE Discrimination on the Basis of Sex in Admission and Recruitment Prohibited § 36.310 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment. A recipient to which §§ 36.300 through 36.310...

38 CFR 23.310 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 38 Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans' Relief 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Recruitment. 23.310... Discrimination on the Basis of Sex in Admission and Recruitment Prohibited § 23.310 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment. A recipient to which §§ 23.300 through 23.310 apply shall not discriminate on the...

Internet and social network recruitment: two case studies.

PubMed

Johnson, Kathy A; Peace, Jane

2012-01-01

The recruitment of study participants is a significant research challenge. The Internet, with its ability to reach large numbers of people in networks connected by email, Facebook and other social networking mechanisms, appears to offer new avenues for recruitment. This paper reports recruitment experiences from two research projects that engaged the Internet and social networks in different ways for study recruitment. Drawing from the non-Internet recruitment literature, we speculate that the relationship with the source of the research and the purpose of the engaged social network should be a consideration in Internet or social network recruitment strategies.

Recruiting Young Adult Cancer Survivors for Behavioral Research

PubMed Central

Horowitz, Santina; Marcus, Bess

2012-01-01

Young adults have been dramatically underrepresented in cancer survivorship research. One contributing factor is the difficulty recruiting this population. To identify effective recruitment strategies, the current study assessed the yield of strategies used to recruit young survivors for an exercise intervention including: clinic-based recruitment, recruitment at cancer-related events, mailings, telephone-based recruitment, advertising on the internet, radio, television and social networking media, distributing brochures and word-of-mouth referrals. When taking into account the strategies for which we could track the number of survivors approached, recruitment at an oncology clinic was the most productive: 38 % of those approached were screened and 8 % enrolled. When evaluating which strategy yielded the greatest percentage of the sample, however, mailings were the most productive. Given widespread use of the internet and social networking by young adults, investigators should also consider these low-cost recruitment strategies. PMID:22810954

Recruitment efforts to reduce adverse impact: targeted recruiting for personality, cognitive ability, and diversity.

PubMed

Newman, Daniel A; Lyon, Julie S

2009-03-01

Noting the presumed tradeoff between diversity and performance goals in contemporary selection practice, the authors elaborate on recruiting-based methods for avoiding adverse impact while maintaining aggregate individual productivity. To extend earlier work on the primacy of applicant pool characteristics for resolving adverse impact, they illustrate the advantages of simultaneous cognitive ability- and personality-based recruiting. Results of an algebraic recruiting model support general recruiting for cognitive ability, combined with recruiting for conscientiousness within the underrepresented group. For realistic recruiting effect sizes, this type of recruiting strategy greatly increases average performance of hires and percentage of hires from the underrepresented group. Further results from a policy-capturing study provide initial guidance on how features of organizational image can attract applicants with particular job-related personalities and abilities, in addition to attracting applicants on the basis of demographic background. (c) 2009 APA, all rights reserved.

Recruiting young adult cancer survivors for behavioral research.

PubMed

Rabin, Carolyn; Horowitz, Santina; Marcus, Bess

2013-03-01

Young adults have been dramatically underrepresented in cancer survivorship research. One contributing factor is the difficulty recruiting this population. To identify effective recruitment strategies, the current study assessed the yield of strategies used to recruit young survivors for an exercise intervention including: clinic-based recruitment, recruitment at cancer-related events, mailings, telephone-based recruitment, advertising on the internet, radio, television and social networking media, distributing brochures and word-of-mouth referrals. When taking into account the strategies for which we could track the number of survivors approached, recruitment at an oncology clinic was the most productive: 38 % of those approached were screened and 8 % enrolled. When evaluating which strategy yielded the greatest percentage of the sample, however, mailings were the most productive. Given widespread use of the internet and social networking by young adults, investigators should also consider these low-cost recruitment strategies.

An unusual recruitment strategy in a mass-recruiting stingless bee, Partamona orizabaensis.

PubMed

Flaig, Isabelle C; Aguilar, Ingrid; Schmitt, Thomas; Jarau, Stefan

2016-10-01

Foragers of several stingless bee species deposit attractive scent marks on solid substrates to precisely recruit nestmates to food. Interestingly, Partamona workers quickly recruit large numbers of nest mates to resources, likely even without the deposition of attractive scent marks. However, systematic studies of the recruitment system of these bees are lacking. We now studied the recruitment behavior of P. orizabaensis. Our findings show that foragers of this species can recruit large numbers of nestmates to food sources at a particular location. The precise nestmate recruitment does not rely on attractive scent marks deposited on substrates. We never observed any scent marking behavior and feeders baited with labial or mandibular gland extracts were not attractive for the bees. Chemical analyses showed that the foragers' labial gland secretions exclusively contain long chain hydrocarbons, which render their role in recruitment communication unlikely. Whether mandibular gland secretions, which contain esters and alcohols that are known as attractive pheromones in other bee species, are used to guide recruits toward food during flight, remains elusive. We conclude that Partamona's quick recruitment system that does not rely on conspicuous scent marks has evolved as a strategy against competition with sympatrically occurring and more aggressive bee species.

A systematic review of discontinued trials suggested that most reasons for recruitment failure were preventable.

PubMed

Briel, Matthias; Olu, Kelechi Kalu; von Elm, Erik; Kasenda, Benjamin; Alturki, Reem; Agarwal, Arnav; Bhatnagar, Neera; Schandelmaier, Stefan

2016-12-01

To collect and classify reported reasons for recruitment failure in discontinued randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and to assess reporting quality. We systematically searched MEDLINE and EMBASE (2010-2014) and a previous cohort of RCTs for published RCTs reporting trial discontinuation due to poor recruitment. Teams of two investigators selected eligible RCTs working independently and extracted information using standardized forms. We used an iterative approach to classify reasons for poor recruitment. We included 172 RCTs discontinued due to poor recruitment (including 26 conference abstracts and 63 industry-funded RCTs). Of those, 131 (76%) reported one or more reasons for discontinuation due to poor recruitment. We identified 28 different reasons for recruitment failure; most frequently mentioned were overestimation of prevalence of eligible participants and prejudiced views of recruiters and participants on trial interventions. Few RCTs reported relevant details about the recruitment process such as how eligible participants were identified, the number of patients assessed for eligibility, and who actually recruited participants. Our classification could serve as a checklist to assist investigators in the planning of RCTs. Most reasons for recruitment failure seem preventable with a pilot study that applies the planned informed consent procedure. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Recruitment strategies for minority participation: challenges and cost lessons from the POWER interview.

PubMed

Keyzer, Janet Fulton; Melnikow, Joy; Kuppermann, Miriam; Birch, Stephen; Kuenneth, Christina; Nuovo, Jim; Azari, Rahman; Oto-Kent, Debra; Rooney, Mairin

2005-01-01

The importance of recruiting and retaining women from diverse populations is well recognized; however, the recruitment process often presents greater challenges at higher costs than initially anticipated. To describe recruitment strategies and costs from a study evaluating women's preferences regarding tamoxifen use for primary prevention of breast cancer. Description and analysis of recruitment strategies, outcomes, and costs for a cross-sectional interview study. University hospital and community sites. 932 racially and ethnically diverse women respondents, of whom 771 completed the screening process (aged 27-87). Women were recruited and screened by using the Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Program (BCRA version 1, National Cancer Institute). Eligibility required an estimated five-year breast cancer risk of at least 1.7%. Recruitment goals targeted a high percentage of ethnic minorities. Recruitment strategies included direct mail, flyers, newspapers, media advertising, and community outreach. Of the 771 screened women, 341 (44%) met eligibility criteria and 255 (33%) completed interviews (76.9% White, 10.6% Latina, 7.0% Asian, 3.9% African American, 1.6% Native American). Recruitment costs averaged US $113/screened participant. Direct mail and community contact yielded the largest number of participants (312 screened, 205 eligible). Radio advertising provided few participants (one screened, one eligible) at high cost. Recruiting an ethnically diverse sample presented multiple challenges. We recommend that future studies budget adequately for recruitment time and costs, develop ongoing relationships with key community leaders, evaluate recruitment strategies closely, and report detailed recruitment findings to the research community.

A Comparison of Recruitment Methods for an mHealth Intervention Targeting Mothers: Lessons from the Growing Healthy Program.

PubMed

Laws, Rachel A; Litterbach, Eloise-Kate V; Denney-Wilson, Elizabeth A; Russell, Catherine G; Taki, Sarah; Ong, Kok-Leong; Elliott, Rosalind M; Lymer, Sharyn J; Campbell, Karen J

2016-09-15

Mobile health (mHealth) programs hold great promise for increasing the reach of public health interventions. However, mHealth is a relatively new field of research, presenting unique challenges for researchers. A key challenge is understanding the relative effectiveness and cost of various methods of recruitment to mHealth programs. The objectives of this study were to (1) compare the effectiveness of various methods of recruitment to an mHealth intervention targeting healthy infant feeding practices, and (2) explore factors influencing practitioner referral to the intervention. The Growing healthy study used a quasi-experimental design with an mHealth intervention group and a concurrent nonrandomized comparison group. Eligibility criteria included: expectant parents (>30 weeks of gestation) or parents with an infant <3 months old, ability to read and understand English, own a mobile phone, ≥18 years old, and living in Australia. Recruitment to the mHealth program consisted of: (1) practitioner-led recruitment through Maternal and Child Health nurses, midwives, and nurses in general practice; (2) face-to-face recruitment by researchers; and (3) online recruitment. Participants' baseline surveys provided information regarding how participants heard about the study, and their sociodemographic details. Costs per participant recruited were calculated by taking into account direct advertising costs and researcher time/travel costs. Practitioner feedback relating to the recruitment process was obtained through a follow-up survey and qualitative interviews. A total of 300 participants were recruited to the mHealth intervention. The cost per participant recruited was lowest for online recruitment (AUD $14) and highest for practice nurse recruitment (AUD $586). Just over half of the intervention group (50.3%, 151/300) were recruited online over a 22-week period compared to practitioner recruitment (29.3%, 88/300 over 46 weeks) and face-to-face recruitment by researchers (7.3%, 22/300 over 18 weeks). No significant differences were observed in participant sociodemographic characteristics between recruitment methods, with the exception that practitioner/face-to-face recruitment resulted in a higher proportion of first-time parents (68% versus 48%, P=.002). Less than half of the practitioners surveyed reported referring to the program often or most of the time. Key barriers to practitioner referral included lack of time, difficulty remembering to refer, staff changes, lack of parental engagement, and practitioner difficulty in accessing the app. Online recruitment using parenting-related Facebook pages was the most cost effective and timely method of recruitment to an mHealth intervention targeting parents of young infants. Consideration needs to be given to addressing practitioner barriers to referral, to further explore if this can be a viable method of recruitment.

A Comparison of Recruitment Methods for an mHealth Intervention Targeting Mothers: Lessons from the Growing Healthy Program

PubMed Central

Litterbach, Eloise-Kate V; Denney-Wilson, Elizabeth A; Russell, Catherine G; Taki, Sarah; Ong, Kok-Leong; Elliott, Rosalind M; Lymer, Sharyn J; Campbell, Karen J

2016-01-01

Background Mobile health (mHealth) programs hold great promise for increasing the reach of public health interventions. However, mHealth is a relatively new field of research, presenting unique challenges for researchers. A key challenge is understanding the relative effectiveness and cost of various methods of recruitment to mHealth programs. Objective The objectives of this study were to (1) compare the effectiveness of various methods of recruitment to an mHealth intervention targeting healthy infant feeding practices, and (2) explore factors influencing practitioner referral to the intervention. Methods The Growing healthy study used a quasi-experimental design with an mHealth intervention group and a concurrent nonrandomized comparison group. Eligibility criteria included: expectant parents (>30 weeks of gestation) or parents with an infant <3 months old, ability to read and understand English, own a mobile phone, ≥18 years old, and living in Australia. Recruitment to the mHealth program consisted of: (1) practitioner-led recruitment through Maternal and Child Health nurses, midwives, and nurses in general practice; (2) face-to-face recruitment by researchers; and (3) online recruitment. Participants’ baseline surveys provided information regarding how participants heard about the study, and their sociodemographic details. Costs per participant recruited were calculated by taking into account direct advertising costs and researcher time/travel costs. Practitioner feedback relating to the recruitment process was obtained through a follow-up survey and qualitative interviews. Results A total of 300 participants were recruited to the mHealth intervention. The cost per participant recruited was lowest for online recruitment (AUD $14) and highest for practice nurse recruitment (AUD $586). Just over half of the intervention group (50.3%, 151/300) were recruited online over a 22-week period compared to practitioner recruitment (29.3%, 88/300 over 46 weeks) and face-to-face recruitment by researchers (7.3%, 22/300 over 18 weeks). No significant differences were observed in participant sociodemographic characteristics between recruitment methods, with the exception that practitioner/face-to-face recruitment resulted in a higher proportion of first-time parents (68% versus 48%, P=.002). Less than half of the practitioners surveyed reported referring to the program often or most of the time. Key barriers to practitioner referral included lack of time, difficulty remembering to refer, staff changes, lack of parental engagement, and practitioner difficulty in accessing the app. Conclusions Online recruitment using parenting-related Facebook pages was the most cost effective and timely method of recruitment to an mHealth intervention targeting parents of young infants. Consideration needs to be given to addressing practitioner barriers to referral, to further explore if this can be a viable method of recruitment. PMID:27634633

Employing a Multi-level Approach to Recruit a Representative Sample of Women with Recent Gestational Diabetes Mellitus into a Randomized Lifestyle Intervention Trial.

PubMed

Nicklas, Jacinda M; Skurnik, Geraldine; Zera, Chloe A; Reforma, Liberty G; Levkoff, Sue E; Seely, Ellen W

2016-02-01

The postpartum period is a window of opportunity for diabetes prevention in women with recent gestational diabetes (GDM), but recruitment for clinical trials during this period of life is a major challenge. We adapted a social-ecologic model to develop a multi-level recruitment strategy at the macro (high or institutional level), meso (mid or provider level), and micro (individual) levels. Our goal was to recruit 100 women with recent GDM into the Balance after Baby randomized controlled trial over a 17-month period. Participants were asked to attend three in-person study visits at 6 weeks, 6, and 12 months postpartum. They were randomized into a control arm or a web-based intervention arm at the end of the baseline visit at six weeks postpartum. At the end of the recruitment period, we compared population characteristics of our enrolled subjects to the entire population of women with GDM delivering at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH). We successfully recruited 107 of 156 (69 %) women assessed for eligibility, with the majority (92) recruited during pregnancy at a mean 30 (SD ± 5) weeks of gestation, and 15 recruited postpartum, at a mean 2 (SD ± 3) weeks postpartum. 78 subjects attended the initial baseline visit, and 75 subjects were randomized into the trial at a mean 7 (SD ± 2) weeks postpartum. The recruited subjects were similar in age and race/ethnicity to the total population of 538 GDM deliveries at BWH over the 17-month recruitment period. Our multilevel approach allowed us to successfully meet our recruitment goal and recruit a representative sample of women with recent GDM. We believe that our most successful strategies included using a dedicated in-person recruiter, integrating recruitment into clinical flow, allowing for flexibility in recruitment, minimizing barriers to participation, and using an opt-out strategy with providers. Although the majority of women were recruited while pregnant, women recruited in the early postpartum period were more likely to present for the first study visit. Given the increased challenges of recruiting postpartum women with GDM into research studies, we believe our findings will be useful to other investigators seeking to study this population.

Costs and difficulties of recruiting patients to provide e-health support: pilot study in one primary care trust

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background Better use of e-health services by patients could improve outcomes and reduce costs but there are concerns about inequalities of access. Previous research in outpatients suggested that anonymous personal email support may help patients with long term conditions to use e-health, but recruiting earlier in their 'journey' may benefit patients more. This pilot study explored the feasibility and cost of recruiting patients for an e-health intervention in one primary care trust. Methods The sample comprised 46 practices with total patient population of 250,000. We approached all practices using various methods, seeking collaboration to recruit patients via methods agreed with each practice. A detailed research diary was kept of time spent recruiting practices and patients. Researcher time was used to estimate costs. Patients who consented to participate were offered email support for their use of the Internet for health. Results Eighteen practices agreed to take part; we recruited 27 patients, most (23/27) from five practices. Practices agreed to recruit patients for an e-health intervention via waiting room leaflets (16), posters (16), practice nurses (15), doctors giving patients leaflets (5), a study website link (7), inclusion in planned mailshots (2), and a special mailshot to patients selected from practice computers (1). After low recruitment response we also recruited directly in five practices through research assistants giving leaflets to patients in waiting rooms. Ten practices recruited no patients. Those practices that were more difficult to recruit were less likely to recruit patients. Leaving leaflets for practice staff to distribute and placing posters in the practice were not effective in recruiting patients. Leaflets handed out by practice nurses and website links were more successful. The practice with lowest costs per patient recruited (£70) used a special mailshot to selected patients. Conclusion Recruitment via general practice was not successful and was therefore expensive. Direct to consumer methods and recruitment of patients in outpatients to offer email support may be more cost effective. If recruitment in general practice is required, contacting practices by letter and email, not following up non-responding practices, and recruiting patients with selected conditions by special mailshot may be the most cost-effective approach. PMID:22458706

Recruitment of older adults to three preventative lifestyle improvement studies.

PubMed

Chatters, Robin; Newbould, Louise; Sprange, Kirsty; Hind, Daniel; Mountain, Gail; Shortland, Katy; Powell, Lauren; Gossage-Worrall, Rebecca; Chater, Tim; Keetharuth, Anju; Lee, Ellen; Woods, Bob

2018-02-20

Recruiting isolated older adults to clinical trials is complex, time-consuming and difficult. Previous studies have suggested querying existing databases to identify appropriate potential participants. We aim to compare recruitment techniques (general practitioner (GP) mail-outs, community engagement and clinician referrals) used in three randomised controlled trial (RCT) studies assessing the feasibility or effectiveness of two preventative interventions in isolated older adults (the Lifestyle Matters and Putting Life In Years interventions). During the three studies (the Lifestyle Matters feasibility study, the Lifestyle Matters RCT, the Putting Life In Years RCT) data were collected about how participants were recruited. The number of letters sent by GP surgeries for each study was recorded. In the Lifestyle Matters RCT, we qualitatively interviewed participants and intervention facilitators at 6 months post randomisation to seek their thoughts on the recruitment process. Referrals were planned to be the main source of recruitment in the Lifestyle Matters feasibility study, but due to a lack of engagement from district nurses, community engagement was the main source of recruitment. District nurse referrals and community engagement were also utilised in the Lifestyle Matters and Putting Life In Years RCTs; both mechanisms yielded few participants. GP mail-outs were the main source of recruitment in both the RCTs, but of those contacted, recruiting yield was low (< 3%). Facilitators of the Lifestyle Matters intervention questioned whether the most appropriate individuals had been recruited. Participants recommended that direct contact with health professionals would be the most beneficial way to recruit. Recruitment to the Lifestyle Matters RCT did not mirror recruitment to the feasibility study of the same intervention. Direct district nurse referrals were not effective at recruiting participants. The majority of participants were recruited via GP mail-outs, which may have led to isolated individuals not being recruited to the trials. Further research is required into alternative recruitment techniques, including respondent-driven sampling plus mechanisms which will promote health care professionals to recruit vulnerable populations to research. International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial Registry, ID: ISRCTN28645428 (Putting Life In Years RCT). Registered on 11 April 2012; International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial Registry, ID: ISRCTN67209155 (Lifestyle Matters RCT). Registered on 22 March 2012; ClinicalTrials.gov , ID: NCT03054311 (Lifestyle Matters feasibility study). Registered retrospectively on 19 January 2017.

Online and Offline Recruitment of Young Women for a Longitudinal Health Survey: Findings From the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health 1989-95 Cohort

PubMed Central

Powers, Jennifer; Anderson, Amy E; Townsend, Natalie; Harris, Melissa L; Tuckerman, Ryan; Pease, Stephanie; Mishra, Gita; Byles, Julie

2015-01-01

Background In 2012, we set out to recruit a cohort of at least 10,000 women aged 18-23 from across Australia. With recent research demonstrating the inadequacy of traditional approaches to recruiting women in this age group, we elected to conduct open recruiting. Objective Our aim was to report on the overall success of open recruiting and to evaluate the relative success of a variety of recruitment methods in terms of numbers and demographics. Methods We used referrals, Facebook, formal advertising, and incentives in order to recruit the cohort. Results In all, 17,069 women were recruited for the longitudinal online survey, from 54,685 initiated surveys. Of these women, most (69.94%, n=11,799) who joined the longitudinal cohort were recruited via Facebook, 12.72% (n=2145) via the fashion promotion, 7.02% (n=1184) by referral, 4.9% (n=831) via other Web activities, and 5.4% (n=910) via traditional media. Conclusions Facebook was by far the most successful strategy, enrolling a cohort of women with a similar profile to the population of Australian women in terms of age, area of residence, and relationship status. Women recruited via fashion promotion were the least representative. All strategies underrepresented less educated women—a finding that is consistent with more traditional means of recruiting. In conclusion, flexibility in recruitment design, embracing new and traditional media, adopting a dynamic responsive approach, and monitoring the results of recruiting in terms of sample composition and number recruited led to the successful establishment of a new cohort. PMID:25940876

Optimizing primary care research participation: a comparison of three recruitment methods in data-sharing studies.

PubMed

Lord, Paul A; Willis, Thomas A; Carder, Paul; West, Robert M; Foy, Robbie

2016-04-01

Recruitment of representative samples in primary care research is essential to ensure high-quality, generalizable results. This is particularly important for research using routinely recorded patient data to examine the delivery of care. Yet little is known about how different recruitment strategies influence the characteristics of the practices included in research. We describe three approaches for recruiting practices to data-sharing studies, examining differences in recruitment levels and practice representativeness. We examined three studies that included varying populations of practices from West Yorkshire, UK. All used anonymized patient data to explore aspects of clinical practice. Recruitment strategies were 'opt-in', 'mixed opt-in and opt-out' and 'opt-out'. We compared aggregated practice data between recruited and not-recruited practices for practice list size, deprivation, chronic disease management, patient experience and rates of unplanned hospital admission. The opt-out strategy had the highest recruitment (80%), followed by mixed (70%) and opt-in (58%). Practices opting-in were larger (median 7153 versus 4722 patients, P = 0.03) than practices that declined to opt-in. Practices recruited by mixed approach were larger (median 7091 versus 5857 patients, P = 0.04) and had differences in the clinical quality measure (58.4% versus 53.9% of diabetic patients with HbA1c ≤ 59 mmol/mol, P < 0.01). We found no differences between practices recruited and not recruited using the opt-out strategy for any demographic or quality of care measures. Opt-out recruitment appears to be a relatively efficient approach to ensuring participation of typical general practices. Researchers should, with appropriate ethical safeguards, consider opt-out recruitment of practices for studies involving anonymized patient data sharing. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Recruitment Strategies and Costs Associated With Enrolling People With Insomnia and High Blood Pressure Into an Online Behavioral Sleep Intervention: A Single-Site Pilot Study.

PubMed

Routledge, Faye S; Davis, Tara D; Dunbar, Sandra B

Recruitment in clinical research is a common challenge and source of study failure. The reporting of recruitment methods and costs in hypertension trials is limited especially for smaller, single-site trials, online intervention trials, and trials using newer online recruitment strategies. The aims of this study are to describe and examine the feasibility of newer online-e-mail recruitment strategies and traditional recruitment strategies used to enroll participants with insomnia and high blood pressure into an online behavioral sleep intervention study (Sleeping for Heart Health). The 16 online-e-mail-based and traditional recruitment strategies used are described. Recruitment strategy feasibility was examined by study interest and enrollee yields, conversion rates, and costs (direct, remuneration, labor, and cost per enrollee). From August 2014 to October 2015, 183 people were screened and 58 (31.7%) enrolled in the study (51.1 ± 12.9 years, 63.8% female, 72.4% African American, 136 ± 12/88 ± 7 mm Hg, 87.9% self-reported hypertension, 67.2% self-reported antihypertensive medication use). The recruitment strategies yielding the highest enrollees were the university hospital phone waiting message system (25.4%), Craigslist (22.4%), and flyers (20.3%) at a per enrollee cost of $42.84, $98.90, and $128.27, respectively. The university hospital phone waiting message system (55.6%) and flyers (54.5%) had the highest interested participant to enrolled participant conversion rate of all recruitment strategies. Approximately 70% of all enrolled participants were recruited from the university hospital phone waiting message system, Craigslist, or flyers. Given the recruitment challenges that most researchers face, we encourage the documenting, assessing, and reporting of detailed recruitment strategies and associated recruitment costs so that other researchers may benefit.

Participant recruitment from minority religious groups: the case of the Islamic population in South Australia.

PubMed

Mohammadi, N; Jones, T; Evans, D

2008-12-01

Participant recruitment is a fundamental component of the research process and the methods employed to attract individuals will depend on the nature of the study. Recruitment may be more challenging when the study involves people from a minority religious group. However, this issue has not been well addressed in the literature. To discuss the challenges of recruiting participants from a minority religious group (the Islamic population) to participate in an interpretive, hermeneutic study concerning the experience of hospitalization. The challenges of recruitment encountered during this study are used as the basis for a broader discussion of this important issue. To ensure the success of this phase of the study, a pre-planned recruitment strategy was essential. Multiple recruitment strategies were used, including hospital-based recruitment, snowball sampling, advertising and contact with key people. Despite the use of multiple strategies, recruitment of participants was difficult and required an extended period of time to achieve sufficiently rich data. Thirteen participants shared their lived experience to provide an in-depth understanding of the phenomenon. Recruiting participants from minority religious group involves potentially sensitive issues. There is an increased need for the researchers to carefully consider potential participants' rights and ensure that sound ethical principles underpin the study, as failure to do this may hinder the recruitment process. The two most effective strategies of recruitment were snowball sampling and contact with key Islamic people, with the least effective being advertising. This paper highlights the importance of anticipating potential difficulties and pre-planning strategies to overcome barriers to recruitment. Implementation of multiple strategies is recommended to ensure successful research recruitment.

Desktop software to identify patients eligible for recruitment into a clinical trial: using SARMA to recruit to the ROAD feasibility trial.

PubMed

Treweek, Shaun; Pearson, Ewan; Smith, Natalie; Neville, Ron; Sargeant, Paul; Boswell, Brian; Sullivan, Frank

2010-01-01

Recruitment to trials in primary care is often difficult, particularly when practice staff need to identify study participants with acute conditions during consultations. The Scottish Acute Recruitment Management Application (SARMA) system is linked to general practice electronic medical record (EMR) systems and is designed to provide recruitment support to multi-centre trials by screening patients against trial inclusion criteria and alerting practice staff if the patient appears eligible. For patients willing to learn more about the trial, the software allows practice staff to send the patient's contact details to the research team by text message. To evaluate the ability of the software to support trial recruitment. Software evaluation embedded in a randomised controlled trial. Five general practices in Tayside and Fife, Scotland. SARMA was used to support recruitment to a feasibility trial (the Response to Oral Agents in Diabetes, or ROAD trial) looking at users of oral therapy in diabetes. The technical performance of the software and its utility as a recruitment tool were evaluated. The software was successfully installed at four of the five general practices and recruited 11 of the 29 participants for ROAD (other methods were letter and direct invitation by a practice nurse) and had a recruitment return of 35% (11 of 31 texts sent led to a recruitment). Screen failures were relatively low (7 of 31 referred). Practice staff members were positive about the system. An automated recruitment tool can support primary care trials in Scotland and has the potential to support recruitment in other jurisdictions. It offers a low-cost supplement to other trial recruitment methods and is likely to have a much lower screen failure rate than blanket approaches such as mailshots and newspaper campaigns.

Recruiting pregnant smokers from Text4baby for a randomized controlled trial of Quit4baby.

PubMed

Leavitt, Leah; Abroms, Lorien; Johnson, Pamela; Schindler-Ruwisch, Jennifer; Bushar, Jessica; Singh, Indira; Cleary, Sean D; McInvale, Whitney; Turner, Monique

2017-06-01

Recruiting pregnant smokers into clinical trials is challenging since this population tends to be disadvantaged, the behavior is stigmatized, and the intervention window is limited. The purpose of this study is to test the feasibility and effectiveness of recruiting pregnant smokers into a smoking cessation trial by sending recruitment text messages to an existing subscriber list. Recruitment messages were sent to subscribers flagged as pregnant in Text4baby, a national text messaging program for pregnant women and mothers. Four recruitment messages were rotated to test the effectiveness of different emotional frames and a financial incentive. Study staff called subscribers who expressed interest to screen for eligibility and enroll eligible women. Between October 6, 2015 and February 2, 2016, 10,194 recruitment messages were sent to Text4baby subscribers flagged as pregnant, and 10.18% (1038) responded indicating interest. No significant increase in cancellation was observed compared to subscribers who received other ad hoc messages. Of respondents, 54.05% (561) were reached by phone for follow-up, and 21.97% (228) were found to be eligible. Among the eligible, 87% (199) pregnant smokers enrolled. The recruitment message with a pride emotional appeal had a significantly higher response (p = 0.02) compared to the recruitment message with no emotional appeal, but enrollment did not significantly differ between recruitment messages with different emotional appeals. The recruitment messages with a reference to financial incentive yielded higher response (p < 0.01) and enrollment (p = 0.03) compared to a recruitment message without. This study demonstrates success recruiting pregnant smokers using text message. Future studies should consider building on this approach for recruiting high-risk populations.

An evaluation of the impact and costs of three strategies used to recruit acutely unwell young children to a randomised controlled trial in primary care.

PubMed

Redmond, Niamh M; Hollinghurst, Sandra; Costelloe, Céire; Montgomery, Alan A; Fletcher, Margaret; Peters, Tim J; Hay, Alastair D

2013-08-01

Recruitment to primary care trials, particularly those involving young children, is known to be difficult. There are limited data available to inform researchers about the effectiveness of different trial recruitment strategies and their associated costs. To describe, evaluate, and investigate the costs of three strategies for recruiting febrile children to a community-based randomised trial of antipyretics. The three recruitment strategies used in the trial were termed as follows: (1) 'local', where paediatric research nurses stationed in primary care sites invited parents of children to participate; (2) 'remote', where clinicians at primary care sites faxed details of potentially eligible children to the trial office; and (3) 'community', where parents, responding to trial publicity, directly contacted the trial office when their child was unwell. Recruitment rates increased in response to the sequential introduction of three recruitment strategies, which were supplemented by additional recruiting staff, flexible staff work patterns, and improved clinician reimbursement schemes. The three strategies yielded different randomisation rates. They also appeared to be interdependent and highly effective together. Strategy-specific costs varied from £297 to £857 per randomised participant and represented approximately 10% of the total trial budget. Because the recruitment strategies were implemented sequentially, it was difficult to measure their independent effects. The cost analysis was performed retrospectively. Trial recruiter expertise and deployment of several interdependent, illness-specific strategies were key factors in achieving rapid recruitment of young children to a community-based randomised controlled trial (RCT). The 'remote' recruitment strategy was shown to be more cost-effective compared to 'community' and 'local' strategies in the context of this trial. Future trialists should report recruitment costs to facilitate a transparent evaluation of recruitment strategy cost-effectiveness.

Fishery management priorities vary with self‐recruitment in sedentary marine populations.

PubMed

Yau, Annie J; Lenihan, Hunter S; Kendall, Bruce E

Fisheries science often uses population models that assume no external recruitment, but nearshore marine populations harvested on small scales of <200 km often exhibit an unknown mix of self-recruitment and recruitment from external sources. Since empirical determination of self-recruitment vs. external recruitment is difficult, we used a modeling approach to examine the sensitivity of fishery management priorities to recruitment assumptions (self [closed], external [open]) in a local population of harvested giant clams (Tridacna maxima) on Mo'orea, French Polynesia. From 2006 to 2010, we measured growth, fecundity, recruitment, and survival (resulting from natural and fishing mortality). We used these data to parameterize both a closed (complete self-recruitment) and an open (no self-recruitment) integral projection model (IPM), and then calculated elasticities of demographic rates (growth, survival, recruitment) to future population abundance in 20 years. The models' lowest projected abundance was 93.4% (95% CI, [86.5%, 101.8%]) of present abundance, if the local population is entirely open and the present level of fishing mortality persists. The population will exhibit self-sustaining dynamics (1 ≤ λ ≤ 1.07) as for a closed population if the ratio of self-recruits per gram of dry gonad is >0.775 (equivalent to 52.85% self-recruitment under present conditions). Elasticity analysis of demographic parameters indicated that future abundance can most effectively be influenced by increasing survival of mid-sized clams (∼80–120 mm) if the population is self-sustaining, and by increasing survival of juvenile clams (∼40–70 mm) if the population is non-self-sustaining (as for an open population). Our results illustrate that management priorities can vary depending on the amount of self-recruitment in a local population.

Analysis of the U.S. Navy’s Goal-Based Awards System and Its Effect on Recruit Quality

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-03-01

Recruiting Force 2020 Strategy” (Commander Navy Recruiting Command, 2012b), the mission of Navy recruiting is to “Recruit the best men and women ... workplace satisfaction • Measure success and return on investment (ROI) to balance against future recruiting risk B. HISTORY OF CNRC AWARDS AND INCENTIVE...INSTRUCTION 1430.7C), eligibility requirements to earn the promotion were simplified and the inequities between active and reserve Full Time Support

Mechanism of selective recruitment of RNA polymerases II and III to snRNA gene promoters.

PubMed

Dergai, Oleksandr; Cousin, Pascal; Gouge, Jerome; Satia, Karishma; Praz, Viviane; Kuhlman, Tracy; Lhôte, Philippe; Vannini, Alessandro; Hernandez, Nouria

2018-05-01

RNA polymerase II (Pol II) small nuclear RNA (snRNA) promoters and type 3 Pol III promoters have highly similar structures; both contain an interchangeable enhancer and "proximal sequence element" (PSE), which recruits the SNAP complex (SNAPc). The main distinguishing feature is the presence, in the type 3 promoters only, of a TATA box, which determines Pol III specificity. To understand the mechanism by which the absence or presence of a TATA box results in specific Pol recruitment, we examined how SNAPc and general transcription factors required for Pol II or Pol III transcription of SNAPc-dependent genes (i.e., TATA-box-binding protein [TBP], TFIIB, and TFIIA for Pol II transcription and TBP and BRF2 for Pol III transcription) assemble to ensure specific Pol recruitment. TFIIB and BRF2 could each, in a mutually exclusive fashion, be recruited to SNAPc. In contrast, TBP-TFIIB and TBP-BRF2 complexes were not recruited unless a TATA box was present, which allowed selective and efficient recruitment of the TBP-BRF2 complex. Thus, TBP both prevented BRF2 recruitment to Pol II promoters and enhanced BRF2 recruitment to Pol III promoters. On Pol II promoters, TBP recruitment was separate from TFIIB recruitment and enhanced by TFIIA. Our results provide a model for specific Pol recruitment at SNAPc-dependent promoters. © 2018 Dergai et al.; Published by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press.

The Army and Civilian Nursing Crisis at the Dawn of the 21st Century

DTIC Science & Technology

2003-04-01

and advertising about the programs by recruiters. • Lack of recruiter penetration of targeted market. • Shrinking supply of civilian nurse recruits...Increase in recruiting mission without an increase in recruiting force. • Increase in time to process applicant’s accession packet. • Lack of marketing

Selection and Training of Navy Recruit Company Commanders. Final Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Curry, Thomas F., Jr.; And Others

This report addresses the selection, training, and utilization of Navy Recruit Company Commanders (Recruit Training Instructors). It represents one in a series of reports concerning the optimization of Navy Recruit Training to meet the needs of the post-1980 period. The report provides a comprehensive review of the Navy's Recruit Company Commander…

The Recruiting Game: Toward a New System of Intercollegiate Sport. Second Edition, Revised.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rooney, John F., Jr.

Problems in recruitment for big-time collegiate sports are updated, and an eleven-point improvement program is proposed. Statistics on football and basketball recruitment are updated, many through the 1985 season. New focus is placed on "blue chip" recruiting, and maps of recruiting by selected institutions, conferences, and states are…

Guide to Recruitment: A Manual for Head Start Personnel in Recruiting Handicapped Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hodskins, David, Ed.

Intended for Head Start personnel, the manual outlines a recruitment campaign for identifying and enrolling children who have health impairments requiring special education and related services. Briefly covered are the following topics: rationale for the recruitment compaign; targets of recruitment (which include Head Start families, the general…

20 CFR 656.18 - Optional special recruitment and documentation procedures for college and university teachers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Optional special recruitment and... EMPLOYMENT OF ALIENS IN THE UNITED STATES Labor Certification Process § 656.18 Optional special recruitment... processing center. (b) Recruitment. The employer may recruit for college and university teachers under § 656...

31 CFR 28.310 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 31 Money and Finance: Treasury 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Recruitment. 28.310 Section 28.310... Basis of Sex in Admission and Recruitment Prohibited § 28.310 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment. A recipient to which §§ 28.300 through 28.310 apply shall not discriminate on the basis of sex in...

24 CFR 3.310 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Recruitment. 3.310 Section 3.310... Discrimination on the Basis of Sex in Admission and Recruitment Prohibited § 3.310 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment. A recipient to which §§ 3.300 through 3.310 apply shall not discriminate on the basis...

Evaluating the potential for stock size to limit recruitment in largemouth bass

USGS Publications Warehouse

Allen, Michael S.; Rogers, Mark W.; Catalano, Mathew J.; Gwinn, Daniel G.; Walsh, Stephen J.

2011-01-01

Compensatory changes in juvenile survival allow fish stocks to maintain relatively constant recruitment across a wide range of stock sizes (and levels of fishing), but few studies have experimentally explored recruitment compensation in fish populations. We evaluated the potential for recruitment compensation in largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides by stocking six 0.4-ha hatchery ponds with adult densities ranging from 6 to 40 fish over 2 years. Ponds were drained in October each year, and the age-0 fish densities were used as a measure of recruitment. We found no relationship between stock abundance and recruitment; ponds with low adult densities produced nearly as many recruits as the higher-density ponds in some cases. Both prey abundance and the growth of age-0 largemouth bass declined with age-0 fish density. Recruit abundance was highly variable both within and among the adult density groups, and thus we were unable to identify a clear stock–recruit relationship for largemouth bass. Our results indicate that reducing the number of effective spawners via angling practices would not reduce recruitment over a relatively large range in stock size.

Case report: patient portal versus telephone recruitment for a surgical research study.

PubMed

Baucom, R B; Ousley, J; Poulose, B K; Rosenbloom, S T; Jackson, G P

2014-01-01

Patient portal adoption has rapidly increased over the last decade. Most patient portal research has been done in primary care or medical specialties, and few studies have examined their use in surgical patients or for recruiting research subjects. No known studies have compared portal messaging with other approaches of recruitment. This case report describes our experience with patient portal versus telephone recruitment for a study involving long-term follow up of surgical patients. Participants were recruited for a study of recurrence after ventral hernia repair through telephone calls and patient portal messaging based on registration status with the portal. Potential subjects who did not have a portal account or whose portal messages were returned after 5 days were called. The proportion of participants enrolled with each method was determined and demographics of eligible patients, portal users, and participants were compared. 1359 patients were eligible for the hernia study, and enrollment was 35% (n=465). Most participants were recruited by telephone (84%, n=391); 16% (n=74) were recruited through portal messaging. Forty-four percent of eligible participants had a registered portal account, and 14% of users responded to the recruitment message. Portal users were younger than non-users (55 vs. 58 years, p<0.001); participants recruited through the portal versus telephone were also younger (54 vs. 59 years, p=0.001). Differences in the sex and racial distributions between users and non-users and between portal and telephone recruits were not significant. Portal versus telephone recruitment for a surgical research study demonstrated modest portal recruitment rates and similar demographics between recruitment methods. Published studies of portal-only recruitment in primary care or medical-specialty patient populations have demonstrated higher enrollment rates, but this case study demonstrates that portal recruitment for research studies in the surgical population is feasible, and it offers convenience to patients and researchers.

Internet-based recruitment to a depression prevention intervention: lessons from the Mood Memos study.

PubMed

Morgan, Amy Joanna; Jorm, Anthony Francis; Mackinnon, Andrew James

2013-02-12

Recruiting participants to randomized controlled trials of health interventions can be very difficult. Internet-based recruitment is becoming an increasingly important mode of recruitment, yet there are few detailed accounts of experiences recruiting participants to mental health interventions. To report on our experience with Internet-based recruitment to an online depression prevention intervention and pass on lessons we learned. Participants were recruited to the Mood Memos study, an online preventive depression intervention, purely through Internet-based sources. The study was targeted to adults with subthreshold depression symptoms from several English-speaking countries. A variety of online recruitment sources were trialed, including search engine advertising (Google, Yahoo!, Bing), Facebook advertising, posts in forums and online noticeboards, and promotion through relevant websites and email newsletters of mental health organizations. The study website received visits from 94,808 individuals over the 14-month recruitment period. The recruitment target was reached with 1699 individuals signing up to the randomized controlled trial and 1326 fully enrolling. Most visitors arrived via Google advertising, which promoted a depression-screening questionnaire. Google advertising accounted for nearly half of the total participants who signed up to the study, at an average cost of AUD $12 per participant. Promoting the study through trustworthy organizations and websites known to participants was also effective. Recruitment techniques that were less effective were contacting forums, email groups, and community noticeboards. Several techniques, including Google advertising, were successful in recruiting participants to a trial evaluating an online depression intervention. Results suggest that Internet-based recruitment to mental health interventions is feasible and can be relatively affordable. ACTRN12609000925246.

Boomerang recruitment: bridging the gap.

PubMed

Hart, Karen A

2009-01-01

In today's competitive health care recruitment environment, one of the most cost-effective and successful recruitment strategies is alumni or "boomerang" recruitment. A proven business model, alumni recruitment is just beginning to be used in a significant way in the health care arena. The cost to recruit alumni is much lower than for those in the general workforce and the alumni population is a known quantity. Alumni will assimilate much more easily into your corporate culture, will need less orientation and onboarding, and will be more productive.

Impact of Supplemental Site Grants to Increase African-American Accrual for SELECT

PubMed Central

Cook, Elise D.; Arnold, Kathryn B.; Hermos, John A.; McCaskill-Stevens, Worta; Moody-Thomas, Sarah; Probstfield, Jeffrey L.; Hamilton, Sandra J.; Campbell, Russell D.; Anderson, Karen B.; Minasian, Lori M.

2014-01-01

Background Low rates of minority recruitment in prevention studies may reduce the generalizability of study results to minority populations, including African Americans. High African American accrual to prevention studies requires additional resources and focused efforts. Objective To analyze the impact of Minority Recruitment Enhancement Grants (MREGs) on African American recruitment to the Selenium and Vitamin E Cancer Prevention Trial (SELECT). Results Fifteen of 427 SELECT sites received MREGs after they demonstrated early success in minority recruitment. After receiving the grants, the average monthly rate of African American recruitment at these sites increased from 27.2% to 31.5%, and total average monthly recruitment also increased. Sites that did not receive grants, including sites that did not apply, increased average monthly African American recruitment from 11.0% to 14.6% but declined in total average monthly recruitment. Conclusions and Implications Sites who received MREGs modestly increased both the proportion of African American recruits and total recruits. These results are tempered by the high cost of the intervention, the relatively low number of SELECT sites that applied for the grants and the administrative delays in implementation. Nevertheless, targeted grants may be a useful multi-site intervention to increase African American accrual for a prevention study where adequate African American recruitment is essential. PMID:20156960

A data-rich recruitment core to support translational clinical research.

PubMed

Kost, Rhonda G; Corregano, Lauren M; Rainer, Tyler-Lauren; Melendez, Caroline; Coller, Barry S

2015-04-01

Underenrollment of clinical studies wastes resources and delays assessment of research discoveries. We describe the organization and impact of a centralized recruitment core delivering comprehensive recruitment support to investigators. The Rockefeller University Center for Clinical and Translational Science supports a centralized recruitment core, call center, Research Volunteer Repository, data infrastructure, and staff who provide expert recruitment services to investigators. During protocol development, consultations aim to optimize enrollment feasibility, develop recruitment strategy, budget, and advertising. Services during study conduct include advertising placement, repository queries, call management, prescreening, referral, and visit scheduling. Utilization and recruitment outcomes are tracked using dedicated software. For protocols receiving recruitment services during 2009-2013: median time from initiation of recruitment to the first enrolled participant was 10 days; of 4,047 first-time callers to the call center, 92% (n = 3,722) enrolled in the Research Volunteer Repository, with 99% retention; 23% of Repository enrollees subsequently enrolled in ≥1 research studies, with 89% retention. Of volunteers referred by repository queries, 49% (280/537) enrolled into the study, with 92% retained. Provision of robust recruitment infrastructure including expertise, a volunteer repository, data capture and real-time analysis accelerates protocol accrual. Application of recruitment science improves the quality of clinical investigation. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Successful subject recruitment for a prostate cancer behavioral intervention trial.

PubMed

Heiney, Sue P; Arp Adams, Swann; Drake, Bettina F; Bryant, Lisa H; Bridges, Lynne; Hebert, James R

2010-08-01

Inadequate participant recruitment, which may lead to unrepresentative study samples that threaten a study's validity, is often a major challenge in the conduct of research studies. The purpose of this article is to describe the development and implementation of a recruitment plan and evaluate the different recruitment strategies for a prostate cancer behavioral intervention trial. Our recruitment plan was based on a framework (The Heiney-Adams Recruitment Model) that we developed, which combines relationship building and social marketing. We evaluated the success of our model using several different recruitment sources including: mailed letters, physician referral, and self-referral. Recruitment rates ranged from 67% for a support services department mailing to 100% for physician referral. While our original list of contacted patients was comprised of only 13% African American (AA) men, 22% of our recruited participants were AA. One of the strongest barriers to recruitment was strict patient eligibility. Another significant barrier was the lack of electronic records systems to allow for the identification of large numbers of potential participants. In conclusion, our model incorporating social marketing and relationship building was quite successful in recruiting for a prostate cancer behavioral study, particularly AA participants. In developing strategies, future researchers should attend to issues of staffing, financial resources, physician support, and eligibility criteria in the light of study accrual.

Biotic and abiotic factors related to rainbow smelt recruitment in the Wisconsin waters of Lake Superior, 1978-1997

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hoff, Michael H.

2004-01-01

Lake Superior rainbow smelt (Osmerus mordax) recruitment to 12-13 months of age in the Wisconsin waters of Lake Superior varied by a factor of 9.3 during 1978-1997. Management agencies have sought models that accurately predict recruitment, but no satisfactory models had previously been developed. In this study, modeling was conducted to determine which factors best explained recruitment variability. The Ricker stock-recruitment model derived from only the paired stock and recruit data accounted for 63% of the variability in recruitment data. The functional relationship that accounted for the greatest amount of recruitment variation (81%) included rainbow smelt stock size, May rainfall, and bloater (Coregonus hoyi) biomass. Model results were interpreted to mean that recruitment was affected negatively by increased river flows from increased rainfall, and affected positively by the biomass of bloater, and those results were interpreted to mean that bloater mediated the effects of lake trout predation on rainbow smelt recruits. Model results were also interpreted to mean that stock size caused compensatory, density-dependent mortality on rainbow smelt recruits. Correlations observed here may be of value to managers seeking approaches to either enhance or control populations of this species, which is not indigenous to the Great Lakes.

A Data‐Rich Recruitment Core to Support Translational Clinical Research

PubMed Central

Corregano, Lauren M.; Rainer, Tyler‐Lauren; Melendez, Caroline; Coller, Barry S.

2014-01-01

Abstract Background Underenrollment of clinical studies wastes resources and delays assessment of research discoveries. We describe the organization and impact of a centralized recruitment core delivering comprehensive recruitment support to investigators. Methods The Rockefeller University Center for Clinical and Translational Science supports a centralized recruitment core, call center, Research Volunteer Repository, data infrastructure, and staff who provide expert recruitment services to investigators. During protocol development, consultations aim to optimize enrollment feasibility, develop recruitment strategy, budget, and advertising. Services during study conduct include advertising placement, repository queries, call management, prescreening, referral, and visit scheduling. Utilization and recruitment outcomes are tracked using dedicated software. Results For protocols receiving recruitment services during 2009–2013: median time from initiation of recruitment to the first enrolled participant was 10 days; of 4,047 first‐time callers to the call center, 92% (n = 3,722) enrolled in the Research Volunteer Repository, with 99% retention; 23% of Repository enrollees subsequently enrolled in ≥1 research studies, with 89% retention. Of volunteers referred by repository queries, 49% (280/537) enrolled into the study, with 92% retained. Conclusions Provision of robust recruitment infrastructure including expertise, a volunteer repository, data capture and real‐time analysis accelerates protocol accrual. Application of recruitment science improves the quality of clinical investigation. PMID:25381717

Recruiting Pregnant Patients for Survey Research: A Head to Head Comparison of Social Media-Based Versus Clinic-Based Approaches.

PubMed

Admon, Lindsay; Haefner, Jessica K; Kolenic, Giselle E; Chang, Tammy; Davis, Matthew M; Moniz, Michelle H

2016-12-21

Recruiting a diverse sample of pregnant women for clinical research is a challenging but crucial task for improving obstetric services and maternal and child health outcomes. To compare the feasibility and cost of recruiting pregnant women for survey research using social media-based and clinic-based approaches. Advertisements were used to recruit pregnant women from the social media website Facebook. In-person methods were used to recruit pregnant women from the outpatient clinic of a large, tertiary care center. In both approaches, potential respondents were invited to participate in a 15-minute Web-based survey. Each recruitment method was monitored for 1 month. Using bivariate statistics, we compared the number, demographic characteristics, and health characteristics of women recruited and the cost per completed survey for each recruitment method. The social media-based approach recruited 1178 women and the clinic-based approach recruited 219 women. A higher proportion of subjects recruited through social media identified as African American (29.4%, 207/705 vs 11.2%, 20/179), reported household incomes

Experiences of recruiting to a pilot trial of Cardiac Rehabilitation In patients with Bowel cancer (CRIB) with an embedded process evaluation: lessons learned to improve recruitment.

PubMed

Hubbard, Gill; Campbell, Anna; Davies, Zoe; Munro, Julie; Ireland, Aileen V; Leslie, Stephen; Watson, Angus Jm; Treweek, Shaun

2015-01-01

Recruitment to randomised controlled trials (RCTs) is a perennial problem. Calls have been made for trialists to make recruitment performance publicly available. This article presents our experience of recruiting to a pilot RCT of cardiac rehabilitation for patients with bowel cancer with an embedded process evaluation. Recruitment took place at three UK hospitals. Recruitment figures were based on the following: i) estimated number of patient admissions, ii) number of patients likely to meet inclusion criteria from clinician input and iii) recruitment rates in previous studies. The following recruitment procedure was used:Nurse assessed patients for eligibility.Patients signed a screening form indicating interest in and agreement to be approached by a researcher about the study.An appointment was made at which the patient signed a consent form and was randomised to the intervention or control group. Information about all patients considered for the study and subsequently included or excluded at each stage of the recruitment process and reasons given were recorded. There were variations in the time taken to award Research Management approval to run the study at the three sites (45-359 days). Sixty-two percent of the original recruitment estimate was reached. The main reason for under-recruitment was due to over-estimation of the number of patient admissions; other reasons were i) not assessing all patients for eligibility, ii) not completing a screening form for eligible patients and iii) patients who signed a screening form being lost to the study before consenting and randomisation. Pilot trials should not simply aim to improve recruitment estimates but should also identify factors likely to influence recruitment performance in a future trial and inform the development of that trial's recruitment strategies. Pilot trials are a crucial part of RCT design. Nevertheless, pilot trials are likely to be small scale, involving only a small number of sites, and contextual differences between sites are likely to impact recruitment performance in any future trial. This means that ongoing monitoring and evaluation in trials are likely to be required. ISRCTN63510637; UKCRN id 14092.

Systematic data ingratiation of clinical trial recruitment locations for geographic-based query and visualization

PubMed Central

Luo, Jake; Chen, Weiheng; Wu, Min; Weng, Chunhua

2018-01-01

Background Prior studies of clinical trial planning indicate that it is crucial to search and screen recruitment sites before starting to enroll participants. However, currently there is no systematic method developed to support clinical investigators to search candidate recruitment sites according to their interested clinical trial factors. Objective In this study, we aim at developing a new approach to integrating the location data of over one million heterogeneous recruitment sites that are stored in clinical trial documents. The integrated recruitment location data can be searched and visualized using a map-based information retrieval method. The method enables systematic search and analysis of recruitment sites across a large amount of clinical trials. Methods The location data of more than 1.4 million recruitment sites of over 183,000 clinical trials was normalized and integrated using a geocoding method. The integrated data can be used to support geographic information retrieval of recruitment sites. Additionally, the information of over 6000 clinical trial target disease conditions and close to 4000 interventions was also integrated into the system and linked to the recruitment locations. Such data integration enabled the construction of a novel map-based query system. The system will allow clinical investigators to search and visualize candidate recruitment sites for clinical trials based on target conditions and interventions. Results The evaluation results showed that the coverage of the geographic location mapping for the 1.4 million recruitment sites was 99.8%. The evaluation of 200 randomly retrieved recruitment sites showed that the correctness of geographic information mapping was 96.5%. The recruitment intensities of the top 30 countries were also retrieved and analyzed. The data analysis results indicated that the recruitment intensity varied significantly across different countries and geographic areas. Conclusion This study contributed a new data processing framework to extract and integrate the location data of heterogeneous recruitment sites from clinical trial documents. The developed system can support effective retrieval and analysis of potential recruitment sites using target clinical trial factors. PMID:29132636

Impact of a deferred recruitment model in a randomised controlled trial in primary care (CREAM study).

PubMed

Shepherd, Victoria; Thomas-Jones, Emma; Ridd, Matthew J; Hood, Kerenza; Addison, Katy; Francis, Nick A

2017-11-10

Recruitment of participants is particularly challenging in primary care, with less than a third of randomised controlled trials (RCT) achieving their target within the original time frame. Participant identification, consent, randomisation and data collection can all be time-consuming. Trials recruiting an incident, as opposed to a prevalent, population may be particularly affected. This paper describes the impact of a deferred recruitment model in a RCT of antibiotics for children with infected eczema in primary care, which required the recruitment of cases presenting acutely. Eligible children were identified by participating general practitioners (GPs) and referred to a study research nurse, who then visited them at home. This allowed the consent and recruitment processes to take place outside the general practice setting. Information was recorded about patients who were referred and recruited, or if not, the reasons for non-recruitment. Data on recruitment challenges were collected through semi-structured interviews and questionnaires with a sample of participating GPs. Data were thematically analysed to identify key themes. Of the children referred to the study 34% (58/171) were not recruited - 48% (28/58) because of difficulties arranging a baseline visit within the defined time frame, 31% (18/58) did not meet the study inclusion criteria at the time of nurse assessment, and 21% (12/58) declined participation. GPs had positive views about the recruitment process, reporting that parents valued and benefitted from additional contact with a nurse. GPs felt that the deferred recruitment model did not negatively impact on the study. GPs and parents recognised the benefits of deferred recruitment, but these did not translate into enhanced recruitment of participants. The model resulted in the loss of a third of children who were identified by the GP as eligible, but not subsequently recruited to the study. If the potential for improving outcomes in primary care through complex studies is to be realised, new approaches to recruitment into primary care trials need to be developed and evaluated. International Standard Randomised Controlled Trials, ISRCTN96705420 . Registered on 27 June 2012.

Systematic data ingratiation of clinical trial recruitment locations for geographic-based query and visualization.

PubMed

Luo, Jake; Chen, Weiheng; Wu, Min; Weng, Chunhua

2017-12-01

Prior studies of clinical trial planning indicate that it is crucial to search and screen recruitment sites before starting to enroll participants. However, currently there is no systematic method developed to support clinical investigators to search candidate recruitment sites according to their interested clinical trial factors. In this study, we aim at developing a new approach to integrating the location data of over one million heterogeneous recruitment sites that are stored in clinical trial documents. The integrated recruitment location data can be searched and visualized using a map-based information retrieval method. The method enables systematic search and analysis of recruitment sites across a large amount of clinical trials. The location data of more than 1.4 million recruitment sites of over 183,000 clinical trials was normalized and integrated using a geocoding method. The integrated data can be used to support geographic information retrieval of recruitment sites. Additionally, the information of over 6000 clinical trial target disease conditions and close to 4000 interventions was also integrated into the system and linked to the recruitment locations. Such data integration enabled the construction of a novel map-based query system. The system will allow clinical investigators to search and visualize candidate recruitment sites for clinical trials based on target conditions and interventions. The evaluation results showed that the coverage of the geographic location mapping for the 1.4 million recruitment sites was 99.8%. The evaluation of 200 randomly retrieved recruitment sites showed that the correctness of geographic information mapping was 96.5%. The recruitment intensities of the top 30 countries were also retrieved and analyzed. The data analysis results indicated that the recruitment intensity varied significantly across different countries and geographic areas. This study contributed a new data processing framework to extract and integrate the location data of heterogeneous recruitment sites from clinical trial documents. The developed system can support effective retrieval and analysis of potential recruitment sites using target clinical trial factors. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

How Technology Has Changed (and Will Change) Higher Education Employee Recruitment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ikenberry, John; Hibel, Andrew; Freedman, Robert

2010-01-01

Higher education recruitment has evolved over the years to utilize new technologies. The Internet has had the greatest impact on higher education recruitment and paved the way for many new ways of connecting recruiters with job seekers. The further development of Web 2.0 tools and social media has changed the landscape of recruiting and job…

Generational Recruiting: Applying Generational Theory to Tactical Level Recruiting

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-04-24

Development Command Quantico, Virginia 22134-5068 MASTER OF MILITARY STUDIES TITLE: GENERATIONAL RECRUITING: APPLYING GENERATIONAL THEORY TO TACTICAL...MAIN SECTION 1:The Three Generations: Their Development , Traits, Values, and How Best to Communicate With Them...evaluation of the present young adult generation of Americans to determine how to most effectively recruit and efficiently recruit this generation for

Smoking Behavior Change During Compulsory Military Service in Israel, 1987-2011.

PubMed

Zarka, Salman; Levine, Hagai; Rozhavski, Vladislav; Sela, Tamar; Bar-Ze'ev, Yael; Molina-Hazan, Vered; Rosen, Laura J

2017-11-01

Smoking in military settings is of major concern. We aimed to assess the association between personal, family, and military factors and smoking behavior change during compulsory military service in Israel. Participants were soldiers recruited between 1987 and 2008 who were interviewed at recruitment and reinterviewed at discharge (1987-2011) (total: 29 189; males:15 136; females:14 053). The primary outcome variables were smoking initiation during service among nonsmokers at recruitment, and cessation during service among smokers at recruitment. We examined potential predictors of change, and trends by calendar year. Smoking prevalence increased by 39.4% during military service (recruitment: 26.2%, discharge: 36.5%). 18.4% of nonsmoking recruits initiated smoking, and 12.4% of smoking recruits quit smoking between recruitment and discharge. There was no observed trend in initiation between 1987 and 2011. The strongest predictor of smoking initiation among nonsmokers at recruitment was smoking history (former vs. never-smoker, odds ratio (OR) [95% confidence interval [CI

Costs and Efficiency of Online and Offline Recruitment Methods: A Web-Based Cohort Study

PubMed Central

Riis, Anders H; Hatch, Elizabeth E; Wise, Lauren A; Nielsen, Marie G; Rothman, Kenneth J; Toft Sørensen, Henrik; Mikkelsen, Ellen M

2017-01-01

Background The Internet is widely used to conduct research studies on health issues. Many different methods are used to recruit participants for such studies, but little is known about how various recruitment methods compare in terms of efficiency and costs. Objective The aim of our study was to compare online and offline recruitment methods for Internet-based studies in terms of efficiency (number of recruited participants) and costs per participant. Methods We employed several online and offline recruitment methods to enroll 18- to 45-year-old women in an Internet-based Danish prospective cohort study on fertility. Offline methods included press releases, posters, and flyers. Online methods comprised advertisements placed on five different websites, including Facebook and Netdoktor.dk. We defined seven categories of mutually exclusive recruitment methods and used electronic tracking via unique Uniform Resource Locator (URL) and self-reported data to identify the recruitment method for each participant. For each method, we calculated the average cost per participant and efficiency, that is, the total number of recruited participants. Results We recruited 8252 study participants. Of these, 534 were excluded as they could not be assigned to a specific recruitment method. The final study population included 7724 participants, of whom 803 (10.4%) were recruited by offline methods, 3985 (51.6%) by online methods, 2382 (30.8%) by online methods not initiated by us, and 554 (7.2%) by other methods. Overall, the average cost per participant was €6.22 for online methods initiated by us versus €9.06 for offline methods. Costs per participant ranged from €2.74 to €105.53 for online methods and from €0 to €67.50 for offline methods. Lowest average costs per participant were for those recruited from Netdoktor.dk (€2.99) and from Facebook (€3.44). Conclusions In our Internet-based cohort study, online recruitment methods were superior to offline methods in terms of efficiency (total number of participants enrolled). The average cost per recruited participant was also lower for online than for offline methods, although costs varied greatly among both online and offline recruitment methods. We observed a decrease in the efficiency of some online recruitment methods over time, suggesting that it may be optimal to adopt multiple online methods. PMID:28249833

A simple technique to identify key recruitment issues in randomised controlled trials: Q-QAT - Quanti-Qualitative Appointment Timing.

PubMed

Paramasivan, Sangeetha; Strong, Sean; Wilson, Caroline; Campbell, Bruce; Blazeby, Jane M; Donovan, Jenny L

2015-03-11

Recruitment to pragmatic randomised controlled trials (RCTs) is acknowledged to be difficult, and few interventions have proved to be effective. Previous qualitative research has consistently revealed that recruiters provide imbalanced information about RCT treatments. However, qualitative research can be time-consuming to apply. Within a programme of research to optimise recruitment and informed consent in challenging RCTs, we developed a simple technique, Q-QAT (Quanti-Qualitative Appointment Timing), to systematically investigate and quantify the imbalance to help identify and address recruitment difficulties. The Q-QAT technique comprised: 1) quantification of time spent discussing the RCT and its treatments using transcripts of audio-recorded recruitment appointments, 2) targeted qualitative research to understand the obstacles to recruitment and 3) feedback to recruiters on opportunities for improvement. This was applied to two RCTs with different clinical contexts and recruitment processes. Comparisons were made across clinical centres, recruiters and specialties. In both RCTs, the Q-QAT technique first identified considerable variations in the time spent by recruiters discussing the RCT and its treatments. The patterns emerging from this initial quantification of recruitment appointments then enabled targeted qualitative research to understand the issues and make suggestions to improve recruitment. In RCT1, presentation of the treatments was balanced, but little time was devoted to describing the RCT. Qualitative research revealed patients would have considered participation, but lacked awareness of the RCT. In RCT2, the balance of treatment presentation varied by specialists and centres. Qualitative research revealed difficulties with equipoise and confidence among recruiters presenting the RCT. The quantitative and qualitative findings were well-received by recruiters and opportunities to improve information provision were discussed. A blind coding exercise across three researchers led to the development of guidelines that can be used to apply the Q-QAT technique to other difficult RCTs. The Q-QAT technique was easy to apply and rapidly identified obstacles to recruitment that could be understood through targeted qualitative research and addressed through feedback. The technique's combination of quantitative and qualitative findings enabled the presentation of a holistic picture of recruitment challenges and added credibility to the feedback process. Note: both RCTs in this manuscript asked to be anonymised, so no trial registration details are provided.

Lessons learned from recruiting socioeconomically disadvantaged smokers into a pilot randomized controlled trial to explore the role of Exercise Assisted Reduction then Stop (EARS) smoking.

PubMed

Thompson, Tom P; Greaves, Colin J; Ayres, Richard; Aveyard, Paul; Warren, Fiona C; Byng, Richard; Taylor, Rod S; Campbell, John L; Ussher, Michael; Michie, Susan; West, Robert; Taylor, Adrian H

2015-02-12

Research is needed on what influences recruitment to smoking reduction trials, and how to increase their reach. The present study aimed to i) assess the feasibility of recruiting a disadvantaged population, ii) examine the effects of recruitment methods on participant characteristics, iii) identify resource requirements for different recruitment methods, and iv) to qualitatively assess the acceptability of recruitment. This was done as part of a pilot two-arm trial of the effectiveness of a novel behavioral support intervention focused on increasing physical activity and reducing smoking, among disadvantaged smokers not wishing to quit. Smokers were recruited through mailed invitations from three primary care practices (62 participants) and one National Health Stop Smoking Service (SSS) database (31 participants). Six other participants were recruited via a variety of other community-based approaches. Data were collected through questionnaires, field notes, work sampling, and databases. Chi-squared and t-tests were used to compare baseline characteristics of participants. We randomized between 5.1 and 11.1% of those invited through primary care and SSS, with associated researcher time to recruit one participant varying from 18 to 157 minutes depending on time and intensity invested.Only six participants were recruited through a wide variety of other community-based approaches, with an associated researcher time of 469 minutes to recruit one participant. Targets for recruiting a disadvantaged population were met, with 91% of the sample in social classes C2 to E (NRS social grades, UK), and 41% indicating mental health problems. Those recruited from SSS were more likely to respond to an initial letter, had used cessation aids before, and had attempted to quit in the past year. Overall, initial responders were more likely to be physically active than those who were recruited via follow-up telephone calls. No other demographics or behaviour characteristics were associated with recruitment approach or intensity of effort. Qualitative feedback indicated that participants had been attracted by the prospect of support that focused on smoking reduction rather than abrupt quitting. Mailed invitations, and follow-up, from health professionals was an effective method of recruiting disadvantaged smokers into a trial of an exercise intervention to aid smoking reduction. Recruitment via community outreach approaches was largely ineffective. ISRCTN identifier: 13837944 , registered on 6 July 2010.

eHealth recruitment challenges.

PubMed

Thompson, Debbe; Canada, Ashanti; Bhatt, Riddhi; Davis, Jennifer; Plesko, Lisa; Baranowski, Tom; Cullen, Karen; Zakeri, Issa

2006-11-01

Little is known about effective eHealth recruitment methods. This paper presents recruitment challenges associated with enrolling African-American girls aged 8-10 years in an eHealth obesity prevention program, their effect on the recruitment plan, and potential implications for eHealth research. Although the initial recruitment strategy was literature-informed, it failed to enroll the desired number of girls within a reasonable time period. Therefore, the recruitment strategy was reformulated to incorporate principles of social marketing and traditional marketing techniques. The resulting plan included both targeted, highly specific strategies (e.g., selected churches), and more broad-based approaches (e.g., media exposure, mass mailings, radio advertisements). The revised plan enabled recruitment goals to be attained. Media appeared to be particularly effective at reaching the intended audience. Future research should identify the most effective recruitment strategies for reaching potential eHealth audiences.

Using Facebook to Recruit Parents to Participate in a Family Program to Prevent Teen Drug Use.

PubMed

Oesterle, Sabrina; Epstein, Marina; Haggerty, Kevin P; Moreno, Megan A

2018-05-01

Despite strong evidence that family programs are effective in preventing adolescent substance use, recruiting parents to participate in such programs remains a persistent challenge. This study explored the feasibility of using Facebook to recruit parents of middle school students to a self-directed family program to prevent adolescent drug use. The study used paid Facebook ads aiming to recruit 100 parents in Washington and Colorado using marijuana- or parenting-focused messages. All ad-recruited parents were also invited to refer others in order to compare Facebook recruitment to web-based respondent-driven sampling. Despite offering a $15 incentive for each successfully referred participant, the majority of the screened (70.4%) and eligible (65.1%) parents were recruited through Facebook ads. Yet, eligibility and consent rates were significantly higher among referred (76.6 and 57.3%, respectively) than Facebook-recruited parents (60.0 and 36.6%, respectively). Click-through rates on Facebook were higher for marijuana-focused than parenting-focused ads (0.72 and 0.65%, respectively). The final sample (54% Facebook-recruited) consisted of 103 demographically homogeneous parents (female, educated, non-Hispanic White, and mostly from Washington). Although Facebook was an effective and efficient method to recruit parents to a study with equal to better cost-effectiveness than traditional recruitment strategies, the promise of social media to reach a diverse population was not realized. Additional approaches to Facebook recruitment are needed to reach diverse samples in real-world settings and increase public health impact of family programs.

Strategies for recruiting Hispanic women into a prospective cohort study of modifiable risk factors for gestational diabetes mellitus.

PubMed

Chasan-Taber, Lisa; Fortner, Renée T; Hastings, Valerie; Markenson, Glenn

2009-12-11

The purpose of this article was to describe effective strategies for recruitment of Hispanic women into a prospective cohort study of modifiable risk factors for gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Although Hispanic women have two to four times the risk of developing GDM compared with non-Hispanic white women, few GDM prevention studies have included Hispanic women. The study was conducted in the ambulatory obstetrical practices of Baystate Medical Center located in a socioeconomically and ethnically diverse city in Massachusetts. The study employed a range of strategies to recruit Hispanic women based on a review of the literature as well as prior experience with the study population. Over a period of 32 months, a total of 851 Hispanic prenatal care patients were recruited. Among eligible women, 52.4% agreed to participate. Participants were young (70% <25 years), with low levels of education, and on public health insurance (81.5%); 88% were unmarried. Study design features such as use of bilingual recruiters, a flexible recruitment process, training recruiters to be culturally sensitive, use of culturally tailored materials, prescreening participants, participant compensation, seeking the cooperation of clinic staff, and continuous monitoring of recruitment goals emerged as important issues influencing recruitment. Findings suggest that investigators can successfully recruit pregnant women from ethnic minority groups of low socioeconomic status into observational studies. The study provides culturally appropriate recruitment strategies useful for practice-based settings recruiting Hispanic research participation.

Issues in recruiting community-dwelling stroke survivors to clinical trials: the AMBULATE trial.

PubMed

Lloyd, Gemma; Dean, Catherine M; Ada, Louise

2010-07-01

Recruitment to clinical trials is often slow and difficult, with a growing body of research examining this issue. However there is very little work related to stroke. The aim of this study was to examine the success and efficiency of recruitment of community-dwelling stroke survivors over the first two years of a clinical trial aiming to improve community ambulation. Recruitment strategies fell into 2 broad categories: (i) advertisement (such as newspaper advertising and media releases), and (ii) referral (via hospital and community physiotherapists, a stroke liaison officer and other researchers). Records were kept of the number of people who were screened, were eligible and were recruited for each strategy. The recruitment target of 60 in the first two years was not met. 111 stroke survivors were screened and 57 were recruited (i.e., a recruitment rate of 51%). The most successful strategy was referral via hospital-based physiotherapists (47% of recruited participants) and the least successful were media release and local newspaper advertising. The referral strategies were all more efficient than any of the advertisement strategies. In general, recruitment was inefficient and costly in terms of human resources. Given that stroke research is underfunded, it is important to find efficient ways of recruiting stroke survivors to clinical trials. An Australian national database similar to other disease-specific data bases (such as the National Cancer Database) is under development. In the interim, recruiting for several clinical trials at once may increase efficiency.

Development of a spatially-distributed hydroecological model to simulate cottonwood seedling recruitment along rivers.

PubMed

Benjankar, Rohan; Burke, Michael; Yager, Elowyn; Tonina, Daniele; Egger, Gregory; Rood, Stewart B; Merz, Norm

2014-12-01

Dam operations have altered flood and flow patterns and prevented successful cottonwood seedling recruitment along many rivers. To guide reservoir flow releases to meet cottonwood recruitment needs, we developed a spatially-distributed, GIS-based model that analyzes the hydrophysical requirements for cottonwood recruitment. These requirements are indicated by five physical parameters: (1) annual peak flow timing relative to the interval of seed dispersal, (2) shear stress, which characterizes disturbance, (3) local stage recession after seedling recruitment, (4) recruitment elevation above base flow stage, and (5) duration of winter flooding, which may contribute to seedling mortality. The model categorizes the potential for cottonwood recruitment in four classes and attributes a suitability value at each individual spatial location. The model accuracy was estimated with an error matrix analysis by comparing simulated and field-observed recruitment success. The overall accuracies of this Spatially-Distributed Cottonwood Recruitment model were 47% for a braided reach and 68% for a meander reach along the Kootenai River in Idaho, USA. Model accuracies increased to 64% and 72%, respectively, when fewer favorability classes were considered. The model predicted areas of similarly favorable recruitment potential for 1997 and 2006, two recent years with successful cottonwood recruitment. This model should provide a useful tool to quantify impacts of human activities and climatic variability on cottonwood recruitment, and to prescribe instream flow regimes for the conservation and restoration of riparian woodlands. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

An Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Recruitment Methods: The Staying Well after Depression Randomized Controlled Trial

PubMed Central

Krusche, Adele; Rudolf von Rohr, Isabelle; Muse, Kate; Duggan, Danielle; Crane, Catherine; Williams, J. Mark G.

2014-01-01

Background Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are widely accepted as being the most efficient way of investigating the efficacy of psychological therapies. However, researchers conducting RCTs commonly report difficulties recruiting an adequate sample within planned timescales. In an effort to overcome recruitment difficulties, researchers often are forced to expand their recruitment criteria or extend the recruitment phase, thus increasing costs and delaying publication of results. Research investigating the effectiveness of recruitment strategies is limited and trials often fail to report sufficient details about the recruitment sources and resources utilised. Purpose We examined the efficacy of strategies implemented during the Staying Well after Depression RCT in Oxford to recruit participants with a history of recurrent depression. Methods We describe eight recruitment methods utilised and two further sources not initiated by the research team and examine their efficacy in terms of (i) the return, including the number of potential participants who contacted the trial and the number who were randomized into the trial, (ii) cost-effectiveness, comprising direct financial cost and manpower for initial contacts and randomized participants, and (iii) comparison of sociodemographic characteristics of individuals recruited from different sources. Results Poster advertising, web-based advertising and mental health worker referrals were the cheapest methods per randomized participant; however, the ratio of randomized participants to initial contacts differed markedly per source. Advertising online, via posters and on a local radio station were the most cost-effective recruitment methods for soliciting participants who subsequently were randomized into the trial. Advertising across many sources (saturation) was found to be important. Limitations It may not be feasible to employ all the recruitment methods used in this trial to obtain participation from other populations, such as those currently unwell, or in other geographical locations. Recruitment source was unavailable for participants who could not be reached after the initial contact. Thus, it is possible that the efficiency of certain methods of recruitment was poorer than estimated. Efficacy and costs of other recruitment initiatives, such as providing travel expenses to the in-person eligibility assessment and making follow-up telephone calls to candidates who contacted the recruitment team but could not be screened promptly, were not analysed. Conclusions Website advertising resulted in the highest number of randomized participants and was the second cheapest method of recruiting. Future research should evaluate the effectiveness of recruitment strategies for other samples to contribute to a comprehensive base of knowledge for future RCTs. PMID:24686105

An evaluation of the effectiveness of recruitment methods: the staying well after depression randomized controlled trial.

PubMed

Krusche, Adele; Rudolf von Rohr, Isabelle; Muse, Kate; Duggan, Danielle; Crane, Catherine; Williams, J Mark G

2014-04-01

Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are widely accepted as being the most efficient way of investigating the efficacy of psychological therapies. However, researchers conducting RCTs commonly report difficulties in recruiting an adequate sample within planned timescales. In an effort to overcome recruitment difficulties, researchers often are forced to expand their recruitment criteria or extend the recruitment phase, thus increasing costs and delaying publication of results. Research investigating the effectiveness of recruitment strategies is limited, and trials often fail to report sufficient details about the recruitment sources and resources utilized. We examined the efficacy of strategies implemented during the Staying Well after Depression RCT in Oxford to recruit participants with a history of recurrent depression. We describe eight recruitment methods utilized and two further sources not initiated by the research team and examine their efficacy in terms of (1) the return, including the number of potential participants who contacted the trial and the number who were randomized into the trial; (2) cost-effectiveness, comprising direct financial cost and manpower for initial contacts and randomized participants; and (3) comparison of sociodemographic characteristics of individuals recruited from different sources. Poster advertising, web-based advertising, and mental health worker referrals were the cheapest methods per randomized participant; however, the ratio of randomized participants to initial contacts differed markedly per source. Advertising online, via posters, and on a local radio station were the most cost-effective recruitment methods for soliciting participants who subsequently were randomized into the trial. Advertising across many sources (saturation) was found to be important. It may not be feasible to employ all the recruitment methods used in this trial to obtain participation from other populations, such as those currently unwell, or in other geographical locations. Recruitment source was unavailable for participants who could not be reached after the initial contact. Thus, it is possible that the efficiency of certain methods of recruitment was poorer than estimated. Efficacy and costs of other recruitment initiatives, such as providing travel expenses to the in-person eligibility assessment and making follow-up telephone calls to candidates who contacted the recruitment team but could not be screened promptly, were not analysed. Website advertising resulted in the highest number of randomized participants and was the second cheapest method of recruiting. Future research should evaluate the effectiveness of recruitment strategies for other samples to contribute to a comprehensive base of knowledge for future RCTs.

Honey bee recruitment to food sources: olfaction or language?

PubMed

Wenner, A M; Wells, P H; Johnson, D L

1969-04-04

Honey bee recruits locate food sources by olfaction and not by use of distance and direction information contained in the recruitment dance. Recruitment efficiency increases as odor of the food source accumulates in the hive, from hour to hour and from day to day. Flight patterns, landing patterns, bee odor, and Nassanoff secretion apparently do not aid in recruitment of bees.

Nurse administrators' intentions and considerations in recruiting inactive nurses.

PubMed

Yu, Hsing-Yi; Tang, Fu-In; Chen, I-Ju; Yin, Teresa J C; Chen, Chu-Chieh; Yu, Shu

2016-07-01

To understand nurse administrators' intentions and considerations in recruiting inactive nurses and to examine predictors of intent to recruit. Few studies have provided insight into employer intentions and considerations in recruiting inactive nurses. A census survey collected data from 392 nurse administrators via a mailing method. Overall, 89.0% of nurse administrators were willing to recruit inactive nurses. Stepwise regression analysis revealed that the only predictor of nurse administrators' intention to recruit was nurse turnover rate at the hospital. Nurse administrators perceived the most important recruiting considerations were inactive nurses' cooperation with alternating shifts, health status and nursing licence. The most frequent reasons for not recruiting were an inactive nurse's lack of understanding of the medical environment and poor nursing competence. Most hospital nurse administrators were willing to recruit inactive nurses. Inactive nurses who wish to return to work should be qualified, willing to work both day and night shifts, and in good health. Nurse administrators can reduce the nursing shortage by recruiting inactive nurses. Re-entry preparation programmes should be implemented that will provide inactive nurses with knowledge of the current medical environment and the skills required to improve their nursing competence. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Recruiting Drug Using Men Who Have Sex with Men in Behavioral Intervention Trials: A Comparison of Internet and Field-based Strategies

PubMed Central

Parsons, Jeffrey T.; Vial, Andrea C.; Starks, Tyrel J.; Golub, Sarit A.

2012-01-01

Although online and field-based samples of men who have sex with men (MSM) have been compared on a variety of markers, differences in drug use have not been well examined. In addition, generalization from studies comparing recruitment methods is often limited by a focus on either HIV seropositive or seronegative MSM. We compared two New York City-based samples of MSM recruited simultaneously between July 2009 and January 2010—one sample recruited in the field (n = 2402) and one sample recruited via the Internet (n = 694). All recruitment efforts targeted men without restriction on age or self-reported HIV status. Our results show marked differences in drug and alcohol use between online and field-based samples of MSM. Specifically, men surveyed online were significantly more likely to have tried a variety of drugs, including methamphetamine, cocaine, and ecstasy. Men recruited online were also more likely to report older age, HIV positive serostatus, and “never” using condoms. Internet-based recruitment was found to be more cost-effective in terms of recruitment yield than was field-based recruitment. PMID:22684657

Recruiting Diverse Smokers: Enrollment Yields and Cost

PubMed Central

Brodar, Kaitlyn E.; Hall, Marissa G.; Butler, Eboneé N.; Parada, Humberto; Stein-Seroussi, Al; Hanley, Sean; Brewer, Noel T.

2016-01-01

To help tobacco control research better include vulnerable populations, we sought to identify effective ways to recruit diverse smokers. In 2014–2015, we recruited 2149 adult cigarette smokers in California and North Carolina, United States, to participate in a randomized trial of pictorial cigarette pack warnings. The most effective means of recruiting smokers were the classified advertising website Craigslist (28% of participants), word of mouth (23%), Facebook (16%), and flyers or postcards (14%). Low-income and African American smokers were more likely to respond to interpersonal contact (including staff in-person recruitment and word of mouth) than were high-income and non-African American smokers (all p < 0.05). Hispanic and gay, lesbian, and bisexual smokers were more likely to be recruited by Craigslist than non-Hispanic and straight smokers (both p < 0.05). Of the recruitment methods requiring cost, the cheapest was Craigslist ($3–7 per smoker). The most expensive methods were newspaper ads in California ($375 per smoker) and staff in-person recruiting in North Carolina ($180 per smoker). Successfully recruiting diverse smokers requires using multiple methods including interpersonal, online, and other media. Craigslist and word of mouth are especially useful and low-cost ways to recruit diverse smokers. PMID:27999280

Recruiting Diverse Smokers: Enrollment Yields and Cost.

PubMed

Brodar, Kaitlyn E; Hall, Marissa G; Butler, Eboneé N; Parada, Humberto; Stein-Seroussi, Al; Hanley, Sean; Brewer, Noel T

2016-12-16

To help tobacco control research better include vulnerable populations, we sought to identify effective ways to recruit diverse smokers. In 2014-2015, we recruited 2149 adult cigarette smokers in California and North Carolina, United States, to participate in a randomized trial of pictorial cigarette pack warnings. The most effective means of recruiting smokers were the classified advertising website Craigslist (28% of participants), word of mouth (23%), Facebook (16%), and flyers or postcards (14%). Low-income and African American smokers were more likely to respond to interpersonal contact (including staff in-person recruitment and word of mouth) than were high-income and non-African American smokers (all p < 0.05). Hispanic and gay, lesbian, and bisexual smokers were more likely to be recruited by Craigslist than non-Hispanic and straight smokers (both p < 0.05). Of the recruitment methods requiring cost, the cheapest was Craigslist ($3-7 per smoker). The most expensive methods were newspaper ads in California ($375 per smoker) and staff in-person recruiting in North Carolina ($180 per smoker). Successfully recruiting diverse smokers requires using multiple methods including interpersonal, online, and other media. Craigslist and word of mouth are especially useful and low-cost ways to recruit diverse smokers.

Biotic and abiotic factors related to lake herring recruitment in the Wisconsin waters of Lake Superior, 1984-1998

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hoff, Michael H.

2004-01-01

Lake Superior lake herring (Coregonus artedi) recruitment to 13-14 months of age in the Wisconsin waters of Lake Superior varied by a factor of 5,233 during 1984-1998. Management agencies have sought models that accurately predict recruitment, but no satisfactory model had previously been developed. Lake herring recruitment was modeled to determine which factors most explained recruitment variability. The Ricker stock-recruitment model derived from only the paired stock and recruit data explained 35% of the variability in the recruitment data. The functional relationship that explained the greatest amount of recruitment variation (93%) included lake herring stock size, lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) population size, slimy sculpin (Cottus cognatus) biomass, the interaction of mean daily wind speed in April (month of hatch) and lake herring stock size, and mean air temperature in April (when lake herring are 12-months old). Model results were interpreted to mean that lake herring recruitment was affected negatively by: slimy sculpin predation on lake herring ova; predation on age-0 lake herring by lake trout; and adult cannibalism on lake herring larvae, which was reduced by increased wind speed. April temperature was the variable that explained the least amount of variability in recruitment, but lake herring recruitment was positively affected by a warm April, which shortened winter and apparently reduced first-winter mortality. Stock size caused compensatory, density-dependent mortality on lake herring recruits. Management efforts appear best targeted at stock size protection, and empirical data implies that stock size in the Wisconsin waters of the lake should be maintained at 2.1-15.0 adults/ha in spring, bottom-trawl surveys.

Recruitment of young adults into a randomized controlled trial of weight gain prevention: message development, methods, and cost.

PubMed

Tate, Deborah F; LaRose, Jessica G; Griffin, Leah P; Erickson, Karen E; Robichaud, Erica F; Perdue, Letitia; Espeland, Mark A; Wing, Rena R

2014-08-16

Young adulthood (age 18 to 35) is a high-risk period for unhealthy weight gain. Few studies have recruited for prevention of weight gain, particularly in young adults. This paper describes the recruitment protocol used in the Study of Novel Approaches to Prevention (SNAP). We conducted extensive formative work to inform recruitment methods and message development. We worked with a professional marketing firm to synthesize major themes and subsequently develop age-appropriate messages for recruitment. A variety of approaches and channels were used across two clinical centers to recruit young adults who were normal or overweight (body mass index (BMI) 21 to 30 kg/m2) for a 3-year intervention designed to prevent weight gain. We tracked recruitment methods, yields, and costs by method. Logistic regression was used to identify recruitment methods that had the highest relative yield for subgroups of interest with covariate adjustments for clinic. The final sample of 599 participants (27% minority, 22% male) was recruited over a 19-month period of sustained efforts. About 10% of those who initially expressed interest via a screening website were randomized. The most common reason for ineligibility was already being obese (BMI >30 kg/m2). The top two methods for recruitment were mass mailing followed by email; together they were cited by 62% of those recruited. Television, radio, paid print advertising, flyers and community events each yielded fewer than 10% of study participants. Email was the most cost-effective method per study participant recruited. These findings can guide future efforts to recruit young adults and for trials targeting weight gain prevention. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01183689 (registered 13 August 2010).

Internet-Based Recruitment to a Depression Prevention Intervention: Lessons From the Mood Memos Study

PubMed Central

Jorm, Anthony Francis; Mackinnon, Andrew James

2013-01-01

Background Recruiting participants to randomized controlled trials of health interventions can be very difficult. Internet-based recruitment is becoming an increasingly important mode of recruitment, yet there are few detailed accounts of experiences recruiting participants to mental health interventions. Objective To report on our experience with Internet-based recruitment to an online depression prevention intervention and pass on lessons we learned. Methods Participants were recruited to the Mood Memos study, an online preventive depression intervention, purely through Internet-based sources. The study was targeted to adults with subthreshold depression symptoms from several English-speaking countries. A variety of online recruitment sources were trialed, including search engine advertising (Google, Yahoo!, Bing), Facebook advertising, posts in forums and online noticeboards, and promotion through relevant websites and email newsletters of mental health organizations. Results The study website received visits from 94,808 individuals over the 14-month recruitment period. The recruitment target was reached with 1699 individuals signing up to the randomized controlled trial and 1326 fully enrolling. Most visitors arrived via Google advertising, which promoted a depression-screening questionnaire. Google advertising accounted for nearly half of the total participants who signed up to the study, at an average cost of AUD $12 per participant. Promoting the study through trustworthy organizations and websites known to participants was also effective. Recruitment techniques that were less effective were contacting forums, email groups, and community noticeboards. Conclusions Several techniques, including Google advertising, were successful in recruiting participants to a trial evaluating an online depression intervention. Results suggest that Internet-based recruitment to mental health interventions is feasible and can be relatively affordable. Trial Registration ACTRN12609000925246 PMID:23403043

Hydrocarbons Emitted by Waggle-Dancing Honey Bees Increase Forager Recruitment by Stimulating Dancing

PubMed Central

Gilley, David C.

2014-01-01

Hydrocarbons emitted by waggle-dancing honey bees are known to reactivate experienced foragers to visit known food sources. This study investigates whether these hydrocarbons also increase waggle-dance recruitment by observing recruitment and dancing behavior when the dance compounds are introduced into the hive. If the hydrocarbons emitted by waggle-dancing bees affect the recruitment of foragers to a food source, then the number of recruits arriving at a food source should be greater after introduction of dance compounds versus a pure-solvent control. This prediction was supported by the results of experiments in which recruits were captured at a feeder following introduction of dance-compounds into a hive. This study also tested two nonexclusive behavioral mechanism(s) by which the compounds might stimulate recruitment; 1) increased recruitment could occur by means of increasing the recruitment effectiveness of each dance and/or 2) increased recruitment could occur by increasing the intensity of waggle-dancing. These hypotheses were tested by examining video records of the dancing and recruitment behavior of individually marked bees following dance-compound introduction. Comparisons of numbers of dance followers and numbers of recruits per dance and waggle run showed no significant differences between dance-compound and solvent-control introduction, thus providing no support for the first hypothesis. Comparison of the number of waggle-dance bouts and the number of waggle runs revealed significantly more dancing during morning dance-compound introduction than morning solvent-control introduction, supporting the second hypothesis. These results suggest that the waggle-dance hydrocarbons play an important role in honey bee foraging recruitment by stimulating foragers to perform waggle dances following periods of inactivity. PMID:25140740

Hydrocarbons emitted by waggle-dancing honey bees increase forager recruitment by stimulating dancing.

PubMed

Gilley, David C

2014-01-01

Hydrocarbons emitted by waggle-dancing honey bees are known to reactivate experienced foragers to visit known food sources. This study investigates whether these hydrocarbons also increase waggle-dance recruitment by observing recruitment and dancing behavior when the dance compounds are introduced into the hive. If the hydrocarbons emitted by waggle-dancing bees affect the recruitment of foragers to a food source, then the number of recruits arriving at a food source should be greater after introduction of dance compounds versus a pure-solvent control. This prediction was supported by the results of experiments in which recruits were captured at a feeder following introduction of dance-compounds into a hive. This study also tested two nonexclusive behavioral mechanism(s) by which the compounds might stimulate recruitment; 1) increased recruitment could occur by means of increasing the recruitment effectiveness of each dance and/or 2) increased recruitment could occur by increasing the intensity of waggle-dancing. These hypotheses were tested by examining video records of the dancing and recruitment behavior of individually marked bees following dance-compound introduction. Comparisons of numbers of dance followers and numbers of recruits per dance and waggle run showed no significant differences between dance-compound and solvent-control introduction, thus providing no support for the first hypothesis. Comparison of the number of waggle-dance bouts and the number of waggle runs revealed significantly more dancing during morning dance-compound introduction than morning solvent-control introduction, supporting the second hypothesis. These results suggest that the waggle-dance hydrocarbons play an important role in honey bee foraging recruitment by stimulating foragers to perform waggle dances following periods of inactivity.

The potential impact of recruitment method on sample characteristics and treatment outcomes in a psychosocial trial for women with co-occurring substance use disorder and PTSD.

PubMed

Winhusen, Theresa; Winstanley, Erin L; Somoza, Eugene; Brigham, Gregory

2012-01-01

Recruitment method can impact the sample composition of a clinical trial and, thus, the generalizability of the results, but the importance of recruitment method in substance use disorder trials has received little attention. The present paper sought to address this research gap by evaluating the association between recruitment method and sample characteristics and treatment outcomes in a substance use disorder trial. In a multi-site trial evaluating Seeking Safety (SS), relative to Women's Health Education (WHE), for women with co-occurring PTSD (either sub-threshold or full PTSD) and substance use disorders, one site assessed the method by which each participant was recruited. Data from this site (n=106), which recruited participants from newspaper advertising and clinic intakes, were analyzed. Participants recruited through advertising, relative to those from the clinic, had significantly higher levels of baseline drug use and higher rates of meeting DSM-IV-TR criteria for full PTSD. Results suggest that the effectiveness of SS in decreasing PTSD symptoms was greater for participants recruited through advertising relative to those recruited from the clinic. Conversely, the results revealed a significant treatment effect in the clinic-recruited participants, not seen in the advertising-recruited participants, with SS, relative to WHE, participants being more likely to report past week drug use during the follow-up phase. Recruitment method may impact sample composition and treatment effects. Replication of this finding would have important implications for substance use disorder efficacy trials which often utilize advertising to recruit participants. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Recruitment and Lessons Learned from a Community-Based Intervention Program: The Learning Families Project in Hong Kong.

PubMed

Chu, Joanna T W; Wan, Alice; Stewart, Sunita M; Ng, Kwok Tung; Lam, Tai Hing; Chan, Sophia S

2018-01-01

Recruitment is central to any research project, and recruitment itself should be well documented and researched. We describe our recruitment efforts for a community-based research project-entitled the Learning Families Project-conducted in Hong Kong. In collaboration with community stakeholders, residents from a public housing estate were recruited to participate in family programs aimed at enhancing family well-being. Various recruitment strategies were employed including the distribution of 19,200 leaflets, 688 posters, a banner, a kick-off ceremony, 10 promotion activities, 1,000 direct calls, word of mouth, 51 mobile counters, and 10 door-to-door visits. Drawing on field notes, research logs, short questionnaires, and focus group conducted with our community partners and residents, we describe and discuss our recruitment strategies, challenges, and lessons learned. Over a 9-month period, 980 participants were recruited and participated in our study, exceeding our recruitment goal (860 participants). Several observations were made including active recruitment strategies (i.e., door-to-door and mobile counter) being more effective than passive strategies (i.e., posters and leaflets); the importance of raising project awareness to facilitate recruitment; and the challenges encountered (i.e., burn-out and loss of motivation of staff, decreased community capacity in collaborating in research projects). The lessons learned include the importance of engaging Chinese communities, utilizing a positive outreach approach, and setting realistic expectations. Although similar recruitment strategies have been reported the West, a number of cultural differences should be taken into account when working with Chinese population. Further research is needed to examine the effectiveness of tailoring recruitment strategies to various populations.

Recruitment and retention of young women into nutrition research studies: practical considerations.

PubMed

Leonard, Alecia; Hutchesson, Melinda; Patterson, Amanda; Chalmers, Kerry; Collins, Clare

2014-01-16

Successful recruitment and retention of participants into research studies is critical for optimising internal and external validity. Research into diet and lifestyle of young women is important due to the physiological transitions experienced at this life stage. This paper aims to evaluate data related to recruitment and retention across three research studies with young women, and present practical advice related to recruiting and retaining young women in order to optimise study quality within nutrition research. Recruitment and retention strategies used in three nutrition studies that targeted young women (18 to 35 years) were critiqued. A randomised controlled trial (RCT), a crossover validation study and a cross-sectional survey were conducted at the University of Newcastle, Australia between 2010 and 2013Successful recruitment was defined as maximum recruitment relative to time. Retention was assessed as maximum participants remaining enrolled at study completion. Recruitment approaches included notice boards, web and social network sites (Facebook and Twitter), with social media most successful in recruitment. The online survey had the highest recruitment in the shortest time-frame (751 participants in one month). Email, phone and text message were used in study one (RCT) and study two (crossover validation) and assisted in low attrition rates, with 93% and 75.7% completing the RCT and crossover validation study respectively. Of those who did not complete the RCT, reported reasons were: being too busy; and having an unrelated illness. Recruiting young women into nutrition research is challenging. Use of social media enhances recruitment, while Email, phone and text message contact improves retention within interventions. Further research comparing strategies to optimise recruitment and retention in young women, including flexible testing times, reminders and incentives is warranted.

Recruitment and enrollment of African Americans into health promoting programs: the effects of health promoting programs on cardiovascular disease risk study.

PubMed

Okhomina, Victoria I; Seals, Samantha R; Marshall, Gailen D

2018-04-03

Randomized controlled trials (RCT) often employ multiple recruitment methods to attract participants, however, special care must be taken to be inclusive of under-represented populations. We examine how recruiting from an existing observational study affected the recruitment of African Americans into a RCT that included yoga-based interventions. In particular, we report the recruitment success of The Effects of Health Promoting Programs (HPP) on Cardiovascular Disease Risk (NCT02019953), the first yoga-based clinical trial to focus only on African Americans. To recruit participants, a multifaceted recruitment strategy was implemented exclusively in the Jackson Heart Study (JHS) cohort. The HPP recruited from the JHS cohort using direct mailings, signs and flyers placed around JHS study facilities, and through JHS annual follow-up interviews. Enrollment into HPP was open to all active JHS participants that were eligible to return for the third clinic exam (n = 4644). The target sample size was 375 JHS participants over a 24 month recruitment and enrollment period. From the active members of the JHS cohort, 503 were pre-screened for eligibility in HPP. More than 90% of those pre-screened were provisionally eligible for the study. The enrollment goal of 375 was completed after a 16-month enrollment period with over 25% (n = 97) of the required sample size enrolling during the second month of recruitment. The findings show that participants in observational studies can be successfully recruited into RCT. Observational studies provide researchers with a well-defined population that may be of interest when designing clinical trials. This is particularly useful in the recruitment of a high-risk, traditionally underrepresented populations for non-pharmacological clinical trials where traditional recruitment methods may prolong enrollment periods and extend study budgets.

Associations between Culturally Relevant Recruitment Strategies and Participant Interest, Enrollment and Generalizability in a Weight-loss Intervention for African American Families.

PubMed

Huffman, Lauren E; Wilson, Dawn K; Kitzman-Ulrich, Heather; Lyerly, Jordan E; Gause, Haylee M; Resnicow, Ken

2016-07-21

Culturally relevant recruitment strategies may be an important approach for recruiting ethnic minorities for interventions. Previous research has examined associations between recruitment strategies and enrollment of African Americans (AA), but has not explored more deeply the role of incorporating sociocultural values into recruitment strategies. Our current study explores whether sociocultural recruitment mediums were associated with demographics, interest and enrollment in a weight-loss intervention. Sociocultural mediums included community partnerships, culturally relevant ads, sociocultural events, or word-of-mouth. Non-sociocultural mediums included community/school events that did not specifically target AAs. Analyses examined whether demographics of enrolled families differed by recruitment strategy and if recruitment strategy predicted scheduling a baseline visit, enrolling in a run-in phase, and enrolling in the intervention program. Families recruited from culturally relevant ads, sociocultural events, or word-of-mouth were 1.96 times more likely to schedule a baseline visit (OR=1.96, 95% CI=1.05, 3.68) than families recruited from non-sociocultural mediums. No differences were found for sociocultural mediums on enrolling in the run-in phase or the intervention. However, among enrolled families, those recruited from sociocultural mediums were less likely to be employed (X(2) [1, N=142] =5.53, P<.05) and more likely to have lower income (X(2) [1, N=142] =13.57, P<.05). Sociocultural mediums were associated with scheduling a baseline visit, but not enrollment. They were, however, effective in recruiting a more generalizable sample among enrolled participants based on demographic characteristics. Integrating sociocultural values into recruitment methods may be a valuable strategy for increasing interest in participation among underrepresented AA families.

Recruiting Students into Nursing: Prior Questions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hipps, Opal S.

1983-01-01

Raises fundamental questions regarding student recruitment: (1) why recruit students into nursing? (2) what are the issues that determine whether a school should have a nursing program? and (3) what are students being recruited into? (JOW)

5 CFR 575.101 - Purpose.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... payment of recruitment incentives. An agency may pay a recruitment incentive to a newly appointed employee... Administrative Personnel OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT CIVIL SERVICE REGULATIONS RECRUITMENT, RELOCATION, AND RETENTION INCENTIVES; SUPERVISORY DIFFERENTIALS; AND EXTENDED ASSIGNMENT INCENTIVES Recruitment Incentives...

Recruitment for radiologic technologists.

PubMed

Fodor, J

1988-01-01

The increasing shortage of radiologic technologists makes the recruiting of new staff more important than ever. This paper introduces the manager to numerous recruiting concepts and discusses some useful strategies to employ when approaching the important recruiting task.

Epidemiology of Podiatric Injuries in U.S. Marine Recruits Undergoing Basic Training

DTIC Science & Technology

1992-01-01

0.56 per 1,000 recruit days), ankle sprains (0.53 per 1,000 recruit days), and Achilles tendinitis (0.39 per 1,000 recruit days). Most injuries...who were Ankle sprain 845.00 125 0.53 physically located at the base and would present Achilles tendinitis 726.71 91 0.39 to the clinic if injured...sprain (0.53 per 1,000 recruit days) and Definitive podiatric injury incidence rates are Achilles tendinitis (0.39 per 1,000 recruit days). necessary as a

The Role of Friendship within Social Networks of Divisions at Recruit Training Command and its Effect on the Resilience of Naval Recruits

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-06-01

a custom -built structure created to resemble a ship in order to make the training as realistic as possible (RTC, 2017). The firefighting portion of...technique with recruits is meant to offer recruits a chance to slow down and look at some of the positive things around them. Recruit training is very...belong to. We wish to explore whether the connections formed in recruit training are beneficial to coping and offer a support network to those who

Understanding and Improving Recruitment to Randomised Controlled Trials: Qualitative Research Approaches.

PubMed

Elliott, Daisy; Husbands, Samantha; Hamdy, Freddie C; Holmberg, Lars; Donovan, Jenny L

2017-11-01

The importance of evidence from randomised trials is now widely recognised, although recruitment is often difficult. Qualitative research has shown promise in identifying the key barriers to recruitment, and interventions have been developed to reduce organisational difficulties and support clinicians undertaking recruitment. This article provides an introduction to qualitative research techniques and explains how this approach can be used to understand-and subsequently improve-recruitment and informed consent within a range of clinical trials. A literature search was performed using Medline, Embase, and CINAHL. All studies with qualitative research methods that focused on the recruitment activity of clinicians were included in the review. The majority of studies reported that organisational difficulties and lack of time for clinical staff were key barriers to recruitment. However, a synthesis of qualitative studies highlighted the intellectual and emotional challenges that arise when combining research with clinical roles, particularly in relation to equipoise and patient eligibility. To support recruiters to become more comfortable with the design and principles of randomised controlled trials, interventions have been developed, including the QuinteT Recruitment Intervention, which comprises in-depth investigation of recruitment obstacles in real time, followed by implementation of tailored strategies to address these challenges as the trial proceeds. Qualitative research can provide important insights into the complexities of recruitment to trials and inform the development of interventions, and provide support and training initiatives as required. Investigators should consider implementing such methods in trials expected to be challenging or recruiting below target. Qualitative research is a term used to describe a range of methods that can be implemented to understand participants' perspectives and behaviours. Data are gathered from interviews, focus groups, or observations. In this review, we demonstrate how this approach can be used to understand-and improve-recruitment to clinical trials. Taken together, our review suggests that healthcare professionals can find recruiting to trials challenging and require support with this process. Copyright © 2017 European Association of Urology. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Recruitment dynamics and first year growth of the coral reef surgeonfish Ctenochaetus striatus, with implications for acanthurid growth models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Trip, Elizabeth D. L.; Craig, Peter; Green, Alison; Choat, J. Howard

2014-12-01

Newly recruited Ctenochaetus striatus were monitored over a 16-month period in American Samoa, 2002-2003. During this period, a mass recruitment of age-0 C. striatus occurred in March 2002 with numbers reaching 22.9 recruits m-2. This program provided an invaluable opportunity to (1) analyze the dynamics of a mass recruitment episode and to assess its significance with respect to more typical patterns of recruitment and (2) establish the pattern of recruit growth during their first year of life. Age-based analysis indicated that the mass recruitment generated about 90 % of annual recruitment, but recruit mortality was high; thus, most recruitment was provided by continuous settlement throughout the year. The mass event appeared to be a short-lived pulse with recruits residing on the reef an average of 14.1 d compared with 161.1 d for other recruits. Recruits grew rapidly, achieving 90 % of their adult size during their first year, and they formed their first otolith annulus after 1 yr, thereby providing a firm basis for otolith interpretation of fish ages during the early life history phase of this species. The extensive age-based documentation of their first year growth in this study validates the distinctive "square" growth pattern exhibited by acanthurids as described in the literature (i.e., long life span with rapid initial growth that quickly reaches an asymptotic size), and it demonstrates the impact that the presence of age-0 fish has when generating growth parameters for populations exhibiting square growth. We found that the parameters from the re-parameterized von Bertalanffy growth function have preferred characteristics when modeling square growth in fish and that fixing age-at-length zero to pelagic larval duration is a preferable method to constrain growth models when lacking age-0 fish.

A qualitative study of recruiting for investigations in primary care: Plan, pay, minimise intermediaries and keep it simple

PubMed Central

Hao’uli, Sefita; Arroll, Bruce

2015-01-01

Objectives: We sought successful strategies to recruit patient and practitioner participants for studies from primary care. Methods: We interviewed people who had participated and who had not participated in a randomised controlled trial that did not reach recruitment target and successful primary care researchers. The participants and non-participants were mostly Pacific peoples. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analysed and reported using qualitative description. The study took place in New Zealand in 2013–2014. Results: A total of 31 people were interviewed. Researchers agreed that recruitment was usually the single most important phase of research but was usually under-planned and under-funded. All researchers recommended a pilot study that addressed recruitment. Successful researchers actively monitored recruitment and adapted the process as needed. Most projects were undertaken by our researchers recruited via an intermediary such as a general practice nurse. Strategies were adapted to the target population, such as specific acute or chronic conditions, age, ethnicity and gender. Intermediaries were actively recruited and retained in a manner that was often more intense than actual participant recruitment and retention. ‘Layers’ of intermediaries were kept to a minimum as each layer needed to be actively recruited and retained and each layer reduced participant recruitment rates. The task of intermediaries was kept simple and minimal and they were paid in some manner. Similarly, participant workload was kept to a minimum and they were paid in some manner that was intended to cover their participation costs and perhaps a little more. Even the most experienced researchers did not always achieve recruitment targets. Our interviews focused on patient participants but included recruiting general practitioners, nurses and others as research subjects. Conclusion: Strategy details varied with the target population but had in common the need to intensively recruit and retain intermediaries, minimise layers of intermediaries, and the need to pay and minimise workload for both intermediaries and participants. PMID:26770794

Engaging workplace representatives in research: what recruitment strategies work best?

PubMed

Coole, C; Nouri, F; Narayanasamy, M; Baker, P; Khan, S; Drummond, A

2018-05-23

Workplaces are key stakeholders in work and health but little is known about the methods used to recruit workplace representatives (WRs), including managers, occupational health advisers and colleagues, to externally funded healthcare research studies. To detail the strategies used in recruiting WRs from three areas of the UK to a qualitative study concerning their experience of employees undergoing hip or knee replacement, to compare the strategies and inform recruitment methods for future studies. Six strategies were used to recruit WRs from organizations of different sizes and sectors. Data on numbers approached and responses received were analysed descriptively. Twenty-five WRs were recruited. Recruitment had to be extended outside the main three study areas, and took several months. It proved more difficult to recruit from non-service sectors and small- and medium-sized enterprises. The most successful strategies were approaching organizations that had participated in previous research studies, or known professionally or personally to team members. Recruiting a diverse sample of WRs to healthcare research requires considerable resources and persistence, and a range of strategies. Recruitment is easier where local relationships already exist; the importance of building and maintaining these relationships cannot be underestimated. However, the potential risks of bias and participant fatigue need to be acknowledged and managed. Further studies are needed to explore how WRs can be recruited to health research, and to identify the researcher effort and costs involved in achieving unbiased and representative samples.

Which factors play a role in Dutch health promotion professionals’ decision to recruit actively primary schools to use a web-based smoking prevention programme?

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Municipal Health Promotion Organisations (MHPOs) play an important role in promoting and disseminating prevention programmes, such as smoking prevention programmes, in schools. This study identifies factors that may facilitate or hinder MHPOs’ willingness to recruit actively primary schools to use a smoking prevention programme. Methods In 2011, 31 Dutch MHPOs were invited to recruit schools to use a smoking prevention programme. All MHPO employees involved in smoking prevention activities (n = 68) were asked to complete a questionnaire assessing psychological factors and characteristics of their organisation that might affect their decision to be involved in active recruitment of schools. T-tests and multivariate analysis of variance assessed potential differences in psychological and organisational factors between active and non-active recruiters. Results A total of 45 professionals returned the questionnaire (66.2%). Active recruiters (n = 12) had more positive attitudes (p = 0.02), higher self-efficacy expectations (p < 0.01) and formulated more plans (p < 0.01) to recruit primary schools, compared with non-active recruiters. Organisational factors did not discriminate between active and non-active recruiters. Conclusions Primarily psychological factors seem to be associated with MHPOs’ decision to recruit schools actively. This indicates that creating more positive attitude, self-efficacy beliefs and formation of plans may help in getting more MHPOs involved in active recruitment procedures. PMID:24298942

Successful subject recruitment for a prostate cancer behavioral intervention trial

PubMed Central

Heiney, Sue P; Adams, Swann Arp; Drake, Bettina F; Bryant, Lisa H; Bridges, Lynne; Hebert, James R

2010-01-01

Background Inadequate participant recruitment, which may lead to unrepresentative study samples that threaten a study’s validity, is often a major challenge in the conduct of research studies. Purpose The purpose of this article is to describe the development and implementation of a recruitment plan and evaluate the different recruitment strategies for a prostate cancer behavioral intervention trial. Methods Our recruitment plan was based on a framework (The Heiney–Adams Recruitment Model) that we developed, which combines relationship building and social marketing. We evaluated the success of our model using several different recruitment sources including: mailed letters, physician referral, and self-referral. Results Recruitment rates ranged from 67% for a support services department mailing to 100% for physician referral. While our original list of contacted patients was comprised of only 13% African American (AA) men, 22% of our recruited participants were AA. Limitations One of the strongest barriers to recruitment was strict patient eligibility. Another significant barrier was the lack of electronic records systems to allow for the identification of large numbers of potential participants. Conclusions In conclusion, our model incorporating social marketing and relationship building was quite successful in recruiting for a prostate cancer behavioral study, particularly AA participants. In developing strategies, future researchers should attend to issues of staffing, financial resources, physician support, and eligibility criteria in the light of study accrual. PMID:20571136

Which factors play a role in Dutch health promotion professionals' decision to recruit actively primary schools to use a web-based smoking prevention programme?

PubMed

Cremers, Henricus-Paul; Oenema, Anke; Mercken, Liesbeth; Candel, Math; de Vries, Hein

2013-12-03

Municipal Health Promotion Organisations (MHPOs) play an important role in promoting and disseminating prevention programmes, such as smoking prevention programmes, in schools. This study identifies factors that may facilitate or hinder MHPOs' willingness to recruit actively primary schools to use a smoking prevention programme. In 2011, 31 Dutch MHPOs were invited to recruit schools to use a smoking prevention programme. All MHPO employees involved in smoking prevention activities (n = 68) were asked to complete a questionnaire assessing psychological factors and characteristics of their organisation that might affect their decision to be involved in active recruitment of schools. T-tests and multivariate analysis of variance assessed potential differences in psychological and organisational factors between active and non-active recruiters. A total of 45 professionals returned the questionnaire (66.2%). Active recruiters (n = 12) had more positive attitudes (p = 0.02), higher self-efficacy expectations (p < 0.01) and formulated more plans (p < 0.01) to recruit primary schools, compared with non-active recruiters. Organisational factors did not discriminate between active and non-active recruiters. Primarily psychological factors seem to be associated with MHPOs' decision to recruit schools actively. This indicates that creating more positive attitude, self-efficacy beliefs and formation of plans may help in getting more MHPOs involved in active recruitment procedures.

Church-Based Recruitment to Reach Korean Immigrants: An Integrative Review.

PubMed

Park, Chorong; Jang, Myoungock; Nam, Soohyun; Grey, Margaret; Whittemore, Robin

2017-04-01

Although the Korean church has been frequently used to recruit Korean immigrants in research, little is known about the specific strategies and process. The purpose of this integrative review was to describe recruitment strategies in studies of Korean immigrants and to identify the process of Korean church-based recruitment. Thirty-three studies met inclusion criteria. Four stages of church-based recruitment were identified: initiation, endorsement, advertisement, and implementation. This review identified aspects of the church-based recruitment process in Korean immigrants, which are different from the Black and Hispanic literature, due to their hierarchical culture and language barriers. Getting permission from pastors and announcing the study by pastors at Sunday services were identified as the key components of the process. Using the church newsletter to advertise the study was the most effective strategy for the advertisement stage. Despite several limitations, church-based recruitment is a very feasible and effective way to recruit Korean immigrants.

A Comparison of Three Online Recruitment Strategies for Engaging Parents

PubMed Central

Dworkin, Jodi; Hessel, Heather; Gliske, Kate; Rudi, Jessie H.

2017-01-01

Family scientists can face the challenge of effectively and efficiently recruiting normative samples of parents and families. Utilizing the Internet to recruit parents is a strategic way to find participants where they already are, enabling researchers to overcome many of the barriers to in-person recruitment. The present study was designed to compare three online recruitment strategies for recruiting parents: e-mail Listservs, Facebook, and Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk). Analyses revealed differences in the effectiveness and efficiency of data collection. In particular, MTurk resulted in the most demographically diverse sample, in a short period of time, with little cost. Listservs reached a large number of participants and resulted in a comparatively homogeneous sample. Facebook was not successful in recruiting a general sample of parents. Findings provide information that can help family researchers and practitioners be intentional about recruitment strategies and study design. PMID:28804184

Using Facebook and LinkedIn to Recruit Nurses for an Online Survey.

PubMed

Stokes, Yehudis; Vandyk, Amanda; Squires, Janet; Jacob, Jean-Daniel; Gifford, Wendy

2017-11-01

Social media is an emerging tool used by researchers; however, limited information is available on its use for participant recruitment specifically. The purpose of this article is to describe the use of Facebook and LinkedIn social media sites in the recruitment of nurses for an online survey, using a 5-week modified online Dillman approach. Within 3 weeks, we exceeded our target sample size ( n = 170) and within 5 weeks recruited 267 English-speaking nurses ( n = 172, Facebook; n = 95, LinkedIn). Advantages included speed of recruitment, cost-efficiency, snowballing effects, and accessibility of the researcher to potential participants. However, an analysis of the recruited participants revealed significant differences when comparing the sociodemographics of participants recruited through Facebook and LinkedIn, specifically relating to the characteristics of sex, age, and level of education. Differences between Facebook and LinkedIn as recruitment platforms should be considered when incorporating these strategies.

A Comparison of Three Online Recruitment Strategies for Engaging Parents.

PubMed

Dworkin, Jodi; Hessel, Heather; Gliske, Kate; Rudi, Jessie H

2016-10-01

Family scientists can face the challenge of effectively and efficiently recruiting normative samples of parents and families. Utilizing the Internet to recruit parents is a strategic way to find participants where they already are, enabling researchers to overcome many of the barriers to in-person recruitment. The present study was designed to compare three online recruitment strategies for recruiting parents: e-mail Listservs, Facebook, and Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk). Analyses revealed differences in the effectiveness and efficiency of data collection. In particular, MTurk resulted in the most demographically diverse sample, in a short period of time, with little cost. Listservs reached a large number of participants and resulted in a comparatively homogeneous sample. Facebook was not successful in recruiting a general sample of parents. Findings provide information that can help family researchers and practitioners be intentional about recruitment strategies and study design.

Impact of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act on participant recruitment and retention.

PubMed

Wipke-Tevis, Deidre D; Pickett, Melissa A

2008-02-01

Recruiting and retaining an adequate sample is critical to the success of any research project involving humans. Recent reports indicate that the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) privacy rule has adversely affected research. Few resources are available to help researchers navigate the challenges to recruitment and retention after HIPAA privacy rule implementation. This article addresses obstacles to recruitment in prospective clinical research studies related to the HIPAA privacy rule, as well as HIPAA-compliant strategies to enhance recruitment and retention. Recruitment challenges discussed include evolving interpretations of the HIPAA regulations, inability to directly contact potential participants, complexity of HIPAA-required documents, increased costs of recruitment, and an expanding administrative burden. Among the strategies addressed are preparatory research reviews, using clinical collaborators and staff liaisons, prescreening potential participants, minimizing participant burden during the consent process, enhancing participant follow-up, facilitating recruitment for future studies, and streamlining compliance training for staff.

Exploring the viability of using online social media advertising as a recruitment method for smoking cessation clinical trials.

PubMed

Frandsen, Mai; Walters, Julia; Ferguson, Stuart G

2014-02-01

The aim of the present study was to explore the viability of using social media as a recruitment tool in a clinical research trial. Sociodemographic data and smoking characteristics were assessed in 266 participants recruited to investigate the effectiveness of a behavioral support program for smoking cessation. For analysis, participants were separated into 2 groups based on whether they were recruited either using traditional means (flyers, word of mouth, or newspaper advertisement; n = 125, 47.0%) or by advertisements in online social media (n = 138, 51.9%). Participants recruited via social media were significantly younger, but there were no differences in other socioeconomic variables or smoking characteristics compared with participants recruited via other traditional means. The findings of the present study suggest that using online social media is a viable recruitment method for smoking studies and compliments other more traditional recruitment methods.

Orderly recruitment of motor units under optical control in vivo.

PubMed

Llewellyn, Michael E; Thompson, Kimberly R; Deisseroth, Karl; Delp, Scott L

2010-10-01

A drawback of electrical stimulation for muscle control is that large, fatigable motor units are preferentially recruited before smaller motor units by the lowest-intensity electrical cuff stimulation. This phenomenon limits therapeutic applications because it is precisely the opposite of the normal physiological (orderly) recruitment pattern; therefore, a mechanism to achieve orderly recruitment has been a long-sought goal in physiology, medicine and engineering. Here we demonstrate a technology for reliable orderly recruitment in vivo. We find that under optical control with microbial opsins, recruitment of motor units proceeds in the physiological recruitment sequence, as indicated by multiple independent measures of motor unit recruitment including conduction latency, contraction and relaxation times, stimulation threshold and fatigue. As a result, we observed enhanced performance and reduced fatigue in vivo. These findings point to an unanticipated new modality of neural control with broad implications for nervous system and neuromuscular physiology, disease research and therapeutic innovation.

2000 Military Recruiter Survey: Administration, Datasets and Codebook

DTIC Science & Technology

2002-08-01

recruiters who have not learned everything necessary from their training…………………...... f. Recruiters need constant pressure in order for them to make their...Distance learning ......................... j. Filling out electronic forms........... k. Other........................................... Background...e. It is my job to teach recruiters who have not learned everything necessary from their training…………………...... f. Recruiters need constant

Total Marketing: A Study of Image

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-08-01

marketing , and advertising are all successful in creating an initial awareness of the military. Potential recruits see recruiters at their schools, they...Direct mail marketing is impressive at first but soon wears out. It does not seem to provide new information. " Advertising , to the extent that it...awareness, current recruiting efforts net out as: Recruiter Contact - Negative Advertising - Neutral Direct Marketing - Neutral * 2. Recruitment Stage

Human Resource Management and Army Recruiting. Analysis of Policy Options

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-01-01

Forces Qualification Test ARISS -MPA Army Recruiting Information Support System— Mission Production Awards CMF Career Management Field DA Department of...called the Army Recruiting Information Support System—Mission Production Awards ( ARISS -MPA). 2 Appendix C provides more detailed information about these...Management and Army Recruiting Table B.1 Data Sources Contracts Army Recruiting Information Support System—Mission Production Awards ( ARISS -MPA), United

Temperature and food-mediated variability of European Atlantic sardine recruitment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Garrido, Susana; Silva, Alexandra; Marques, Vitor; Figueiredo, Ivone; Bryère, Philippe; Mangin, Antoine; Santos, A. Miguel P.

2017-12-01

The influence of the environmental conditions during larval development on the resulting recruitment strength was investigated for European sardine (Sardina pilchardus) at Atlanto-Iberian waters. Satellite-derived Sea Surface Temperature (SST) and Chlorophyll-a concentration (Chla) data from the previous spawning seasons (January to March/April and October to December of the previous year) were related to recruitment success data in the main recruitment hotspots. Recruitment data was taken from yearly acoustic scientific cruises and from the ICES recruitment index estimated by an age-structured model for the entire stock. A linear discriminant analysis model using SST, Chla, and the abundance of spawners during the spawning season identified years of high and low recruitment for all the recruitment hotspots with an accuracy of ≥79%. In general, high recruitment years were associated with high Chla and low SST, although the most important variables to discriminate between the groups were area-specific. High recruitment years were mostly related to high food availability (Chla), particularly during the last quarter of the previous year. In Western Iberia and in the Gulf of Cadiz, high recruitment years were also associated to lower SST, whereas in the Bay of Biscay, where SST during the winter was generally below the optimal range ≈11-12 °C for sardine larval development, higher recruitment was associated with high SST. For ICES data of the southern European sardine stock, lower SST and higher Chla during the last quarter of the previous year were associated with high recruitment years and SST alone was able to discriminate between the two recruitment groups with 73% accuracy. Although the time-series of available data are still small, these significant relationships are consistent with field and laboratory studies relating larval growth and mortality with main environmental drivers. These relationships should be further investigated in the following years to evaluate if they can be used to construct reliable indicators to predict the level of recruitment and abundance with sufficient advance to help in the management of this important fishing resource.

Attraction, recruitment and distribution of health professionals in rural and remote Australia: early results of the Rural Health Professionals Program.

PubMed

Morell, Anna L; Kiem, Sandra; Millsteed, Melanie A; Pollice, Almerinda

2014-03-06

Australians living in rural and remote communities experience relatively poor health status in comparison to the wider Australian population (Med J Aust 185:37-38, 2006). This can be attributed in part to issues of access to health services arising from difficulties in recruiting and retaining health professionals in these areas. The Rural Health Professionals Program is an initiative designed to increase the number of allied health and nursing professionals in rural and remote Australia by providing case managed recruitment and retention support services. This paper reports on early analysis of available programme data to build knowledge of factors related to the recruitment and distribution of health professionals in rural and remote Australia. Administrative programme data were collected monthly from 349 health professionals over the first 13 months of programme operation. These data were collated and quantitative analysis was conducted using SPSS software. Sixty-nine percent of recruits were women, and recruits had a mean age of 32.85 (SD = 10.92). Sixty percent of recruits were domestically trained, and the top two professions recruited were nurses (29%) and physiotherapists (21%). Eighty-seven percent were recruited to regional areas, with the remaining 13% recruited to remote areas. Among reasons for interest in the programme, financial support factors were most commonly cited by recruits (51%). Recruitment to a remote location was associated with being domestically trained, having previously lived in a rural or remote location, being a nurse (as opposed to an allied health professional) and older age. The findings provide early support for a case managed recruitment programme to improve distribution of health professionals, and some directions for future marketing and promotion of the programme. It is recommended that an outcome evaluation be conducted to determine the impact of the programme on recruitment and distribution outcomes. The findings herein begin to address gaps in the literature relating to the effectiveness of interventions to improve the distribution of health professionals. While this provides some preliminary indication that case managed recruitment and retention programmes have capacity to improve distribution, further research and evaluation is required to confirm the impact of the programme on retention.

Recruitment of racial/ethnic minority older adults through community sites for focus group discussions.

PubMed

Northridge, Mary E; Shedlin, Michele; Schrimshaw, Eric W; Estrada, Ivette; De La Cruz, Leydis; Peralta, Rogelina; Birdsall, Stacia; Metcalf, Sara S; Chakraborty, Bibhas; Kunzel, Carol

2017-06-09

Despite a body of evidence on racial/ethnic minority enrollment and retention in research, literature specifically focused on recruiting racially/ethnically diverse older adults for social science studies is limited. There is a need for more rigorous research on methodological issues and the efficacy of recruitment methods. Cultural obstacles to recruitment of racial/ethnic minority older adults include language barriers, lack of cultural sensitivity of target communities on the part of researchers, and culturally inappropriate assessment tools. Guided by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR), this study critically appraised the recruitment of racial/ethnic minority older adults for focus groups. The initial approach involved using the physical and social infrastructure of the ElderSmile network, a community-based initiative to promote oral and general health and conduct health screenings in places where older adults gather, to recruit racial/ethnic minority adults for a social science component of an interdisciplinary initiative. The process involved planning a recruitment strategy, engaging the individuals involved in its implementation (opinion leaders in senior centers, program staff as implementation leaders, senior community-based colleagues as champions, and motivated center directors as change agents), executing the recruitment plan, and reflecting on the process of implementation. While the recruitment phase of the study was delayed by 6 months to allow for ongoing recruitment and filling of focus group slots, the flexibility of the recruitment plan, the expertise of the research team members, the perseverance of the recruitment staff, and the cultivation of change agents ultimately resulted in meeting the study targets for enrollment in terms of both numbers of focus group discussions (n = 24) and numbers of participants (n = 194). This study adds to the literature in two important ways. First, we leveraged the social and physical infrastructure of an existing program to recruit participants through community sites where older adults gather. Second, we used the CFIR to guide the appraisal of the recruitment process, which underscored important considerations for both reaching and engaging this underserved population. This was especially true in terms of understanding the disparate roles of the individuals involved in implementing and facilitating the recruitment plan.

Strategies to Support Recruitment of Patients with Life-limiting illness for Research: The Palliative Care Research Cooperative Group

PubMed Central

Hanson, Laura C.; Bull, Janet; Wessell, Kathryn; Massie, Lisa; Bennett, Rachael E.; Kutner, Jean S.; Aziz, Noreen M.; Abernethy, Amy

2014-01-01

Context The Palliative Care Research Cooperative group (PCRC) is the first clinical trials cooperative for palliative care in the United States. Objectives To describe barriers and strategies for recruitment during the inaugural PCRC clinical trial. Methods The parent study was a multi-site randomized controlled trial enrolling adults with life expectancy anticipated to be 1–6 months, randomized to discontinue statins (intervention) vs. to continue on statins (control). To study recruitment best practices, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 18 site Principal Investigators (PI) and Clinical Research Coordinators (CRC), and reviewed recruitment rates. Interviews covered 3 topics – 1) successful strategies for recruitment, 2) barriers to recruitment, and 3) optimal roles of the PI and CRC. Results All eligible site PIs and CRCs completed interviews and provided data on statin protocol recruitment. The parent study completed recruitment of n=381 patients. Site enrollment ranged from 1–109 participants, with an average of 25 enrolled per site. Five major barriers included difficulty locating eligible patients, severity of illness, family and provider protectiveness, seeking patients in multiple settings, and lack of resources for recruitment activities. Five effective recruitment strategies included systematic screening of patient lists, thoughtful messaging to make research relevant, flexible protocols to accommodate patients’ needs, support from clinical champions, and the additional resources of a trials cooperative group. Conclusion The recruitment experience from the multi-site PCRC yields new insights into methods for effective recruitment to palliative care clinical trials. These results will inform training materials for the PCRC and may assist other investigators in the field. PMID:24863152

The recruitment of patients to trials in head and neck cancer: a qualitative study of the EaStER trial of treatments for early laryngeal cancer.

PubMed

Hamilton, D W; de Salis, I; Donovan, J L; Birchall, M

2013-08-01

We aimed to investigate the factors contributing to poor recruitment to the EaStER trial "Early Stage glottic cancer: Endoscopic excision or Radiotherapy" feasibility study. We performed a prospective qualitative assessment of the EaStER trial at three centres to investigate barriers to recruitment and implement changes. Methods used included semi-structured interviews, focus groups and audio-recordings of recruitment encounters. First, surgeons and recruiters did not all accept the primary outcome as the rationale for the trial. Surgeons did not always adhere to the trial eligibility criteria leading to variations between centres in the numbers of "eligible" patients. Second, as both treatments were considered equally successful, recruiters and patients focused on the pragmatics of the different trial arms, favouring surgery over radiotherapy. The lack of equipoise was reflected in the way recruiters presented trial information. Third, patient views, beliefs and preferences were not fully elicited or addressed by recruiters. Fourth, in some centres, logistical issues made trial participation difficult. This qualitative research identified several major issues that explained recruitment difficulties. While there was insufficient time to address these in the EaStER trial, several factors would need to be addressed to launch further RCTs in head and neck cancer. These include the need for clear ongoing agreement among recruiting clinicians regarding details in the study protocol; an understanding of the logistical issues hindering recruitment at individual centres; and training recruiters to enable them to explain the need for randomisation and the rationale for the RCT to patients.

Strategies for Recruitment of Healthy Premenopausal Women into the African American Nutrition for Life (A NULIFE) Study

PubMed Central

Duello, Theresa M.; Miranda, Patricia Y.; Hodges, Kelly P.; Shelton, Andrea J.; Chukelu, Paul; Jones, Lovell A.

2010-01-01

Abstract Background Although African American women have an overall lower incidence of breast cancer, African American women <40 years of age are more likely than Caucasian women of all ages and postmenopausal African American women to be diagnosed with breast cancer and exhibit tumor characteristics associated with poorer survival. To begin to address this disparity, studies must be conducted to examine breast cancer preventive factors in this subpopulation of women. However, the strategies needed to recruit younger African American women have not been well defined. Methods In this study, we assessed methods used for recruiting and retaining healthy premenopausal African American women into the African American Nutrition for Life (A NULIFE) Study. The number of women contacted, enrolled, and retained by each recruitment strategy and the efficiency of individual strategies were calculated. Results Overall, recruitment through social networking was most effective in contacting large numbers of healthy premenopausal African American women. The worksite recruitment method was the most efficient recruitment strategy employed, with a ratio of 40%. The study participants (n = 164) were more likely to be ≥35 years of age and have completed some college. Additionally, the interpersonal relationships recruitment approach proved most efficient (33%) in retaining participants who completed the yearlong study. Conclusions The findings from this study add to the evolving research literature on minority recruitment strategies for research studies but specifically address effective recruitment of healthy young premenopausal African American women. The results demonstrate the need to use multiple recruitment strategies when recruiting this subgroup of African American women. PMID:20392156

Increasing recruitment rates in an inpatient clinical research study using quality improvement methods.

PubMed

Sauers, Hadley S; Beck, Andrew F; Kahn, Robert S; Simmons, Jeffrey M

2014-11-01

One important benefit of successful patient recruitment is increased generalizability of findings. We sought to optimize enrollment of children admitted with asthma as part of a population-based, prospective, observational cohort study with the goal of enrolling at least 60% of all eligible and staffed patients. Quality improvement methods were used to improve cohort recruitment. Weekly meetings with study staff and study leadership were held to plan and discuss how to maximize recruitment rates. Significant initial variability in recruitment success prompted the team to use small-scale tests of change to increase recruitment numbers. A number of tests were trialed, focusing primarily on reducing patient refusals and improving recruitment process efficiency. Recruitment rates were calculated by dividing eligible by enrolled patients and displayed using annotated Shewhart control charts. Control charts were used to illustrate week-to-week variability while also enabling differentiation of common-cause and special-cause variation. The study enrolled 774 patients, representing 54% of all eligible and 59% of those eligible for whom staff were available to enroll. Our mean weekly recruitment rate increased from 55% during the first 3 months of the study to a statistically significant sustained rate of 61%. This was sustained given numerous obstacles, such as departing and hiring of staff and adding a second recruitment location. Implementing quality improvement methods within a larger research study led to an increase in the rate of recruitment as well as the stability in recruitment rates from week-to-week. Copyright © 2014 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

A systematic review of training programmes for recruiters to randomised controlled trials.

PubMed

Townsend, Daisy; Mills, Nicola; Savović, Jelena; Donovan, Jenny L

2015-09-28

Recruitment to randomised controlled trials (RCTs) is often difficult. Clinician related factors have been implicated as important reasons for low rates of recruitment. Clinicians (doctors and other health professionals) can experience discomfort with some underlying principles of RCTs and experience difficulties in conveying them positively to potential trial participants. Recruiter training has been suggested to address identified problems but a synthesis of this research is lacking. The aim of our study was to systematically review the available evidence on training interventions for recruiters to randomised trials. Studies that evaluated training programmes for trial recruiters were included. Those that provided only general communication training not linked to RCT recruitment were excluded. Data extraction and quality assessment were completed by two reviewers independently, with a third author where necessary. Seventeen studies of 9615 potentially eligible titles and abstracts were included in the review: three randomised controlled studies, two non-randomised controlled studies, nine uncontrolled pre-test/post-test studies, two qualitative studies, and a post-training questionnaire survey. Most studies were of moderate or weak quality. Training programmes were mostly set within cancer trials, and usually consisted of workshops with a mix of health professionals over one or two consecutive days covering generic and trial specific issues. Recruiter training programmes were well received and some increased recruiters' self-confidence in communicating key RCT concepts to patients. There was, however, little evidence that this training increased actual recruitment rates or patient understanding, satisfaction, or levels of informed consent. There is a need to develop recruiter training programmes that can lead to improved recruitment and informed consent in randomised trials.

Challenges associated with recruiting multigenerational, multicultural families into a randomised controlled trial: Balancing feasibility with validity.

PubMed

Hughes, Donna; Hutchinson, Amanda; Prichard, Ivanka; Chapman, Janine; Wilson, Carlene

2015-07-01

Recruitment of participants into research studies has become an increasingly difficult task with justifiable criticisms of representativeness of samples. The difficulties of recruitment are exacerbated when the study is longitudinal, requires multiple members from one family and incorporates people from non-dominant ethnic backgrounds. This paper describes a complex trial's recruitment process. Family groups were required for a longitudinal randomised controlled trial investigating links between health and dietary behaviours with an aim to improve primary prevention health messages and initiatives. To be representative of the multi-ethnic composition of the South Australian population, families from three of South Australia's largest ethnic backgrounds were invited to participate. Of these, only families with participating members spanning three generations were enrolled, so that links between health and lifestyle behaviours with possible generational ties could be investigated. Immense difficulties were faced during recruitment and significant modifications to the initial recruitment plan were necessary to enable the enrolment of 96 families. Challenges faced included lack of response to recruitment materials displaying complex eligibility criteria and different response outcomes from different communities. Solutions implemented included simplifying materials and tailoring recruitment activities to specific communities' needs. This trial's recruitment journey will be used as a case study to highlight the practicalities of recruiting for complex trials. Recommendations will be provided for future researchers seeking to recruit multigenerational, multi-ethnic families into the same study, along with issues to consider regarding the implications of the recruitment journey on the integrity of a complex trial and the potential threats to internal validity. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Responding to a significant recruitment challenge within three nationwide psychoeducational trials for cancer patients.

PubMed

Stanton, Annette L; Morra, Marion E; Diefenbach, Michael A; Miller, Suzanne M; Slevin Perocchia, Rosemarie; Raich, Peter C; Fleisher, Linda; Wen, Kuang-Yi; Tran, Zung Vu; Mohamed, Nihal E; George, Roshini; Bright, Mary Anne; Marcus, Alfred C

2013-09-01

When faced with a significant recruitment challenge for three nationwide psychoeducational trials targeting prostate and breast cancer patients, the Cancer Information Service Research Consortium initiated outreach efforts to increase accrual. Recruitment is reported by major outreach strategy to inform the use of similar campaigns, either as primary recruitment efforts or to supplement "in-reach" recruitment within oncology settings. During a 33-month period, recruitment was tracked from the National Cancer Institute's Cancer Information Service (CIS), the American Cancer Society (ACS), Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation's Love/Avon Army of Women (AOW), Internet advertising, press releases, radio/television interviews, recruitment materials in community venues, and outreach to churches and cancer support organizations. Across projects, the majority (89 %) of recruited participants (N = 2,134) was obtained from the CIS (n = 901, 19 months of recruitment), AOW (n = 869, 18 months), and ACS (n = 123, 12 months). Other efforts showed minimal gain in recruitment. Cancer information programs (e.g., CIS and ACS) and registries of individuals willing to participate in cancer-related research (e.g., AOW) can represent exceptional resources for outreach recruitment of cancer patients, especially when the eligibility criteria are highly restrictive. However, these resources do not yield samples representative of the larger population of adults diagnosed with cancer, and conclusions from such trials must be tempered accordingly. Inadequate recruitment to randomized controlled trials limits the creation of useful interventions for cancer survivors. By enrolling in cancer registries and taking part in research, cancer survivors can contribute to the development of effective resources for the survivor population.

Recruiting participants for randomized controlled trials of music therapy: a practical illustration.

PubMed

Porter, Sam; McConnell, Tracey; Lynn, Fiona; McLaughlin, Katrina; Cardwell, Christopher; Holmes, Valerie

2014-01-01

Failure to recruit sufficient numbers of participants to randomized controlled trials is a common and serious problem. This problem may be additionally acute in music therapy research. To use the experience of conducting a large randomized controlled trial of music therapy for young people with emotional and behavioral difficulties to illustrate the strategies that can be used to optimize recruitment; to report on the success or otherwise of those strategies; and to draw general conclusions about the most effective approaches. Review of the methodological literature, and a narrative account and realist analysis of the recruitment process. The strategies adopted led to the achievement of the recruitment target of 250 subjects, but only with an extension to the recruitment period. In the pre-protocol stage of the research, these strategies included the engagement of non-music therapy clinical investigators, and extensive consultation with clinical stakeholders. In the protocol development and initial recruitment stages, they involved a search of systematic reviews of factors leading to under-recruitment and of interventions to promote recruitment, and the incorporation of their insights into the research protocol and practices. In the latter stages of recruitment, various stakeholders including clinicians, senior managers and participant representatives were consulted in an attempt to uncover the reasons for the low recruitment levels that the research was experiencing. The primary mechanisms to promote recruitment are education, facilitation, audit and feedback, and time allowed. The primary contextual factors affecting the effectiveness of these mechanisms are professional culture and organizational support. © the American Music Therapy Association 2014. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Training Needs of Clinical and Research Professionals to Optimize Minority Recruitment and Retention in Cancer Clinical Trials.

PubMed

Niranjan, Soumya J; Durant, Raegan W; Wenzel, Jennifer A; Cook, Elise D; Fouad, Mona N; Vickers, Selwyn M; Konety, Badrinath R; Rutland, Sarah B; Simoni, Zachary R; Martin, Michelle Y

2017-08-03

The study of disparities in minority recruitment to cancer clinical trials has focused primarily on inquiries among minority patient populations. However, clinical trial recruitment is complex and requires a broader appreciation of the multiple factors that influence minority participation. One area that has received little attention is minority recruitment training for professionals who assume various roles in the clinical trial recruitment process. Therefore, we assessed the perspectives of cancer center clinical and research personnel on their training and education needs toward minority recruitment for cancer clinical trials. Ninety-one qualitative interviews were conducted at five U.S. cancer centers among four stakeholder groups: cancer center leaders, principal investigators, referring clinicians, and research staff. Interviews were recorded and transcribed. Qualitative analyses focused on response data related to training for minority recruitment for cancer clinical trials. Four prominent themes were identified: (1) Research personnel are not currently being trained to focus on recruitment and retention of minority populations; (2) Training for minority recruitment and retention provides for a specific focus on factors influencing minority research participation; (3) Training on cultural awareness may help to bridge cultural gaps between potential minority participants and research professionals; (4) Views differ regarding the importance of research personnel training designed to focus on recruitment of minority populations. There is a lack of systematic training for minority recruitment. Many stakeholders acknowledged the benefits of minority recruitment training and welcomed training that focuses on increasing cultural awareness to increase the participation of minorities in cancer clinical trials.

Density-dependent recruitment of the bloater (Coregonus hoyi) in Lake Michigan

USGS Publications Warehouse

Brown, Edward H.; Eck, Gary W.

1992-01-01

Density-dependent recruitment of the bloater (Coregonus hoyi) in Lake Michigan during and after recovery of the population in about 1977-1983 was best reflected in the fit of the Beverton-Holt recruitment function to age -1 and -2 recruits and estimated eggs of parents surveyed with trawls. A lower growth rate and lower lipid content of bloaters at higher population densities and no evidence of cannibalism supported the conclusion that recruitment is resource limited when alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus) abundance is low. Predation on larvae by alewives was indicated in earlier studies as the probable cause of depressed recruitment of bloaters before their recovery, which coincided with declining alewife abundance. This negative interaction masked any bloater stock-recruitment relation in the earlier period.

48 CFR 731.774 - Overseas recruitment incentive.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 5 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Overseas recruitment incentive. 731.774 Section 731.774 Federal Acquisition Regulations System AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL... Organizations 731.774 Overseas recruitment incentive. USAID's policies regarding overseas recruitment incentives...

Reflecting on the methodological challenges of recruiting to a United Kingdom-wide, multi-centre, randomised controlled trial in gynaecology outpatient settings.

PubMed

Dickson, Sylvia; Logan, Janet; Hagen, Suzanne; Stark, Diane; Glazener, Cathryn; McDonald, Alison M; McPherson, Gladys

2013-11-15

Successful recruitment of participants to any trial is central to its success. Trial results are routinely published, and recruitment is often cited to be slower and more difficult than anticipated. This article reflects on the methodological challenges of recruiting women with prolapse attending United Kingdom (UK) gynaecology outpatient clinics to a multi-centre randomised controlled trial (RCT) of physiotherapy, and the systems put in place in an attempt to address them. Gynaecology outpatients with symptomatic prolapse were to be recruited over a 16-month period from 14 UK hospitals and one New Zealand hospital. Eligible women were informed about the trial by their gynaecologist and informed consent was obtained by the central trial office. Recruitment difficulties were encountered early on, and a number of strategies were employed to try to improve recruitment. Some strategies were more successful than others and they differed in the resources required. Actions that facilitated recruitment included increasing recruiting centres to 23 UK and two international hospitals, good centre support, using processes embedded in clinical practice, and good communication between the trial office, collaborators and participants. Collaborator incentives, whereby staff involved received the benefit immediately, were more successful than a nominal monetary payment per woman randomised. Barriers to recruitment included fewer eligible women than anticipated, patient's preference to receive active treatment rather than allocation to the control group, lack of support staff and high staff turnover. Geographical variations in Primary Care Trust Research Management and Governance approval systems and general practitioner (GP) referral procedures also impacted negatively on recruitment. Our article reflects on the methodological challenges of recruiting to a multi-centre RCT in a UK gynaecology setting. Effective interventions included increasing the number of recruiting centres and providing collaborator incentives. Barriers to recruitment included fewer eligible women than anticipated, patient's preference to be allocated to the treatment group, lack of support staff, and variations in approval systems and GP referral procedures. To improve the evidence base on clinical trial recruitment, trialists need to publish their experiences and lessons learned. Future RCTs should evaluate, where possible, the effect of strategies designed to improve recruitment and retention. Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN35911035.

Reflecting on the methodological challenges of recruiting to a United Kingdom-wide, multi-centre, randomised controlled trial in gynaecology outpatient settings

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Successful recruitment of participants to any trial is central to its success. Trial results are routinely published, and recruitment is often cited to be slower and more difficult than anticipated. This article reflects on the methodological challenges of recruiting women with prolapse attending United Kingdom (UK) gynaecology outpatient clinics to a multi-centre randomised controlled trial (RCT) of physiotherapy, and the systems put in place in an attempt to address them. Methods Gynaecology outpatients with symptomatic prolapse were to be recruited over a 16-month period from 14 UK hospitals and one New Zealand hospital. Eligible women were informed about the trial by their gynaecologist and informed consent was obtained by the central trial office. Recruitment difficulties were encountered early on, and a number of strategies were employed to try to improve recruitment. Results Some strategies were more successful than others and they differed in the resources required. Actions that facilitated recruitment included increasing recruiting centres to 23 UK and two international hospitals, good centre support, using processes embedded in clinical practice, and good communication between the trial office, collaborators and participants. Collaborator incentives, whereby staff involved received the benefit immediately, were more successful than a nominal monetary payment per woman randomised. Barriers to recruitment included fewer eligible women than anticipated, patient’s preference to receive active treatment rather than allocation to the control group, lack of support staff and high staff turnover. Geographical variations in Primary Care Trust Research Management and Governance approval systems and general practitioner (GP) referral procedures also impacted negatively on recruitment. Conclusions Our article reflects on the methodological challenges of recruiting to a multi-centre RCT in a UK gynaecology setting. Effective interventions included increasing the number of recruiting centres and providing collaborator incentives. Barriers to recruitment included fewer eligible women than anticipated, patient’s preference to be allocated to the treatment group, lack of support staff, and variations in approval systems and GP referral procedures. To improve the evidence base on clinical trial recruitment, trialists need to publish their experiences and lessons learned. Future RCTs should evaluate, where possible, the effect of strategies designed to improve recruitment and retention. Trial registration Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN35911035 PMID:24228935

Recruitment and accrual of women in a randomized controlled trial of spinal manipulation.

PubMed

Cambron, J A

2001-02-01

To report on recruitment efforts and accrual rates for a nonmusculoskeletal chiropractic clinical trial. Information regarding the method of recruitment was collected for each individual who responded to an advertisement and completed an interviewer-administered telephone screening. A suburban chiropractic teaching clinic with recruitment efforts extending throughout the larger metropolitan area. A total of 2312 women were screened for participation and the advertisement source was noted for each. Of these, 138 women were recruited and fulfilled all study requirements. The numbers of responses and accrual rates were determined for 8 different recruitment methods: newspaper advertisements, community referrals, radio advertisements, community colleges, press releases, a community electronic sign, public television, and local posters. The most effective recruitment methods were newspaper advertisements, community referrals, and radio advertisements; the least effective methods were public television and local posters. The effort required for the recruitment of subjects was underestimated in this study. Based on the information gained, future recruitment methods for study participants will primarily focus on low-effort, high-yield methods such as newspaper and radio advertising, followed by press releases, campus electronic signs, and public television.

Exploring recruitment issues in stroke research: a qualitative study of nurse researchers' experiences.

PubMed

Boxall, Leigh; Hemsley, Anthony; White, Nicola

2016-05-01

To explore the practice of experienced stroke nurse researchers to understand the issues they face in recruiting participants. Participant recruitment is one of the greatest challenges in conducting clinical research, with many trials failing due to recruitment problems. Stroke research is a particularly difficult area in which to recruit; however various strategies can improve participation. Analysis revealed three main types of problems for recruiting participants to stroke research: those related to patients, those related to the nurse researcher, and those related to the study itself. Impairments affecting capacity to consent, the acute recruitment time frame of most stroke trials, paternalism by nurse researchers, and low public awareness were especially pertinent. The disabling nature of a stroke, which often includes functional and cognitive impairments, and the acute stage of illness at which patients are appropriate for many trials, make recruiting patients particularly complex and challenging. An awareness of the issues surrounding the recruitment of stroke patients may help researchers in designing and conducting trials. Future work is needed to address the complexities of obtaining informed consent when patient capacity is compromised.

Medical School Factors Associated with Higher Rates of Recruitment into Psychiatry.

PubMed

Spollen, John J; Beck Dallaghan, Gary L; Briscoe, Gregory W; Delanoche, Nancy D; Hales, Deborah J

2017-04-01

The medical school a student attends appears to be a factor in whether students eventually match into psychiatry. Knowledge of which factors are associated with medical schools with higher recruitment rates into psychiatry may assist in developing strategies to increase recruitment. Psychiatry leaders in medical student education in the 25 highest and lowest recruiting US allopathic schools were surveyed concerning various factors that could be important such as curriculum, educational leadership, and presence of anti-psychiatry stigma. The relationship between the survey results of high recruiting schools versus those of low recruiting schools was evaluated using Mann-Whitney U tests. Factors significantly associated (p < .05) with higher recruiting schools included better reputation of the psychiatry department and residents, perceived higher respect for psychiatry among non-psychiatry faculty, less perception that students dissuaded other students from pursuing psychiatry, and longer clerkship length. Educational culture and climate factors may have a significant impact on psychiatry recruitment rates. Clerkship length was associated with higher recruiting schools, but several previous studies with more complete samples have not shown this.

So you think you've designed an effective recruitment protocol?

PubMed

Green, Cara; Vandall-Walker, Virginia

2017-03-22

Background Recruiting acutely ill patients to participate in research can be challenging. This paper outlines the difficulties the first author encountered in a study and the steps she took to overcome problems with research ethics, gain access to participants and implement a recruitment protocol in multiple hospitals. It also compares these steps with literature related to recruitment. Aim To inform and inspire neophyte researchers about the need for planning and resilience when dealing with recruitment challenges in multiple hospitals. Discussion The multiple enablers and barriers to the successful implementation of a hospital-based study recruitment protocol are explored based on a neophyte researcher's optimistic assumptions about this stage of the study. Conclusions Perseverance, adequately planning for contingencies, and accepting the barriers and challenges to recruitment are essential for completing one's research study and ensuring fulfilment as a researcher. Implications for practice Healthcare students carrying out research require adequate knowledge about conducting hospital-based, patient research to inform their recruitment plan. Maximising control over recruitment, allowing for adequate time to conduct data collection, and maintaining a good work ethic will help to ensure success.

Recruitment barriers for prophylactic vaccine trials: A study in Belgium.

PubMed

Harrington, Lauriane; Van Damme, Pierre; Vandermeulen, Corinne; Mali, Stéphanie

2017-12-04

Recruitment of volunteers is one of the main challenges in clinical trial management, and there is little information about recruitment barriers for preventative vaccine trials. We investigated both the recruitment barriers and recruitment strategies for preventive vaccine trials in Belgium. A 10 min survey was used as well as interviews of staff at all clinical trial sites in Belgium that regularly perform vaccine trials. We observed that there are successful recruitment strategies and few recruitment issues for trials involving healthy adults and those over 65 years old. However, challenges face the recruitment of paediatric populations, pregnant women, patients and the very elderly (over 85 years old). From these results, we identified three priority areas to increase recruitment for prophylactic vaccine trials in Belgium. These are: the lack of public knowledge about infectious diseases; the lack of resources of healthcare professionals to take part in clinical trials; and the burden to potential volunteers to take part in a trial. These were discussed with stakeholders and solutions were proposed. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Costs and Efficiency of Online and Offline Recruitment Methods: A Web-Based Cohort Study.

PubMed

Christensen, Tina; Riis, Anders H; Hatch, Elizabeth E; Wise, Lauren A; Nielsen, Marie G; Rothman, Kenneth J; Toft Sørensen, Henrik; Mikkelsen, Ellen M

2017-03-01

The Internet is widely used to conduct research studies on health issues. Many different methods are used to recruit participants for such studies, but little is known about how various recruitment methods compare in terms of efficiency and costs. The aim of our study was to compare online and offline recruitment methods for Internet-based studies in terms of efficiency (number of recruited participants) and costs per participant. We employed several online and offline recruitment methods to enroll 18- to 45-year-old women in an Internet-based Danish prospective cohort study on fertility. Offline methods included press releases, posters, and flyers. Online methods comprised advertisements placed on five different websites, including Facebook and Netdoktor.dk. We defined seven categories of mutually exclusive recruitment methods and used electronic tracking via unique Uniform Resource Locator (URL) and self-reported data to identify the recruitment method for each participant. For each method, we calculated the average cost per participant and efficiency, that is, the total number of recruited participants. We recruited 8252 study participants. Of these, 534 were excluded as they could not be assigned to a specific recruitment method. The final study population included 7724 participants, of whom 803 (10.4%) were recruited by offline methods, 3985 (51.6%) by online methods, 2382 (30.8%) by online methods not initiated by us, and 554 (7.2%) by other methods. Overall, the average cost per participant was €6.22 for online methods initiated by us versus €9.06 for offline methods. Costs per participant ranged from €2.74 to €105.53 for online methods and from €0 to €67.50 for offline methods. Lowest average costs per participant were for those recruited from Netdoktor.dk (€2.99) and from Facebook (€3.44). In our Internet-based cohort study, online recruitment methods were superior to offline methods in terms of efficiency (total number of participants enrolled). The average cost per recruited participant was also lower for online than for offline methods, although costs varied greatly among both online and offline recruitment methods. We observed a decrease in the efficiency of some online recruitment methods over time, suggesting that it may be optimal to adopt multiple online methods. ©Tina Christensen, Anders H Riis, Elizabeth E Hatch, Lauren A Wise, Marie G Nielsen, Kenneth J Rothman, Henrik Toft Sørensen, Ellen M Mikkelsen. Originally published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research (http://www.jmir.org), 01.03.2017.

Recruiting patients as partners in health research: a qualitative descriptive study.

PubMed

Vat, Lidewij Eva; Ryan, Devonne; Etchegary, Holly

2017-01-01

Increasingly, funders and researchers want to partner with patients in health research, but it can be challenging for researchers to find patient partners. More than taking part in research as participants, patient partners help design, carry out and manage research projects. The goal of this study was to describe ways that patient partners have been recruited by researchers and patient engagement leads (individuals within organizations responsible for promoting and supporting patients as research partners). We talked with researchers and patient engagement leads in Canada and the United Kingdom, as well as a patient representative. We found three ways that could help researchers and patients find each other. One way is a case-by-case basis, where patients are often sought with experience of a health condition that is the focus of the research. The other ways involved directories where projects were posted and could be found by patients and researchers, or a third party matched patients with research projects. We found four recruitment strategies:Social marketingCommunity outreachHealth systemPartnering with other organizations (e.g., advocacy groups) There are many influences on finding, selecting and retaining patient partners: patient characteristics, the local setting, the opportunity, work climate, education and support. We hope study results will provide a useful starting point for research teams in recruiting their patient partners. Background Patient engagement in clinical trials and other health research continues to gain momentum. While the benefits of patient engagement in research are emerging, relatively little is known about recruiting patients as research partners. The purpose of this study was to describe recruitment strategies and models of recruiting patients as partners in health research. Methods Qualitative descriptive study. Thirteen patient engagement leads and health researchers from Canada and the United Kingdom, as well as one patient representative from a national patient organization (7 female) completed semi-structured interviews. Results Recruitment infrastructures available to respondents varied, but could be categorized into three models including the traditional, third-party and directory models. Four categories of recruitment strategies were identified, representing multiple ways of recruiting patient partners: social marketing recruitment, community outreach recruitment, health system recruitment, and partnering recruitment. Conclusions Multiple recruitment strategies were identified for engaging patient partners in research, and some common factors influenced recruitment. Study findings contribute to the evidence base in patient engagement and provide guidance for research teams to help identify potential recruitment methods for their patient partners.

44 CFR 19.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... 44 Emergency Management and Assistance 1 2012-10-01 2011-10-01 true Recruitment. 19.510 Section 19.510 Emergency Management and Assistance FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND... Activities Prohibited § 19.510 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall...

44 CFR 19.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 44 Emergency Management and Assistance 1 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Recruitment. 19.510 Section 19.510 Emergency Management and Assistance FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY, DEPARTMENT OF... Programs or Activities Prohibited § 19.510 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A...

5 CFR 330.402 - Direct recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 5 Administrative Personnel 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Direct recruitment. 330.402 Section 330.402 Administrative Personnel OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT CIVIL SERVICE REGULATIONS RECRUITMENT, SELECTION, AND PLACEMENT (GENERAL) Positions Restricted to Preference Eligibles § 330.402 Direct recruitment...

28 CFR 345.31 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Recruitment. 345.31 Section 345.31 Judicial Administration FEDERAL PRISON INDUSTRIES, INC., DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE FEDERAL PRISON INDUSTRIES (FPI) INMATE WORK PROGRAMS Recruitment and Hiring Practices § 345.31 Recruitment. Inmate workers for...

The Florida Air National Guard: A Model for Successful Recruiting

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-03-01

morale of the recruiters and retainers. In an interview with the author, Master Sgt. Emilio Gelfenstein discussed his twelve years in recruiting and...34 Master Sergeant. Emilio Gelfenstein, Recruiting and Retaining Non- Commissioned Officer (RRNCO), is an Active Guard and Reserve NCO (AGR) with over...position, the RRS, recruiters and retainers were able to more effectively complete their goals. 56 MSgt Emilio Gelfenstein, ROM, FL-ANG, interviewed

Effective strategies for recruiting of Asian cancer patients in internet research.

PubMed

Lim, Hyun Ju; Lin, Chia-Ju; Liu, Yi; Chee, Wonshik; Im, Eun-Ok

2006-01-01

This poster is aims to provide directions for effective strategies for recruiting Asian cancer patients in Internet study among Asian American cancer patients. In the study, we used four different strategies to recruit Asian cancer participants: (a) general and ethnic specific Internet cancer support groups; (b) Asian Internet communities/groups; (c) Asian physician clinics, Asian community and culture center; and (d) community consultants. The most effective recruitment strategy among them was the recruitment through community consultant. The findings support the importance of using key persons in ethnic minority communities to recruit ethnic minority participants.

Facebook or Twitter?: Effective recruitment strategies for family caregivers.

PubMed

Herbell, Kayla; Zauszniewski, Jaclene A

2018-06-01

This brief details recent recruitment insights from a large all-online study of family caregivers that aimed to develop a measure to assess how family caregivers manage daily stresses. Online recruitment strategies included the use of Twitter and Facebook. Overall, 800 individuals responded to the recruitment strategy; 230 completed all study procedures. The most effective online recruitment strategy for targeting family caregivers was Facebook, yielding 86% of the sample. Future researchers may find the use of social media recruitment methods appealing because they are inexpensive, simple, and efficient methods for obtaining National samples. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Improving actuation efficiency through variable recruitment hydraulic McKibben muscles: modeling, orderly recruitment control, and experiments.

PubMed

Meller, Michael; Chipka, Jordan; Volkov, Alexander; Bryant, Matthew; Garcia, Ephrahim

2016-11-03

Hydraulic control systems have become increasingly popular as the means of actuation for human-scale legged robots and assistive devices. One of the biggest limitations to these systems is their run time untethered from a power source. One way to increase endurance is by improving actuation efficiency. We investigate reducing servovalve throttling losses by using a selective recruitment artificial muscle bundle comprised of three motor units. Each motor unit is made up of a pair of hydraulic McKibben muscles connected to one servovalve. The pressure and recruitment state of the artificial muscle bundle can be adjusted to match the load in an efficient manner, much like the firing rate and total number of recruited motor units is adjusted in skeletal muscle. A volume-based effective initial braid angle is used in the model of each recruitment level. This semi-empirical model is utilized to predict the efficiency gains of the proposed variable recruitment actuation scheme versus a throttling-only approach. A real-time orderly recruitment controller with pressure-based thresholds is developed. This controller is used to experimentally validate the model-predicted efficiency gains of recruitment on a robot arm. The results show that utilizing variable recruitment allows for much higher efficiencies over a broader operating envelope.

Dental caries experience in young Australian Army recruits 2008.

PubMed

Hopcraft, M S; Yapp, K E; Mahoney, G; Morgan, M V

2009-12-01

Recent studies have shown a substantial decline in caries experience in Australian Army recruits between 1996 and 2002-2003, and in Australian adults between 1987-1988 and 2004-2006. However, studies in children have reported an increasing trend in caries experience between 1998 and 2002. The aim of this study was to investigate caries experience in Australian Army recruits in 2008. A cross-sectional study involving 1084 Australian Army recruits was conducted from January to May 2008. Data were obtained from a clinical dental examination with bitewing radiographs, and a questionnaire elicited socio-demographic data and history on lifetime exposure to fluoridated drinking water. Mean DMFT scores were 3.16, 4.08, 5.16 and 7.11 for recruits aged 17-20, 21-25, 26-30 and 31-35 years, respectively. Recruits with a lifetime exposure to fluoridated drinking water had a mean DMFT of 3.02, while recruits with no exposure had a mean DMFT of 3.87. Caries experience in Australian Army recruits aged 17-25 years increased between 2002-2003 and 2008. Recruits with lifetime exposure to fluoridated drinking water had 25 per cent less caries experience compared with recruits who had no exposure to fluoridated drinking water after adjusting for the effects of age, gender, education and socio-economic status.

Asynchrony in the inter-annual recruitment of lake whitefish Coregonus clupeaformis in the Great Lakes region

USGS Publications Warehouse

Zischke, Mitchell T.; Bunnell, David B.; Troy, Cary D.; Berglund, Eric K.; Caroffino, David C.; Ebener, Mark P.; He, Ji X.; Sitar, Shawn P.; Hook, Tomas O.

2017-01-01

Spatially separated fish populations may display synchrony in annual recruitment if the factors that drive recruitment success, particularly abiotic factors such as temperature, are synchronised across broad spatial scales. We examined inter-annual variation in recruitment among lake whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis) populations in lakes Huron, Michigan and Superior using fishery-dependent and -independent data from 1971 to 2014. Relative year-class strength (RYCS) was calculated from catch-curve residuals for each year class across multiple sampling years. Pairwise comparison of RYCS among datasets revealed no significant associations either within or between lakes, suggesting that recruitment of lake whitefish is spatially asynchronous. There was no consistent correlation between pairwise agreement and the distance between datasets, and models to estimate the spatial scale of recruitment synchrony did not fit well to these data. This suggests that inter-annual recruitment variation of lake whitefish is asynchronous across broad spatial scales in the Great Lakes. While our method primarily evaluated year-to-year recruitment variation, it is plausible that recruitment of lake whitefish varies at coarser temporal scales (e.g. decadal). Nonetheless, our findings differ from research on some other Coregonus species and suggest that local biotic or density-dependent factors may contribute strongly to lake whitefish recruitment rather than inter-annual variability in broad-scale abiotic factors.

A biophysical model of Lake Erie walleye (Sander vitreus) explains interannual variations in recruitment

USGS Publications Warehouse

Zhao, Yingming; Jones, Michael L.; Shuter, Brian J.; Roseman, Edward F.

2009-01-01

We used a three-dimensional coupled hydrodynamic-ecological model to investigate how lake currents can affect walleye (Sander vitreus) recruitment in western Lake Erie. Four years were selected based on a fall recruitment index: two high recruitment years (i.e., 1996 and 1999) and two low recruitment years (i.e., 1995 and 1998). During the low recruitment years, the model predicted that (i) walleye spawning grounds experienced destructive bottom currents capable of dislodging eggs from suitable habitats (reefs) to unsuitable habitats (i.e., muddy bottom), and (ii) the majority of newly hatched larvae were transported away from the known suitable nursery grounds at the start of their first feeding. Conversely, during two high recruitment years, predicted bottom currents at the spawning grounds were relatively weak, and the predicted movement of newly hatched larvae was toward suitable nursery grounds. Thus, low disturbance-based egg mortality and a temporal and spatial match between walleye first feeding larvae and their food resources were predicted for the two high recruitment years, and high egg mortality plus a mismatch of larvae with their food resources was predicted for the two low recruitment years. In general, mild westerly or southwesterly winds during the spawning-nursery period should favour walleye recruitment in the lake.

Strategies for successful recruitment of young adults to healthy lifestyle programmes for the prevention of weight gain: a systematic review.

PubMed

Lam, E; Partridge, S R; Allman-Farinelli, M

2016-02-01

Recruiting healthy young adults, aged 18-35, to lifestyle programmes for prevention of weight gain is challenging but important given their increasing rates of obesity. This review aimed to examine the success of different recruitment strategies. A systematic literature search identified 26 separate studies using 10 electronic databases. Participant characteristics and efficacy of interventions were well reported in all studies, but reporting of recruitment procedures, costs, times and effectiveness was minimal. Of those reporting recruitment, both active (e.g. face-to-face) and passive (e.g. print-media and mass-mailings) approaches were identified with the latter most frequently employed. Novel strategies such as social media and marketing approaches were identified. Television and radio have potentially high reach but low efficiency with high cost compared with mass-mailings which yield high numbers of participants. Marketing campaigns appeared to be a promising approach. Incentives demonstrated enhanced recruitment. The use of formative research to guide recruitment strategies for interventions is recommended. Reporting of success, cost and timelines for recruitment should be included in reporting of future trials. This first synthesis of recruitment information can be used to inform recruitment frameworks for lifestyle programmes seeking to attract young adults. © 2015 World Obesity.

Recruitment of mental health survey participants using Internet advertising: content, characteristics and cost effectiveness.

PubMed

Batterham, Philip J

2014-06-01

Postal and telephone survey research is threatened by declining response rates and high cost. Online recruitment is becoming more popular, although there is little empirical evidence about its cost-effectiveness or the representativeness of online samples. There is also limited research on optimal strategies for developing advertising content for online recruitment. The present study aimed to assess these aspects of online recruitment. Two mental health surveys used advertisements within a social network website (Facebook) to recruit adult Australian participants. The initial survey used advertisements linking directly to an external survey website, and recruited 1283 participants at $9.82 per completed survey. A subsequent survey used advertisements linking to a Facebook page that featured links to the external survey, recruiting 610 participants at $1.51 per completion. Both surveys were more cost-effective than similar postal surveys conducted previously, which averaged $19.10 per completion. Online and postal surveys both had somewhat unrepresentative samples. However, online surveys tended to be more successful in recruiting hard-to-reach populations. Advertising using "problem" terminology was more effective than "positive" terminology, while there was no significant effect of altruistic versus self-gain terminology. Online recruitment is efficient, flexible and cost-effective, suggesting that online recruitment has considerable potential for specific research designs. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Can Facebook Be Used for Research? Experiences Using Facebook to Recruit Pregnant Women for a Randomized Controlled Trial.

PubMed

Adam, Laura M; Manca, Donna P; Bell, Rhonda C

2016-09-21

Recruitment is often a difficult and costly part of any human research study. Social media and other emerging means of mass communication hold promise as means to complement traditional strategies used for recruiting participants because they can reach a large number of people in a short amount of time. With the ability to target a specified audience, paid Facebook advertisements have potential to reach future research participants of a specific demographic. This paper describes the experiences of a randomized controlled trial in Edmonton, Alberta, attempting to recruit healthy pregnant women between 8 and 20 weeks' gestation for participation in a prenatal study. Various traditional recruitment approaches, in addition to paid Facebook advertisements were trialed. To evaluate the effectiveness of paid advertisements on Facebook as a platform for recruiting pregnant women to a randomized controlled trial in comparison with traditional recruitment approaches. Recruitment using traditional approaches occurred for 7 months, whereas Facebook advertisements ran for a total of 26 days. Interested women were prompted to contact the study staff for a screening call to determine study eligibility. Costs associated with each recruitment approach were recorded and used to calculate the cost to recruit eligible participants. Performance of Facebook advertisements was monitored using Facebook Ads Manager. Of the 115 women included, 39.1% (n=45) of the women who contacted study staff heard about the study through Facebook, whereas 60.9% (n=70) of them heard about it through traditional recruitment approaches. During the 215 days (~7 months) that the traditional approaches were used, the average rate of interest was 0.3 (0.2) women/day, whereas the 26 days of Facebook advertisements resulted in an average rate of interest of 2.8 (1.7) women/day. Facebook advertisements cost Can $506.91 with a cost per eligible participant of Cad $20.28. In comparison, the traditional approaches cost Cad $1087, with approximately Cad $24.15 per eligible participant. Demographic characteristics of women were similar between the 2 recruitment methods except that women recruited using Facebook were significantly earlier in their pregnancy than those recruited using traditional approaches (P<.03). Paid Facebook advertisements hold promise as a platform for reaching pregnant women. The relative ease of placing an advertisement, the comparable cost per participant recruited, and the dramatically improved recruitment rates in comparison with traditional approaches highlight the importance of combining novel and traditional recruitment approaches to recruit women for pregnancy-related studies. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02711644; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02711644 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6kKpagpMk).

The Comparability of Men Who Have Sex With Men Recruited From Venue-Time-Space Sampling and Facebook: A Cohort Study

PubMed Central

Sullivan, Patrick S; Sanchez, Travis H; Kelley, Colleen F; Peterson, John L; del Rio, Carlos; Salazar, Laura F; Frew, Paula M; Rosenberg, Eli S

2014-01-01

Background Recruiting valid samples of men who have sex with men (MSM) is a key component of the US human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) surveillance and of research studies seeking to improve HIV prevention for MSM. Social media, such as Facebook, may present an opportunity to reach broad samples of MSM, but the extent to which those samples are comparable with men recruited from venue-based, time-space sampling (VBTS) is unknown. Objective The objective of this study was to assess the comparability of MSM recruited via VBTS and Facebook. Methods HIV-negative and HIV-positive black and white MSM were recruited from June 2010 to December 2012 using VBTS and Facebook in Atlanta, GA. We compared the self-reported venue attendance, demographic characteristics, sexual and risk behaviors, history of HIV-testing, and HIV and sexually transmitted infection (STI) prevalence between Facebook- and VTBS-recruited MSM overall and by race. Multivariate logistic and negative binomial models estimated age/race adjusted ratios. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to assess 24-month retention. Results We recruited 803 MSM, of whom 110 (34/110, 30.9% black MSM, 76/110, 69.1% white MSM) were recruited via Facebook and 693 (420/693, 60.6% black MSM, 273/693, 39.4% white MSM) were recruited through VTBS. Facebook recruits had high rates of venue attendance in the previous month (26/34, 77% among black and 71/76, 93% among white MSM; between-race P=.01). MSM recruited on Facebook were generally older, with significant age differences among black MSM (P=.02), but not white MSM (P=.14). In adjusted multivariate models, VBTS-recruited MSM had fewer total partners (risk ratio [RR]=0.78, 95% CI 0.64-0.95; P=.01) and unprotected anal intercourse (UAI) partners (RR=0.54, 95% CI 0.40-0.72; P<.001) in the previous 12 months. No significant differences were observed in HIV testing or HIV/STI prevalence. Retention to the 24-month visit varied from 81% for black and 70% for white MSM recruited via Facebook, to 77% for black and 78% for white MSM recruited at venues. There was no statistically significant differences in retention between the four groups (log-rank P=.64). Conclusions VBTS and Facebook recruitment methods yielded similar samples of MSM in terms of HIV-testing patterns, and prevalence of HIV/STI, with no differences in study retention. Most Facebook-recruited men also attended venues where VTBS recruitment was conducted. Surveillance and research studies may recruit via Facebook with little evidence of bias, relative to VBTS. PMID:25048694

Can Facebook Be Used for Research? Experiences Using Facebook to Recruit Pregnant Women for a Randomized Controlled Trial

PubMed Central

Adam, Laura M; Manca, Donna P

2016-01-01

Background Recruitment is often a difficult and costly part of any human research study. Social media and other emerging means of mass communication hold promise as means to complement traditional strategies used for recruiting participants because they can reach a large number of people in a short amount of time. With the ability to target a specified audience, paid Facebook advertisements have potential to reach future research participants of a specific demographic. This paper describes the experiences of a randomized controlled trial in Edmonton, Alberta, attempting to recruit healthy pregnant women between 8 and 20 weeks’ gestation for participation in a prenatal study. Various traditional recruitment approaches, in addition to paid Facebook advertisements were trialed. Objective To evaluate the effectiveness of paid advertisements on Facebook as a platform for recruiting pregnant women to a randomized controlled trial in comparison with traditional recruitment approaches. Methods Recruitment using traditional approaches occurred for 7 months, whereas Facebook advertisements ran for a total of 26 days. Interested women were prompted to contact the study staff for a screening call to determine study eligibility. Costs associated with each recruitment approach were recorded and used to calculate the cost to recruit eligible participants. Performance of Facebook advertisements was monitored using Facebook Ads Manager. Results Of the 115 women included, 39.1% (n=45) of the women who contacted study staff heard about the study through Facebook, whereas 60.9% (n=70) of them heard about it through traditional recruitment approaches. During the 215 days (~7 months) that the traditional approaches were used, the average rate of interest was 0.3 (0.2) women/day, whereas the 26 days of Facebook advertisements resulted in an average rate of interest of 2.8 (1.7) women/day. Facebook advertisements cost Can $506.91 with a cost per eligible participant of Cad $20.28. In comparison, the traditional approaches cost Cad $1087, with approximately Cad $24.15 per eligible participant. Demographic characteristics of women were similar between the 2 recruitment methods except that women recruited using Facebook were significantly earlier in their pregnancy than those recruited using traditional approaches (P<.03). Conclusions Paid Facebook advertisements hold promise as a platform for reaching pregnant women. The relative ease of placing an advertisement, the comparable cost per participant recruited, and the dramatically improved recruitment rates in comparison with traditional approaches highlight the importance of combining novel and traditional recruitment approaches to recruit women for pregnancy-related studies. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02711644; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02711644 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6kKpagpMk) PMID:27655184

Using Information Technology and Social Networking for Recruitment of Research Participants: Experience From an Exploratory Study of Pediatric Klinefelter Syndrome

PubMed Central

Smaldone, Arlene; Fennoy, Ilene; Reame, Nancy; Grey, Margaret

2013-01-01

Background Recruiting pediatric samples for research may be challenging due to parental mistrust of the research process, privacy concerns, and family time constraints. Recruitment of children with chronic and genetic conditions may further complicate the enrollment process. Objective In this paper, we describe the methodological challenges of recruiting children for research and provide an exemplar of how the use of information technology (IT) strategies with social networking may improve access to difficult-to-reach pediatric research participants. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional descriptive study of boys between the ages of 8 and 18 years with Klinefelter syndrome. This study presented unique challenges for recruitment of pediatric participants. These challenges are illustrated by the report of recruitment activities developed for the study. We reviewed the literature to explore the issues of recruiting children for research using conventional and IT approaches. Success rates of conventional recruitment approaches, such as brochures, flyers in medical offices, and physician referrals, are compared with IT-based outreach. The IT approaches included teleconferencing via a Klinefelter syndrome support group, services of a Web-based commercial recruitment-matching company, and the development of a university-affiliated research recruitment website with the use of paid advertising on a social networking website (Facebook). Results Over a 3-month period, dissemination of over 150 recruitment brochures and flyers placed in a large urban hospital and hospital-affiliated clinical offices, with 850 letters to physicians and patients were not successful. Within the same period, face-to-face recruitment in the clinical setting yielded 4 (9%) participants. Using Web-based and social networking approaches, 39 (91%) agreed to participate in the study. With these approaches, 5 (12%) were recruited from the national Klinefelter syndrome advocacy group, 8 (19%) from local and teleconference support groups, 10 (23%) from a Web-based research recruitment program, and 16 (37%) from the university-affiliated recruitment website. For the initial 6 months, the university website was viewed approximately 2 to 3 times per day on average. An advertisement placed on a social networking site for 1 week increased website viewing to approximately 63 visits per day. Out of 112 families approached using all of these methods, 43 (38%) agreed to participate. Families who declined cited either travel distance to the study site (15, 22%) or unwillingness to disclose the Klinefelter syndrome diagnosis to their sons (54, 78%) as the reasons for nonparticipation. Conclusions Use of Web-based technologies enhances the recruitment of difficult-to-reach populations. Of the many approaches employed in this study, the university-affiliated recruitment website supported by a Facebook advertisement appeared to be the most successful. Research grant budgets should include expenses for website registration and maintenance fees as well as online advertisements on social networking websites. Tracking of recruitment referral sources may be helpful in planning future recruitment campaigns. PMID:23512442

Using information technology and social networking for recruitment of research participants: experience from an exploratory study of pediatric Klinefelter syndrome.

PubMed

Close, Sharron; Smaldone, Arlene; Fennoy, Ilene; Reame, Nancy; Grey, Margaret

2013-03-19

Recruiting pediatric samples for research may be challenging due to parental mistrust of the research process, privacy concerns, and family time constraints. Recruitment of children with chronic and genetic conditions may further complicate the enrollment process. In this paper, we describe the methodological challenges of recruiting children for research and provide an exemplar of how the use of information technology (IT) strategies with social networking may improve access to difficult-to-reach pediatric research participants. We conducted a cross-sectional descriptive study of boys between the ages of 8 and 18 years with Klinefelter syndrome. This study presented unique challenges for recruitment of pediatric participants. These challenges are illustrated by the report of recruitment activities developed for the study. We reviewed the literature to explore the issues of recruiting children for research using conventional and IT approaches. Success rates of conventional recruitment approaches, such as brochures, flyers in medical offices, and physician referrals, are compared with IT-based outreach. The IT approaches included teleconferencing via a Klinefelter syndrome support group, services of a Web-based commercial recruitment-matching company, and the development of a university-affiliated research recruitment website with the use of paid advertising on a social networking website (Facebook). Over a 3-month period, dissemination of over 150 recruitment brochures and flyers placed in a large urban hospital and hospital-affiliated clinical offices, with 850 letters to physicians and patients were not successful. Within the same period, face-to-face recruitment in the clinical setting yielded 4 (9%) participants. Using Web-based and social networking approaches, 39 (91%) agreed to participate in the study. With these approaches, 5 (12%) were recruited from the national Klinefelter syndrome advocacy group, 8 (19%) from local and teleconference support groups, 10 (23%) from a Web-based research recruitment program, and 16 (37%) from the university-affiliated recruitment website. For the initial 6 months, the university website was viewed approximately 2 to 3 times per day on average. An advertisement placed on a social networking site for 1 week increased website viewing to approximately 63 visits per day. Out of 112 families approached using all of these methods, 43 (38%) agreed to participate. Families who declined cited either travel distance to the study site (15, 22%) or unwillingness to disclose the Klinefelter syndrome diagnosis to their sons (54, 78%) as the reasons for nonparticipation. Use of Web-based technologies enhances the recruitment of difficult-to-reach populations. Of the many approaches employed in this study, the university-affiliated recruitment website supported by a Facebook advertisement appeared to be the most successful. Research grant budgets should include expenses for website registration and maintenance fees as well as online advertisements on social networking websites. Tracking of recruitment referral sources may be helpful in planning future recruitment campaigns.

Connecting communities to health research: development of the Project CONNECT minority research registry.

PubMed

Green, Melissa A; Kim, Mimi M; Barber, Sharrelle; Odulana, Abedowale A; Godley, Paul A; Howard, Daniel L; Corbie-Smith, Giselle M

2013-05-01

Prevention and treatment standards are based on evidence obtained in behavioral and clinical research. However, racial and ethnic minorities remain relatively absent from the science that develops these standards. While investigators have successfully recruited participants for individual studies using tailored recruitment methods, these strategies require considerable time and resources. Research registries, typically developed around a disease or condition, serve as a promising model for a targeted recruitment method to increase minority participation in health research. This study assessed the tailored recruitment methods used to populate a health research registry targeting African-American community members. We describe six recruitment methods applied between September 2004 and October 2008 to recruit members into a health research registry. Recruitment included direct (existing studies, public databases, community outreach) and indirect methods (radio, internet, and email) targeting the general population, local universities, and African American communities. We conducted retrospective analysis of the recruitment by method using descriptive statistics, frequencies, and chi-square statistics. During the recruitment period, 608 individuals enrolled in the research registry. The majority of enrollees were African American, female, and in good health. Direct and indirect methods were identified as successful strategies for subgroups. Findings suggest significant associations between recruitment methods and age, presence of existing health condition, prior research participation, and motivation to join the registry. A health research registry can be a successful tool to increase minority awareness of research opportunities. Multi-pronged recruitment approaches are needed to reach diverse subpopulations. Copyright © 2013. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Comparison of internet and mailing methods to recruit couples into research on unaided smoking cessation.

PubMed

Derrick, Jaye L; Eliseo-Arras, Rebecca K; Hanny, Courtney; Britton, Maggie; Haddad, Sana

2017-12-01

In smoking cessation studies with restrictive criteria (e.g., single-smoker couples), thousands of potential participants might need to be screened to obtain a reasonable sample size. Consideration of recruitment methodology is critical because recruitment methods influence both the success and cost effectiveness of recruitment. Although traditional recruitment methods are often used to recruit participants into smoking cessation research, newer technologies, such as paid Facebook advertising, might offer more cost-effective alternatives for recruitment. The current analysis compares two versions of paid Facebook advertising and a specialized mass mailing method used to recruit single-smoker couples into an intensive three-week study of unaided smoking cessation. The three methods are compared in terms of demographic characteristics, eligibility, and cost-effectiveness. Although Facebook's "Promote Your Page" mechanism achieved the fastest recruitment rate (2.75 couples per month; 498 USD per couple), Facebook's "Send People to Your Website" mechanism was the least expensive and provided the most demographically diverse sample (1.64 couples per month; 181 USD per couple). The specialized mailing method was not productive or cost-effective (0.80 couples per month; 454 USD per couple). Paid Facebook advertising fared better as a recruitment method than a specialized mailing method often used in survey research. Studies that have less restrictive eligibility criteria, that draw from a larger local population, or that recruit for a less intense study might find paid Facebook advertising to be quite feasible. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Connecting Communities to Health Research: Development of the Project CONNECT Minority Research Registry

PubMed Central

Green, Melissa A.; Kim, Mimi M.; Barber, Sharrelle; Odulana, Abedowale A.; Godley, Paul A.; Howard, Daniel L.; Corbie-Smith, Giselle M.

2013-01-01

Introduction Prevention and treatment standards are based on evidence obtained in behavioral and clinical research. However, racial and ethnic minorities remain relatively absent from the science that develops these standards. While investigators have successfully recruited participants for individual studies using tailored recruitment methods, these strategies require considerable time and resources. Research registries, typically developed around a disease or condition, serve as a promising model for a targeted recruitment method to increase minority participation in health research. This study assessed the tailored recruitment methods used to populate a health research registry targeting African-American community members. Methods We describe six recruitment methods applied between September 2004 and October 2008 to recruit members into a health research registry. Recruitment included direct (existing studies, public databases, community outreach) and indirect methods (radio, internet, and email) targeting the general population, local universities, and African American communities. We conducted retrospective analysis of the recruitment by method using descriptive statistics, frequencies, and chi-square statistics. Results During the recruitment period, 608 individuals enrolled in the research registry. The majority of enrollees were African American, female, and in good health. Direct and indirect methods were identified as successful strategies for subgroups. Findings suggest significant associations between recruitment methods and age, presence of existing health condition, prior research participation, and motivation to join the registry. Conclusions A health research registry can be a successful tool to increase minority awareness of research opportunities. Multi-pronged recruitment approaches are needed to reach diverse subpopulations. PMID:23340183

Recruiting Faculty Leaders at U.S. Medical Schools: A Process Without Improvement?

PubMed

Marsh, James D; Chod, Ronald

2017-11-01

Recruiting faculty leaders to work in colleges of medicine is a ubiquitous, time-consuming, costly activity. Little quantitative information is available about contemporary leadership recruiting processes and outcomes. In this article, the authors examine current recruiting methods and outcomes in colleges of medicine and compare academic search approaches with the approaches often employed in intellectual-capital-rich industries.In 2015, the authors surveyed chairs of internal medicine at U.S. medical schools regarding their recruiting practices and outcomes-specifically their selection methods, the duration of searches, the recruitment of women and minorities underrepresented in medicine (URM), and their satisfaction with search outcomes.The authors found that department chairs were extensively engaged in numerous searches for leaders. The recruitment process most commonly required 7 to 12 months from initiation to signed contract. Interestingly, longer searches (19+ months) were much more frequently associated with a recruitment outcome that chairs viewed as unsatisfactory or very unsatisfactory. Most leadership searches produced very few women and URM finalists. The biggest perceived hurdles to successful recruitment were the need to relocate the candidate and family and the shortage of good candidates.The process of recruiting leaders in academic medicine has changed little in more than 25 years. Process improvement is important and should entail carefully structured search processes, including both an overhaul of search committees and further emphasis on leadership development within the college of medicine. The authors propose specific steps to enhance recruitment of members of URM groups and women to leadership positions in academic medicine.

Successful minority recruitment and adherence in physical activity Internet-based research: the WIN study.

PubMed

Frierson, Georita M; Morrow, James R; Vidales, Andrew

2012-01-01

Researchers studying physical activity often face challenges dealing with recruitment and resources, particularly when conducting longitudinal Internet-based research. Commonly raised methodological problems such as minority recruitment, participant commitment, and participant-staff involvement are addressed through a theoretically driven recruitment and adherence protocol in The Women's Exercise Injuries: Incidence and Risk Factors (WIN) Internet-based study. The objectives of this paper were to review and suggest solutions to problems of: (1) low recruitment of diverse samples, (2) low adherence, and (3) staffing needs. We recruited 1303 community-dwelling women and followed them through a multiple-phase, longitudinal, Internet-based study. Recruitment and adherence data were analyzed through descriptive methods and logistic regressions to examine participant adherence and sociodemographic factors and predictors of who entered the long-term phase of the study. We successfully retained 71.6% of the sample through 4 recruitment phases. Twenty-seven percent of the initially recruited sample was racial/ethnically diverse, 24% began the long-term phase, and 23% completed. Several strategies to enhance participant commitment were successfully used during the practice phase, providing a successful, low staff to participant ratio. Logistic regression indicated being married, being older, and having greater Internet skills were predictive of successfully entering the long-term phase of the study. Recruitment and compliance protocols were successful in meeting overall and racial/ethnic enrollment and recruitment goals. The theoretically based practice phase techniques were successful in re-engaging noncompliant participants. Strategies for minority enrollment and compliance are evaluated.

Effect of motor unit recruitment on functional vasodilatation in hamster retractor muscle

PubMed Central

Van Teeffelen, Jurgen W G E; Segal, Steven S

2000-01-01

The effect of motor unit recruitment on functional vasodilatation was investigated in hamster retractor muscle. Recruitment (i.e. peak tension) was controlled with voltage applied to the spinal accessory nerve (high = maximum tension; intermediate = ∼50% maximum; low = ∼25% maximum). Vasodilatory responses (diameter × time integral, DTI) to rhythmic contractions (1 per 2 s for 65 s) were evaluated in first, second and third orderarterioles and in feed arteries. Reciprocal changes in duty cycle (range, 2·5–25 %) effectively maintained the total active tension (tension × time integral, TTI) constant across recruitment levels. With constant TTI and stimulation frequency (40 Hz), DTI in all vessels increased with motor unit recruitment. DTI increased from distal arterioles up through proximal feed arteries. To determine whether the effect of recruitment on DTI was due to increased peak tension, the latter was controlled with stimulation frequency (15, 20 and 40 Hz) during maximum (high) recruitment. With constant TTI, DTI then decreased as peak tension increased. To explore the interaction between recruitment and duty cycle on DTI, each recruitment level was applied at 2.5, 10 and 20 % duty cycle (at 40 Hz). For a given increase in TTI, recruitment had a greater effect on DTI than did duty cycle. Functional vasodilatation in response to rhythmic contractions is facilitated by motor unit recruitment. Thus, vasodilatory responses are determined not only by the total tension produced, but also by the number of active motor units. PMID:10747197

Population-based recruitment for quit-smoking programs: an analytic review of communication variables.

PubMed

McDonald, P W

1999-06-01

Attempts to reduce the prevalence of smoking through quit-smoking programs have been unsuccessful because they have not attracted large numbers of smokers to participate in them. An analytic review of the literature was conducted to identify potential communication variables that might enhance recruitment for community-based quit-smoking programs. Recruitment was defined as the number of smokers who enroll in a quit-smoking program divided by the estimated number of smokers in the target population. Thirty-three publications reporting the results of 40 recruitment campaigns were located. The median recruitment rate was 2.0%. Logistic regression was used to examine the effect of six variables on recruitment rate: the type of program sponsor, the type of program, program costs, use of participation incentives, whether messages were segmented by stage of change, and the type of channel used to send messages. The only significant predictor of recruitment rate was channel type (i.e., the method used to deliver a message). Studies that used interactive recruitment channels (telephone, interpersonal communication) were 66.5 times more effective than those using passive recruitment strategies (mass media, direct mail). Results examining the segmentation of messages by stage of change on recruitment were inconclusive. Results suggest that researchers and practitioners interested in population-based smoking cessation programs should pay more attention to recruitment methods. The use of interpersonal channels has been underused and appears to be particularly promising for improving the population impact of quit-smoking programs.

Effective and cost-effective clinical trial recruitment strategies for postmenopausal women in a community-based, primary care setting.

PubMed

Butt, Debra A; Lock, Michael; Harvey, Bart J

2010-09-01

Little evidence exists to guide investigators on the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of various recruitment strategies in primary care research. The purpose of this study is to describe the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of eight clinical trial recruitment methods for postmenopausal women in a community-based setting. A retrospective analysis of the yield and cost of eight different recruitment methods: 1) family physician (FP) recruiters, 2) FP referrals, 3) community presentations, 4) community events, 5) newsletters, 6) direct mailings, 7) posters, and 8) newspaper advertisements that were used to recruit postmenopausal women to a randomized clinical trial (RCT) evaluating the effectiveness of gabapentin in treating hot flashes. We recruited 197 postmenopausal women from a total of 904 screened, with 291 of the remainder being ineligible and 416 declining to participate. Of the 904 women screened, 34 (3.8%) were from FP recruiters and 35 (3.9%) were from other FP referrals while 612 (67.7%) resulted from newspaper advertisements. Of the 197 women enrolled, 141 (72%) were from newspaper advertisements, with 26 (13%) following next from posters. Word of mouth was identified as an additional unanticipated study recruitment strategy. Metropolitan newspaper advertising at $112.73 (Canadian) per enrolled participant and posters at $119.98 were found to be cost-effective recruitment methods. Newspaper advertisements were the most successful method to recruit postmenopausal women into a community-based, primary care RCT. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A Diversified Recruitment Approach Incorporating Social Media Leads to Research Participation Among Young Adult-Aged Female Cancer Survivors.

PubMed

Gorman, Jessica R; Roberts, Samantha C; Dominick, Sally A; Malcarne, Vanessa L; Dietz, Andrew C; Su, H Irene

2014-06-01

Purpose: Cancer survivors in their adolescent and young adult (AYA) years are an understudied population, possibly in part because of the high effort required to recruit them into research studies. The aim of this paper is to describe the specific recruitment strategies used in four studies recruiting AYA-aged female cancer survivors and to identify the highest yielding approaches. We also discuss challenges and recommendations. Methods: We recruited AYA-aged female cancer survivors for two studies conducted locally and two conducted nationally. Recruitment strategies included outreach and referral via: healthcare providers and clinics; social media and the internet; community and word of mouth; and a national fertility information hotline. We calculated the yield of each recruitment approach for the local and national studies by comparing the number that participated to the number of potential participants. Results: We recruited a total of 534 participants into four research studies. Seventy-one percent were diagnosed as young adults and 61% were within 3 years of their cancer diagnosis. The highest-yielding local recruitment strategy was healthcare provider and clinic referral. Nationally, social media and internet outreach yielded the highest rate of participation. Overall, internet-based recruitment resulted in the highest number and yield of participants. Conclusion: Our results suggest that outreach through social media and the internet are effective approaches to recruiting AYA-aged female cancer survivors. Forging collaborative relationships with survivor advocacy groups' members and healthcare providers also proved beneficial.

A Diversified Recruitment Approach Incorporating Social Media Leads to Research Participation Among Young Adult-Aged Female Cancer Survivors

PubMed Central

Gorman, Jessica R.; Roberts, Samantha C.; Dominick, Sally A.; Malcarne, Vanessa L.; Dietz, Andrew C.

2014-01-01

Purpose: Cancer survivors in their adolescent and young adult (AYA) years are an understudied population, possibly in part because of the high effort required to recruit them into research studies. The aim of this paper is to describe the specific recruitment strategies used in four studies recruiting AYA-aged female cancer survivors and to identify the highest yielding approaches. We also discuss challenges and recommendations. Methods: We recruited AYA-aged female cancer survivors for two studies conducted locally and two conducted nationally. Recruitment strategies included outreach and referral via: healthcare providers and clinics; social media and the internet; community and word of mouth; and a national fertility information hotline. We calculated the yield of each recruitment approach for the local and national studies by comparing the number that participated to the number of potential participants. Results: We recruited a total of 534 participants into four research studies. Seventy-one percent were diagnosed as young adults and 61% were within 3 years of their cancer diagnosis. The highest-yielding local recruitment strategy was healthcare provider and clinic referral. Nationally, social media and internet outreach yielded the highest rate of participation. Overall, internet-based recruitment resulted in the highest number and yield of participants. Conclusion: Our results suggest that outreach through social media and the internet are effective approaches to recruiting AYA-aged female cancer survivors. Forging collaborative relationships with survivor advocacy groups' members and healthcare providers also proved beneficial. PMID:24940529

Identifying British Army infantry recruit population characteristics using biographical data.

PubMed

Kiernan, M D; Arthur, A; Repper, J; Mukhuty, S; Fear, N T

2016-04-01

The infantry accounts for more than a quarter of the British Army but there is a lack of data about the social and educational background of its recruits. To provide an insight into British Army infantry recruits' personal, social and educational background prior to enlistment. The study sample consisted of infantry recruits who enlisted into the British Army School of Infantry. Each recruit completed a 95-item biographical questionnaire. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the sample in terms of demographic, physical, personal, social and educational attributes. The study sample consisted of 1000 male recruits. Over half of the recruits were consuming alcohol at a hazardous or harmful level prior to enlistment and 60% of recruits had used cannabis prior to joining the Army. Academic attainment was low, with the majority of recruits achieving GCSE grade C and below in most subjects, with 15% not taking any examinations. Over half the recruits had been in trouble with the police and either been suspended or expelled from school. Substance misuse and poor behaviour are highly prevalent among recruits prior to enlistment. Taken alongside existing evidence that some of these problems are commonplace among personnel in regular service, the assumption that the British Army infantry is, in itself, a cause of these behaviours should be questioned. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society of Occupational Medicine. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

28 CFR 92.8 - Providing recruitment services.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Providing recruitment services. 92.8 Section 92.8 Judicial Administration DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE (CONTINUED) OFFICE OF COMMUNITY ORIENTED POLICING SERVICES (COPS) Police Recruitment Program Guidelines § 92.8 Providing recruitment services. The...

28 CFR 92.8 - Providing recruitment services.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Providing recruitment services. 92.8 Section 92.8 Judicial Administration DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE (CONTINUED) OFFICE OF COMMUNITY ORIENTED POLICING SERVICES (COPS) Police Recruitment Program Guidelines § 92.8 Providing recruitment services. The...

28 CFR 92.8 - Providing recruitment services.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Providing recruitment services. 92.8 Section 92.8 Judicial Administration DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE (CONTINUED) OFFICE OF COMMUNITY ORIENTED POLICING SERVICES (COPS) Police Recruitment Program Guidelines § 92.8 Providing recruitment services. The...

28 CFR 92.8 - Providing recruitment services.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Providing recruitment services. 92.8 Section 92.8 Judicial Administration DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE (CONTINUED) OFFICE OF COMMUNITY ORIENTED POLICING SERVICES (COPS) Police Recruitment Program Guidelines § 92.8 Providing recruitment services. The...

Recruitment and Training. Symposium.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

2002

This document contains three papers from a symposium on recruitment and training. "College Choice: The State of Marketing and Effective Student Recruitment Strategies" (Fredrick Muyia Nafukho, Michael F. Burnett) reports on a study of the recruitment strategies used by Louisiana State University's admissions office and College of…

10 CFR 1042.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 10 Energy 4 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Recruitment. 1042.510 Section 1042.510 Energy DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY (GENERAL PROVISIONS) NONDISCRIMINATION ON THE BASIS OF SEX IN EDUCATION PROGRAMS OR... Education Programs or Activities Prohibited § 1042.510 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and...

49 CFR 25.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 49 Transportation 1 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Recruitment. 25.510 Section 25.510 Transportation Office of the Secretary of Transportation NONDISCRIMINATION ON THE BASIS OF SEX IN EDUCATION PROGRAMS OR... Education Programs or Activities Prohibited § 25.510 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and...

48 CFR 731.373 - Overseas recruitment incentive.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 5 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Overseas recruitment... Educational Institutions 731.373 Overseas recruitment incentive. USAID's policies regarding overseas recruitment incentives are set forth in AIDAR 731.205-70. These policies are also applicable to contracts with...

Evaluating strategies and costs to recruit smokeless tobacco users.

PubMed

Boyle, Raymond G; Enstad, Chris; Asche, Stephen E; Thoele, Merry J; Sherwood, Nancy E

2007-12-01

We recruited smokeless tobacco users throughout Minnesota to participate in a trial testing telephone counseling versus a written self-help manual for cessation. This paper describes the recruitment strategies applied on a state-wide basis. We established a recruitment tracking system to monitor weekly rates of screened callers and returned consents, allowing us to adjust future recruitment efforts. Screening was completed with 783 callers, with 406 subjects enrolled. Overall 44% of initial contacts and 52% of those screened enrolled in the study. The overall average cost per consented subject was $99. Sports talk radio, small print ads, and newspaper articles based on press releases were consistently effective channels for recruitment. The overall cost was expensive but reflected the geographic diversity of recruitment and the prevalence of oral snuff use.

Strategies to support recruitment of patients with life-limiting illness for research: the Palliative Care Research Cooperative Group.

PubMed

Hanson, Laura C; Bull, Janet; Wessell, Kathryn; Massie, Lisa; Bennett, Rachael E; Kutner, Jean S; Aziz, Noreen M; Abernethy, Amy

2014-12-01

The Palliative Care Research Cooperative Group (PCRC) is the first clinical trials cooperative for palliative care in the U.S. To describe barriers and strategies for recruitment during the inaugural PCRC clinical trial. The parent study was a multisite randomized controlled trial enrolling adults with life expectancy anticipated to be one to six months, randomized to discontinue statins (intervention) vs. to continue on statins (control). To study recruitment best practices, we conducted semistructured interviews with 18 site principal investigators (PIs) and clinical research coordinators (CRCs) and reviewed recruitment rates. Interviews covered three topics: 1) successful strategies for recruitment, 2) barriers to recruitment, and 3) optimal roles of the PI and CRC. All eligible site PIs and CRCs completed interviews and provided data on statin protocol recruitment. The parent study completed recruitment of 381 patients. Site enrollment ranged from 1 to 109 participants, with an average of 25 enrolled per site. Five major barriers included difficulty locating eligible patients, severity of illness, family and provider protectiveness, seeking patients in multiple settings, and lack of resources for recruitment activities. Five effective recruitment strategies included systematic screening of patient lists, thoughtful messaging to make research relevant, flexible protocols to accommodate patients' needs, support from clinical champions, and the additional resources of a trials cooperative group. The recruitment experience from the multisite PCRC yields new insights into methods for effective recruitment to palliative care clinical trials. These results will inform training materials for the PCRC and may assist other investigators in the field. Copyright © 2014 American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of active and passive recruitment methods used in randomized controlled trials targeting pediatric obesity

PubMed Central

RAYNOR, HOLLIE A.; OSTERHOLT, KATHRIN M.; HART, CHANTELLE N.; JELALIAN, ELISSA; VIVIER, PATRICK; WING, RENA R.

2016-01-01

Objective Evaluate enrollment numbers, randomization rates, costs, and cost-effectiveness of active versus passive recruitment methods for parent-child dyads into two pediatric obesity intervention trials. Methods Recruitment methods were categorized into active (pediatrician referral and targeted mailings, with participants identified by researcher/health care provider) versus passive methods (newspaper, bus, internet, television, and earning statements; fairs/community centers/schools; and word of mouth; with participants self-identified). Numbers of enrolled and randomized families and costs/recruitment method were monitored throughout the 22-month recruitment period. Costs (in USD) per recruitment method included staff time, mileage, and targeted costs of each method. Results A total of 940 families were referred or made contact, with 164 families randomized (child: 7.2±1.6 years, 2.27±0.61 standardized body mass index [zBMI], 86.6% obese, 61.7% female, 83.5% white; parent: 38.0±5.8 years, 32.9±8.4 BMI, 55.2% obese, 92.7% female, 89.6% white). Pediatrician referral, followed by targeted mailings, produced the largest number of enrolled and randomized families (both methods combined producing 87.2% of randomized families). Passive recruitment methods yielded better retention from enrollment to randomization (p <0.05), but produced few families (21 in total). Approximately $91 000 was spent on recruitment, with cost per randomized family at $554.77. Pediatrician referral was the most cost-effective method, $145.95/randomized family, but yielded only 91 randomized families over 22-months of continuous recruitment. Conclusion Pediatrician referral and targeted mailings, which are active recruitment methods, were the most successful strategies. However, recruitment demanded significant resources. Successful recruitment for pediatric trials should use several strategies. Clinical Trials Registration: NCT00259324, NCT00200265 PMID:19922036

Psychological aptitude evaluation of the special forces candidate.

PubMed

Genoni, Luca; Jelmini, F; Lang, M; Muggli, F

2017-02-01

Changes in recruitment procedures reduced early dismissal rates from Swiss military basic recruitment schools; however, such improvements were not reflected in premature discharge rates from the special forces (SF) (Grenadier) recruitment school. A six-item questionnaire designed to identify recruits likely to be subject to premature dismissal on psychological or psychiatric grounds was developed and prospectively validated. The questionnaire was based on an analysis of medical and psychiatric/psychological records of 26 recruits dismissed from a SF recruitment school. Six items were identified that appeared to have prognostic value for early discharge. These six questions were submitted to the remaining applicants in the recruitment school by a suitably qualified psychologist or psychiatrist and effectively identified candidates who would be discharged early. Based on these results a 0-6 scale was developed and applied prospectively to subsequent Grenadier recruitment courses. Statistical analysis showed that 75% of candidates with the lowest scores would eventually complete the course and that no candidates with highest scores would subsequently complete the recruitment course. Prospective studies in subsequent recruitment courses candidates with high scores were classified as not qualified to enter the course, and those with intermediate scores were subject to additional in-depth interviews with a psychologist or psychiatrist to determine their suitability. In the following courses a correlation was established between the questionnaire score and week of discharge for those discharged. Application of this method during subsequent recruitment courses has reduced early dismissal from Swiss SF recruitment schools. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

A cluster randomised controlled trial evaluating the effectiveness of eHealth-supported patient recruitment in primary care research: the TRANSFoRm study protocol.

PubMed

Mastellos, Nikolaos; Andreasson, Anna; Huckvale, Kit; Larsen, Mark; Curcin, Vasa; Car, Josip; Agreus, Lars; Delaney, Brendan

2015-02-03

Opportunistic recruitment is a highly laborious and time-consuming process that is currently performed manually, increasing the workload of already busy practitioners and resulting in many studies failing to achieve their recruitment targets. The Translational Medicine and Patient Safety in Europe (TRANSFoRm) platform enables automated recruitment, data collection and follow-up of patients, potentially improving the efficiency, time and costs of clinical research. This study aims to assess the effectiveness of TRANSFoRm in improving patient recruitment and follow-up in primary care trials. This multi-centre, parallel-arm cluster randomised controlled trial will compare TRANSFoRm-supported with standard opportunistic recruitment. Participants will be general practitioners and patients with gastro-oesophageal reflux disease from 40 primary care centres in five European countries. Randomisation will take place at the care centre level. The intervention arm will use the TRANSFoRm tools for recruitment, baseline data collection and follow-up. The control arm will use web-based case report forms and paper self-completed questionnaires. The primary outcome will be the proportion of eligible patients successfully recruited at the end of the 16-week recruitment period. Secondary outcomes will include the proportion of recruited patients with complete baseline and follow-up data and the proportion of participants withdrawn or lost to follow-up. The study will also include an economic evaluation and measures of technology acceptance and user experience. The study should shed light on the use of eHealth to improve the effectiveness of recruitment and follow-up in primary care research and provide an evidence base for future eHealth-supported recruitment initiatives. Reporting of results is expected in October 2015. EudraCT: 2014-001314-25.

Evaluation of active and passive recruitment methods used in randomized controlled trials targeting pediatric obesity.

PubMed

Raynor, Hollie A; Osterholt, Kathrin M; Hart, Chantelle N; Jelalian, Elissa; Vivier, Patrick; Wing, Rena R

2009-01-01

Evaluate enrollment numbers, randomization rates, costs, and cost-effectiveness of active versus passive recruitment methods for parent-child dyads into two pediatric obesity intervention trials. Recruitment methods were categorized into active (pediatrician referral and targeted mailings, with participants identified by researcher/health care provider) versus passive methods (newspaper, bus, internet, television, and earning statements; fairs/community centers/schools; and word of mouth; with participants self-identified). Numbers of enrolled and randomized families and costs/recruitment method were monitored throughout the 22-month recruitment period. Costs (in USD) per recruitment method included staff time, mileage, and targeted costs of each method. A total of 940 families were referred or made contact, with 164 families randomized (child: 7.2+/-1.6 years, 2.27+/-0.61 standardized body mass index [zBMI], 86.6% obese, 61.7% female, 83.5% Caucasian; parent: 38.0+/-5.8 years, 32.9+/-8.4 BMI, 55.2% obese, 92.7% female, 89.6% caucasian). Pediatrician referral, followed by targeted mailings, produced the largest number of enrolled and randomized families (both methods combined producing 87.2% of randomized families). Passive recruitment methods yielded better retention from enrollment to randomization (p<0.05), but produced few families (21 in total). Approximately $91,000 was spent on recruitment, with cost per randomized family at $554.77. Pediatrician referral was the most cost-effective method, $145.95/randomized family, but yielded only 91 randomized families over 22-months of continuous recruitment. Pediatrician referral and targeted mailings, which are active recruitment methods, were the most successful strategies. However, recruitment demanded significant resources. Successful recruitment for pediatric trials should use several strategies. NCT00259324, NCT00200265.

Overcoming Recruitment Challenges of Web-based Interventions for Tobacco Use: The Case of Web-based Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Smoking Cessation

PubMed Central

Heffner, Jaimee L; Wyszynski, Christopher M; Comstock, Bryan; Mercer, Laina D.; Bricker, Jonathan

2013-01-01

Web-based behavioral interventions for substance use are being developed at a rapid pace, yet there is a dearth of information regarding the most effective methods for recruiting participants into web-based intervention trials. In this paper, we describe our successful recruitment of participants into a pilot trial of web-based Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) for smoking cessation and compare traditional and web-based methods of recruitment in terms of their effects on baseline participant characteristics, association with study retention and treatment outcome, yield, and cost-effectiveness. Over a 10-week period starting June 15, 2010, we recruited 222 smokers for a web-based smoking cessation study using a variety of recruitment methods. The largest portion of randomized participants were recruited through Google AdWords (36%), followed by medical Internet media (23%), standard media (14%), word of mouth (12%), broadcast emails (11%), and social media (6%). Recruitment source was not related to baseline participant characteristics, 3-month data retention, or 30-day point prevalence smoking abstinence at the 3-month outcome assessment. Cost per randomized participant ranged from $5.27/participant for word of mouth to $172.76/participant for social media, with a mean cost of $42.48/participant. Our diversified approach to recruitment, including both traditional and web-based methods, enabled timely enrollment of participants into the study. Because there was no evidence of a substantive difference in baseline characteristics, retention, or outcomes based on recruitment channel, the yield and cost-effectiveness of recruitment methods may be the more critical considerations in developing a feasible recruitment plan for a web-based smoking cessation intervention study. PMID:23770645

Overcoming recruitment challenges of web-based interventions for tobacco use: the case of web-based acceptance and commitment therapy for smoking cessation.

PubMed

Heffner, Jaimee L; Wyszynski, Christopher M; Comstock, Bryan; Mercer, Laina D; Bricker, Jonathan

2013-10-01

Web-based behavioral interventions for substance use are being developed at a rapid pace, yet there is a dearth of information regarding the most effective methods for recruiting participants into web-based intervention trials. In this paper, we describe our successful recruitment of participants into a pilot trial of web-based Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) for smoking cessation and compare traditional and web-based methods of recruitment in terms of their effects on baseline participant characteristics, association with study retention and treatment outcome, yield, and cost-effectiveness. Over a 10-week period starting June 15, 2010, we recruited 222 smokers for a web-based smoking cessation study using a variety of recruitment methods. The largest portion of randomized participants were recruited through Google AdWords (36%), followed by medical Internet media (23%), standard media (14%), word of mouth (12%), broadcast emails (11%), and social media (6%). Recruitment source was not related to baseline participant characteristics, 3-month data retention, or 30-day point prevalence smoking abstinence at the 3-month outcome assessment. Cost per randomized participant ranged from $5.27/participant for word of mouth to $172.76/participant for social media, with a mean cost of $42.48/participant. Our diversified approach to recruitment, including both traditional and web-based methods, enabled timely enrollment of participants into the study. Because there was no evidence of a substantive difference in baseline characteristics, retention, or outcomes based on recruitment channel, the yield and cost-effectiveness of recruitment methods may be the more critical considerations in developing a feasible recruitment plan for a web-based smoking cessation intervention study. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Responding to a Significant Recruitment Challenge within Three Nationwide Psycho-Educational Trials for Cancer Patients

PubMed Central

Stanton, Annette L.; Morra, Marion E.; Miller, Suzanne M.; Diefenbach, Michael A.; Slevin-Perocchia, Rosemarie; Raich, Peter C.; Fleisher, Linda; Wen, Kuang-Yi; Tran, Zung Vu; Mohamed, Nihal E.; George, Roshini; Bright, Mary Anne; Marcus, Alfred C.

2013-01-01

Purpose When faced with a significant recruitment challenge for three nationwide psycho-educational trials targeting prostate and breast cancer patients, the Cancer Information Service Research Consortium initiated outreach efforts to increase accrual. Recruitment is reported by major outreach strategy to inform the use of similar campaigns, either as primary recruitment efforts or to supplement “in-reach” recruitment within oncology settings. Methods During a 33-month period, recruitment was tracked from the National Cancer Institute’s Cancer Information Service (CIS), the American Cancer Society (ACS), Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation’s Love/Avon Army of Women (AOW), Internet advertising, press releases, radio/television interviews, recruitment materials in community venues, and outreach to churches and cancer support organizations. Results Across projects, the majority (89%) of recruited participants (N = 2,134) was obtained from the CIS (n = 901, 19 months of recruitment), AOW (n = 869, 18 months), and ACS (n = 123, 12 months). Other efforts showed minimal gain in recruitment. Conclusions Cancer information programs (e.g., CIS, ACS) and registries of individuals willing to participate in cancer-related research (e.g., AOW) can represent exceptional resources for outreach recruitment of cancer patients, especially when the eligibility criteria are highly restrictive. However, these resources do not yield samples representative of the larger population of adults diagnosed with cancer, and conclusions from such trials must be tempered accordingly. Implications for cancer survivors Inadequate recruitment to randomized controlled trials limits the creation of useful interventions for cancer survivors. By enrolling in cancer registries and taking part in research, cancer survivors can contribute to the development of effective resources for the survivor population. PMID:23595235

Recruitment patterns, low cannibalism and reduced interspecific predation contribute to high invasion success of two Pacific crabs in northwestern Europe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Geburzi, Jonas C.; Brandis, Dirk; Buschbaum, Christian

2018-01-01

Life-history traits and interactions with native species play an important role for the successful establishment of non-native species in new habitats. We investigated the recent successful invasion of the Pacific crabs Hemigrapsus takanoi and H. sanguineus to the southeastern North Sea coast with respect to their recruitment patterns, as well as interactions of juvenile with sub-adult individuals among the Pacific crabs and with native shore crabs Carcinus maenas. A field survey of juvenile native and introduced crab abundances (carapace width 1.4-10 mm) was conducted in the northern Wadden Sea, spanning 24 months from 2014 to 2016. The survey revealed different seasonal recruitment patterns of native C. maenas and both introduced Hemigrapsus species. Native shore crabs showed a single recruitment peak from June to July, while Hemigrapsus spp. mainly recruited from August to early September, but recruits occurred in low densities throughout the winter until the end of the following spring season. Field experiments on the effects of larger crabs on the recruitment intensity showed that recruitment of H. takanoi was enhanced by the presence of larger congeners, but remained unaffected by larger C. maenas. Recruitment of juvenile C. maenas, by contrast, was reduced by the presence of larger Hemigrapsus spp. Additional laboratory experiments revealed high rates of cannibalism on newly recruited C. maenas by subadult conspecifics as well as strong predation by larger Hemigrapsus spp. In contrast, newly recruited Hemigrapsus spp. had a much lower risk of being preyed on by subadult conspecifics and native shore crabs. Our results suggest that the timing of recruitment in combination with low intraspecific competition and reduced predation pressure by native shore crabs are crucial for the rapid and ongoing establishment of Hemigrapsus spp. in the Wadden Sea.

Quantitative and Qualitative Effectiveness Dimensions of the U.S. Coast Guard Recruiting Program.

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-06-01

of the recruiting program’s ou-put in qualitative form as well as the practical exercise of this thesis’ recommendations. In order to describe...i- nually investigating the relationships between the vaicus elements of the recruiting program and their octent-ial ’t 41 postively impact the...to identify and promote desirable recruiting behaviors, the recruiting management (Headquarters level) can exercise considerable control over the

Clinical trials: the challenge of recruitment and retention of participants.

PubMed

Gul, Raisa B; Ali, Parveen A

2010-01-01

This article, based on the available literature, attempts to discuss the importance of recruitment and retention of research participants, the associated barriers and challenges, and various strategies to overcome these barriers. The inability to recruit and retain the required participants in a research project poses serious threats to both the internal and the external validity of a research study. Despite serious implications, the issues of recruitment and retention do not receive due attention in research and publications. Literature suggests a lack of coordinated efforts to collect information on the outcomes of recruitment experiences in clinical trials and population studies. Studies often mention the number of participants who refuse to participate; however, the majority of the studies often fail to mention the specific reasons insufficient recruitment or retention of the participants. A methodological paper. Various participant-, context-, environment- and research-related factors are examined that affect the phenomenon of recruitment and retention of the participants in a study. Delayed or inefficient recruitment also has financial and ethical implications. Although there are many pieces of information scattered throughout academic journals on recruitment and retention of participants in research, few authors have dealt with the issue holistically. It is imperative for researchers to understand the importance of recruitment and retention of research participants, the associated barriers and challenges, and various strategies to overcome these barriers. Appropriate recording and reporting of the problems faced while recruiting and retaining the participants in research studies can help not only in understating the challenge, but will also help in devising the strategies to overcome this problem. This article was an attempt to synthesise and review the available literature on recruitment and retention issues, which demand extensive theoretical and conceptual thinking as part of the research design. An understanding of the challenges and issues related to recruitment and retention can help researchers to think ahead about the strategies to overcome these issues and consequently save the time and energy of the participants, researchers and funding agencies.

[Strategies for Recruiting Women with Migration History Using the Example of The BaBi-Birth Cohort Study].

PubMed

Grosser, Angelique Martha; Höller-Holtrichter, Chantal; Doyle, Ina-Merle; Schmitz, Jutta; Hoffmann, Renata; Ergin-Akkoyun, Emine; Mauro, Antonia; Breckenkamp, Jürgen; Razum, Oliver; Spallek, Jacob

2018-06-11

Recruitment of participants from all population groups is a known challenge in social epidemiological research. A multitude of potentially useful strategies for the recruitment of ethnic minorities and certain migrant groups have been proposed. However, existing publications have not answered the question whether such strategies are applicable to a birth cohort study in Germany. The aim of the present study was to present recruitment strategies for migrants in a birth cohort using the example of the BaBi study. As a preparatory step, focus group discussions were conducted with pregnant and postpartum women and structured interviews with midwives and gynecologists in order to assess suitability of study information materials, questionnaires and language preferences. The pilot study, conducted from October 2013 to October 2016, tested different recruitment strategies. The entire recruitment period was accompanied by continuous evaluation in order to assess and adapt the process to ensure successful recruitment of migrants. Of the 980 participants, 390 had a migration background (40%). Both active and passive recruitment strategies were explored in which Turkish language translations and multicultural personnel were used. Passive recruitment via gynecological practices and midwives required pregnant women to have high levels of motivation. Active recruitment in postnatal wards (where women were approached by study nurses after birth) increased the proportion of participants with a migration background from 22 to 49%. Early monitoring of our recruitment strategy thus enabled us to improve participation rates. For recruitment of women with a migration background, it is crucial to use both careful preparation in the form of qualitative measures (focus groups, structured interviews) and a pilot study. Extra resources should be planned from the beginning for diverse recruitment strategies and a higher personnel demand (e. g., for translations and back translations). Efforts for the inclusions of migrants in social epidemiological studies in Germany should be a routine process. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

Biotic interactions at hydrothermal vents: Recruitment inhibition by the mussel Bathymodiolus thermophilus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lenihan, H. S.; Mills, S. W.; Mullineaux, L. S.; Peterson, C. H.; Fisher, C. R.; Micheli, F.

2008-12-01

The structure and dynamics of marine communities are regulated in part by variation in recruitment. As in other ecosystems, recruitment at deep-sea hydrothermal vents is controlled by the interplay of propagule supply and behavior, gradients in physical-chemical conditions, and biotic interactions during pre- and post-settlement periods. Recent research along the East Pacific Rise indicates that inhibition of recently settled larvae by mobile predators (mainly limpets) influences patterns of recruitment and subsequent community succession. We conducted a manipulative experiment at the same sites (˜2510 m water depth) to test whether high-density assemblages of the mussel Bathymodiolus thermophilus also inhibit recruitment. In a preliminary study, recruitment of vent invertebrates within the faunal zone dominated by B. thermophilus was strikingly different at two sites, East Wall and Worm Hole. East Wall had high densities of mussels but very low total recruitment. In contrast, Worm Hole had few mussels but high recruitment. Using the submersible Alvin, we transplanted a large number of mussels from East Wall to Worm Hole and quantified recruitment on basalt blocks placed in three treatments: (1) naturally high densities of mussels at East Wall; (2) naturally low densities of mussels at Worm Hole; and (3) high densities of transplanted mussels at Worm Hole. After 11 months, a total of 24 taxa had recruited to the basalt blocks. Recruitment was 44-60% lower in the transplanted high-density mussel patch at Worm Hole and the natural high-density patch at East Wall than within the natural low-density patch at Worm Hole. Biotic processes that may have caused the pattern of recruitment observed included predation of larvae via water filtration by mussels, larval avoidance of superior competitors, interference competition, and enhanced predation by species within the mussel-bed community. Our results indicate that biotic interactions affecting recruitment must be understood to explain patterns of invertebrate community organization and dynamics at hydrothermal vents.

Development of a framework to improve the process of recruitment to randomised controlled trials (RCTs): the SEAR (Screened, Eligible, Approached, Randomised) framework.

PubMed

Wilson, Caroline; Rooshenas, Leila; Paramasivan, Sangeetha; Elliott, Daisy; Jepson, Marcus; Strong, Sean; Birtle, Alison; Beard, David J; Halliday, Alison; Hamdy, Freddie C; Lewis, Rebecca; Metcalfe, Chris; Rogers, Chris A; Stein, Robert C; Blazeby, Jane M; Donovan, Jenny L

2018-01-19

Research has shown that recruitment to trials is a process that stretches from identifying potentially eligible patients, through eligibility assessment, to obtaining informed consent. The length and complexity of this pathway means that many patients do not have the opportunity to consider participation. This article presents the development of a simple framework to document, understand and improve the process of trial recruitment. Eight RCTs integrated a QuinteT Recruitment Intervention (QRI) into the main trial, feasibility or pilot study. Part of the QRI required mapping the patient recruitment pathway using trial-specific screening and recruitment logs. A content analysis compared the logs to identify aspects of the recruitment pathway and process that were useful in monitoring and improving recruitment. Findings were synthesised to develop an optimised simple framework that can be used in a wide range of RCTs. The eight trials recorded basic information about patients screened for trial participation and randomisation outcome. Three trials systematically recorded reasons why an individual was not enrolled in the trial, and further details why they were not eligible or approached, or declined randomisation. A framework to facilitate clearer recording of the recruitment process and reasons for non-participation was developed: SEAR - Screening, to identify potentially eligible trial participants; Eligibility, assessed against the trial protocol inclusion/exclusion criteria; Approach, the provision of oral and written information and invitation to participate in the trial, and Randomised or not, with the outcome of randomisation or treatment received. The SEAR framework encourages the collection of information to identify recruitment obstacles and facilitate improvements to the recruitment process. SEAR can be adapted to monitor recruitment to most RCTs, but is likely to add most value in trials where recruitment problems are anticipated or evident. Further work to test it more widely is recommended.

Factors influencing elk recruitment across ecotypes in the Western United States

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lukacs, Paul M.; Mitchell, Michael S.; Hebblewhite, Mark; Johnson, Bruce K.; Johnson, Heather; Kauffman, Matthew J.; Proffitt, Kelly M.; Zager, Peter; Brodie, Jedediah; Hersey, Kent R.; Holland, A. Andrew; Hurley, Mark; McCorquodale, Scott; Middleton, Arthur; Nordhagen, Matthew; Nowak, J. Joshua; Walsh, Daniel P.; White, P.J.

2018-01-01

Ungulates are key components in ecosystems and economically important for sport and subsistence harvest. Yet the relative importance of the effects of weather conditions, forage productivity, and carnivores on ungulates are not well understood. We examined changes in elk (Cervus canadensis) recruitment (indexed as age ratios) across 7 states and 3 ecotypes in the northwestern United States during 1989–2010, while considering the effects of predator richness, forage productivity, and precipitation. We found a broad‐scale, long‐term decrease in elk recruitment of 0.48 juveniles/100 adult females/year. Weather conditions (indexed as summer and winter precipitation) showed small, but measurable, influences on recruitment. Forage productivity on summer and winter ranges (indexed by normalized difference vegetation index [NDVI] metrics) had the strongest effect on elk recruitment relative to other factors. Relationships between forage productivity and recruitment varied seasonally and regionally. The productivity of winter habitat was more important in southern parts of the study area, whereas annual variation in productivity of summer habitat had more influence on recruitment in northern areas. Elk recruitment varied by up to 15 juveniles/100 adult females across the range of variation in forage productivity. Areas with more species of large carnivores had relatively low elk recruitment, presumably because of increased predation. Wolves (Canis lupus) were associated with a decrease of 5 juveniles/100 adult females, whereas grizzly bears (Ursus arctos) were associated with an additional decrease of 7 juveniles/100 adult females. Carnivore species can have a critical influence on ungulate recruitment because their influence rivals large ranges of variation in environmental conditions. A more pressing concern, however, stems from persistent broad‐scale decreases in recruitment across the distribution of elk in the northwestern United States, irrespective of carnivore richness. Our results suggest that wildlife managers interested in improving recruitment of elk consider the combined effects of habitat and predators. Efforts to manage summer and winter ranges to increase forage productivity may have a positive effect on recruitment. 

"Don't wait for them to come to you, you go to them". A qualitative study of recruitment approaches in community based walking programmes in the UK.

PubMed

Matthews, Anne; Brennan, Graham; Kelly, Paul; McAdam, Chloe; Mutrie, Nanette; Foster, Charles

2012-08-10

This study aimed to examine the experiences of walking promotion professionals on the range and effectiveness of recruitment strategies used within community based walking programmes within the United Kingdom. Two researchers recruited and conducted semi-structured interviews with managers and project co-ordinators of community based walking programmes, across the UK, using a purposive sampling frame. Twenty eight interviews were conducted, with community projects targeting participants by age, physical activity status, socio-demographic characteristics (i.e. ethnic group) or by health status. Three case studies were also conducted with programmes aiming to recruit priority groups and also demonstrating innovative recruitment methods. Data analysis adopted an approach using analytic induction. Two types of programmes were identified: those with explicit health aims and those without. Programme aims which required targeting of specific groups adopted more specific recruitment methods. The selection of recruitment method was dependent on the respondent's awareness of 'what works' and the resource capacity at their disposal. Word of mouth was perceived to be the most effective means of recruitment but using this approach took time and effort to build relationships with target groups, usually through a third party. Perceived effectiveness of recruitment was assessed by number of participants rather than numbers of the right participants. Some programmes, particularly those targeting younger adult participants, recruited using new social communication media. Where adopted, social marketing recruitment strategies tended to promote the 'social' rather than the 'health' benefits of walking. Effective walking programme recruitment seems to require trained, strategic, labour intensive, word-of-mouth communication, often in partnerships, in order to understand needs and develop trust and motivation within disengaged sedentary communities. Walking promotion professionals require better training and resources to deliver appropriate recruitment strategies to reach priority groups.

Preparing Alumni for Student Recruitment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mount, Brian

As recruitment budgets continue to tighten and with fewer colleges reporting application increases for their freshmen classes, enrollment managers must continue to explore all potential sources of recruitment talent. Alumni are often an underutilized or sometimes poorly utilized resource in recruitment efforts. Younger alumni, for example, may…

RECRUITMENT AND FIELD SAMPLING IN THE CTEPP NORTH CAROLINA AND OHIO FIELD STUDIES

EPA Science Inventory

Recruiting study participants is always a challenge for researchers. It is more of a challenge when researchers have to recruit participants for a study involving intrusive, burdensome data collection activities. In this presentation, we describe our recruitment strategies and ...

45 CFR 618.310 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... ON THE BASIS OF SEX IN EDUCATION PROGRAMS OR ACTIVITIES RECEIVING FEDERAL FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE Discrimination on the Basis of Sex in Admission and Recruitment Prohibited § 618.310 Recruitment. (a... basis of sex in the recruitment and admission of students. A recipient may be required to undertake...

Alaska Special Education Recruitment and Retention Resource Manual.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schnorr, Janice M.; Brady, Nancy J.

This resource manual is designed to assist Alaska school districts in recruiting and retaining special education teachers. It offers 50 practical suggestions for developing an effective recruitment program, focusing on the processes of gathering information; developing recruiters, materials, and strategies; and screening and interviewing…

22 CFR 146.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Recruitment. 146.510 Section 146.510 Foreign Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE CIVIL RIGHTS NONDISCRIMINATION ON THE BASIS OF SEX IN EDUCATION PROGRAMS OR... Education Programs or Activities Prohibited § 146.510 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and...

22 CFR 146.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Recruitment. 146.510 Section 146.510 Foreign Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE CIVIL RIGHTS NONDISCRIMINATION ON THE BASIS OF SEX IN EDUCATION PROGRAMS OR... Education Programs or Activities Prohibited § 146.510 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and...

10 CFR 5.510 - Recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Recruitment. 5.510 Section 5.510 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION NONDISCRIMINATION ON THE BASIS OF SEX IN EDUCATION PROGRAMS OR ACTIVITIES RECEIVING FEDERAL... Prohibited § 5.510 Recruitment. (a) Nondiscriminatory recruitment and hiring. A recipient shall not...

Recruiter Assessments of Job Applicants' Preferences: How Accurate Are They?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davis, Kermit R., Jr.; And Others

1985-01-01

Investigated the accuracy with which personnel recruiters perceive specific reward preferences of new college graduates and the effect of recruiter experiences on perceptual accuracy. Results indicated significant differences on 11 job characteristics. Although recruitment specialization did not influence accuracy, experience did, with less…

Organization of the motor-unit pool for different directions of isometric contraction of the first dorsal interosseous muscle.

PubMed

Lei, Yuming; Suresh, Nina L; Rymer, William Z; Hu, Xiaogang

2018-01-01

Muscle force generation involves recruitment and firing rate modulation of motor units (MUs). The control of MUs in producing multidirectional forces remains unclear. We studied MU recruitment and firing properties, recorded from the first dorsal interosseous muscle, for 3 different directions of contraction: abduction; abduction/flexion combination; and flexion. MUs were recruited systematically at higher threshold force during flexion. Larger MUs were recruited and firing rates of MUs were lower during abduction. There was an orderly recruitment of MUs according to MU size regardless of contraction direction, obeying the "size principle." Firing rates of earlier-recruited MUs were consistently higher than later-recruited MUs, affirming the "onion-skin" property. Our findings suggest that the size principle and onion-skin organization together provide a general description of MU recruitment patterns and firing properties. The directional alternations of MU control properties likely reflect changes in neural drive to the muscle. Muscle Nerve 57: E85-E93, 2018. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Exploring recruitment strategies to hire occupational therapists.

PubMed

Mulholland, Susan; Derdall, Michele

2005-02-01

Recruitment issues in occupational therapy have been a long-standing concern for the profession. This descriptive study explored the strategies currently being used by employers to recruit occupational therapists for employment purposes. An 18-item survey was mailed to 251 sites where occupational therapists work in Alberta and Saskatchewan. There was a 64% response rate and data from 130 surveys were analyzed. The results indicate that employers continue to rely on a wide variety of strategies for advertising and recruiting, the most prevalent being word of mouth, postings at universities, and providing student fieldwork placements. In turn, the most effective recruitment strategies were listed as word of mouth, advertising in the general media, and providing student fieldwork placements. Various examples of financial incentives offered by employers were also listed. Many participants identified recent changes in recruitment strategies such as making a move towards web site job postings. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS. The results suggest strategies for employers to target for recruiting occupational therapists and illustrate to both employers and students the importance of fieldwork in recruitment and hiring.

Overlooked Threats to Respondent Driven Sampling Estimators: Peer Recruitment Reality, Degree Measures, and Random Selection Assumption.

PubMed

Li, Jianghong; Valente, Thomas W; Shin, Hee-Sung; Weeks, Margaret; Zelenev, Alexei; Moothi, Gayatri; Mosher, Heather; Heimer, Robert; Robles, Eduardo; Palmer, Greg; Obidoa, Chinekwu

2017-06-28

Intensive sociometric network data were collected from a typical respondent driven sample (RDS) of 528 people who inject drugs residing in Hartford, Connecticut in 2012-2013. This rich dataset enabled us to analyze a large number of unobserved network nodes and ties for the purpose of assessing common assumptions underlying RDS estimators. Results show that several assumptions central to RDS estimators, such as random selection, enrollment probability proportional to degree, and recruitment occurring over recruiter's network ties, were violated. These problems stem from an overly simplistic conceptualization of peer recruitment processes and dynamics. We found nearly half of participants were recruited via coupon redistribution on the street. Non-uniform patterns occurred in multiple recruitment stages related to both recruiter behavior (choosing and reaching alters, passing coupons, etc.) and recruit behavior (accepting/rejecting coupons, failing to enter study, passing coupons to others). Some factors associated with these patterns were also associated with HIV risk.

Strategies to enhance participant recruitment and retention in research involving a community-based population.

PubMed

McCullagh, Marjorie C; Sanon, Marie-Anne; Cohen, Michael A

2014-11-01

Challenges associated with recruiting and retaining community-based populations in research studies have been recognized yet remain of major concern for researchers. There is a need for exchange of recruitment and retention techniques that inform recruitment and retention strategies. Here, the authors discuss a variety of methods that were successful in exceeding target recruitment and retention goals in a randomized clinical trial of hearing protector use among farm operators. Recruitment and retention strategies were 1) based on a philosophy of mutually beneficial engagement in the research process, 2) culturally appropriate, 3) tailored to the unique needs of partnering agencies, and 4) developed and refined in a cyclical and iterative process. Sponsoring organizations are interested in cost-effective recruitment and retention strategies, particularly relating to culturally and ethnically diverse groups. These approaches may result in enhanced subject recruitment and retention, concomitant containment of study costs, and timely accomplishment of study aims. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effectiveness of community outreach and engagement in recruitment success for a prebirth cohort.

PubMed

Tigges, Beth B; Kaar, Jill L; Erbstein, Nancy; Silberman, Pamela; Winseck, Kate; Lopez-Class, Maria; Burbacher, Thomas M

2017-06-01

We describe the effectiveness of community outreach and engagement in supporting recruitment for the US National Children's Vanguard Study between 2009 and 2012. Thirty-seven study locations used 1 of 4 strategies to recruit 18-49-year-old pregnant or trying to conceive women: (1) Initial Vanguard Study used household-based recruitment; (2) Direct Outreach emphasized self-referral; (3) Enhanced Household-Based Recruitment enhanced Initial Vanguard Study strategies; and (4) Provider-Based Recruitment recruited through healthcare providers. Outreach and engagement included advance letters, interactions with healthcare providers, participation in community events, contacts with community organizations, and media outreach. After 1-2 years, 41%-74% of 9844 study-eligible women had heard about the National Children's Vanguard Study when first approached. Women who heard were 1.5-3 times more likely to consent. Hearing via word-of-mouth or the media most frequently predicted consent. The more sources women heard from the higher the odds of consent. We conclude that tailored outreach and engagement facilitate recruitment in cohort studies.

Impact of HIPAA on Subject Recruitment and Retention

PubMed Central

Wipke-Tevis, Deidre D.; Pickett, Melissa A.

2009-01-01

Recruiting and retaining an adequate sample of subjects is critical to the success of any research project involving human subjects. Recent reports indicate the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy rule has adversely impacted research. Few resources are available to help researchers and their staff navigate the challenges to subject recruitment and retention after the implementation of the HIPAA Privacy rule. This article will address obstacles to subject recruitment in prospective, clinical research studies related specifically to the HIPAA Privacy rule as well as HIPAA compliant strategies to enhance subject recruitment and retention. Recruitment challenges discussed include evolving interpretations of the HIPAA regulations, inability to directly contact potential subjects, complexity of the HIPAA required documents, the increased cost of subject recruitment, and an expanding administrative burden. Among the strategies addressed are preparatory research reviews, use of clinical collaborators/staff liaisons, pre-screening of potential subjects, minimizing subject burden during the consent process, enhancing follow-up of subjects, facilitating recruitment for future studies and streamlining compliance training for research staff. PMID:17551087

Recruitment of black women with type 2 diabetes into a self-management intervention trial.

PubMed

Newlin, Kelley; Melkus, Gail D'Eramo; Jefferson, Vanessa; Langerman, Susan; Womack, Julie; Chyun, Deborah

2006-01-01

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship of recruitment methods to enrollment status in Black women with type 2 diabetes screened for entry into a randomized clinical trial (RCT). Using a cross-sectional study design with convenience sampling procedures, data were collected on recruitment methods to which the women responded (N=236). Results demonstrated that the RCT had a moderate overall recruitment rate of 46% and achieved only 84% of its projected accrual goal (N=109). Chi-square analysis demonstrated that enrollment outcomes varied significantly according to recruitment methods (P=.05). Recruitment methods such as community health fairs (77.8%), private practice referrals (75.0%), participant referrals (61.5%), community clinic referrals (44.6%), community advertising and marketing (40.9%), and chart review (40.4%) demonstrated variable enrollment yields. Results confirm previous findings that indicate that Black Americans may be successfully recruited into research studies at moderate rates when traditional recruitment methods are enhanced and integrated with more culturally sensitive methods. Lessons learned are considered.

Recruitment of Individuals With Dementia and Their Carers for Social Research: Lessons Learned From Nine Studies.

PubMed

Beattie, Elizabeth; Fielding, Elaine; O'Reilly, Maria; Brooks, Deborah; MacAndrew, Margaret; McCrow, Judy

2018-05-01

Many health and social care research studies report difficulties recruiting sufficient numbers of participants, adding to time and money expenditures and potentially jeopardizing the generalizability of findings. The current article reports the effectiveness and resource requirements of recruitment strategies used in nine dementia-related studies conducted in Australia. Articles, notices, or advertisements in targeted specialist newsletters were the most cost-effective method of recruitment. The use of service providers to aid recruitment yielded mixed results, but was lengthy in terms of research time. Online and social media were low cost but not reliably effective in terms of recruitment potential. Despite using multiple strategies to maximize recruitment, significant challenges were encountered achieving the required sample sizes; in most cases these challenges resulted in delays in the recruitment phase. Implications for researchers in the fields of dementia and general social/health research are discussed. [Res Gerontol Nurs. 2018; 11(3):119-128.]. Copyright 2018, SLACK Incorporated.

Comparative Analysis of Recruitment Strategies in a Study of Men Who Have Sex with Men (MSM) in Metropolitan Detroit.

PubMed

Iott, Bradley E; Veinot, Tiffany C; Loveluck, Jimena; Kahle, Erin; Golson, Leon; Benton, Akilah

2018-02-22

HIV/AIDS-related research requires recruitment of representative samples of MSM; yet, we know little about the comparative yield, diversity and cost-benefit tradeoffs between different recruitment venues. We compared 11 recruitment venues used for nine HIV prevention-related focus groups with MSM in Metropolitan Detroit. Of the 64 participants, 24 were clients recruited via an HIV/AIDS-focused nonprofit, 20 from Grindr advertisements, 6 from university-student email lists, and 5 from flyers/palmcards. Significantly more African-American, low-income and HIV-positive participants were recruited via the nonprofit. The best cost-benefit tradeoffs were for organizational Facebook posts, email groups, personal networking, and nonprofit recruitment. Grindr increased the size of the sample, though at greater expense. Facebook and Scruff advertisements and gay bar outreach represented greater costs than benefits. Only 11.6% of Grindr respondents attended the focus groups. A mix of online and offline recruitment venues can generate a large and diverse sample of MSM, but venue performance is uneven.

Cooperation between a hierarchical set of recruitment sites targets the X chromosome for dosage compensation

PubMed Central

Albritton, Sarah Elizabeth; Kranz, Anna-Lena; Winterkorn, Lara Heermans; Street, Lena Annika; Ercan, Sevinc

2017-01-01

In many organisms, it remains unclear how X chromosomes are specified for dosage compensation, since DNA sequence motifs shown to be important for dosage compensation complex (DCC) recruitment are themselves not X-specific. Here, we addressed this problem in C. elegans. We found that the DCC recruiter, SDC-2, is required to maintain open chromatin at a small number of primary DCC recruitment sites, whose sequence and genomic context are X-specific. Along the X, primary recruitment sites are interspersed with secondary sites, whose function is X-dependent. A secondary site can ectopically recruit the DCC when additional recruitment sites are inserted either in tandem or at a distance (>30 kb). Deletion of a recruitment site on the X results in reduced DCC binding across several megabases surrounded by topologically associating domain (TAD) boundaries. Our work elucidates that hierarchy and long-distance cooperativity between gene-regulatory elements target a single chromosome for regulation. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.23645.001 PMID:28562241

Recruitment and Retention of South Asian Ethnic Minority Populations in Behavioral Interventions to Improve Type 2 Diabetes Outcomes.

PubMed

Mahmood, Bushra; Afshar, Rowshanak; Tang, Tricia S

2017-04-01

South Asian (SA) immigrants have a higher burden of type 2 diabetes, report poor self-management, and remain a hard-to-engage group in behavioral interventions. The purpose of this review was to characterize recruitment and retention of SAs in behavioral interventions. We identified 14 studies with limited information regarding recruitment and retention. Overall recruitment rates were low: 12 studies had a mean recruitment rate of 44% among those screened, and 9 studies with complete information on eligibility had a mean recruitment rate of 65.8% among those eligible. Mean retention rate was 79.4% across all 14 studies. Although unstandardized and inconsistent reporting limited our ability to draw any conclusions regarding the best strategies to maximize recruitment and retention, we were able to highlight some novel and effective strategies. There is a need for consistent and standardized reporting of recruitment and retention-related information to encourage meaningful research and guide researchers in efficient allocation of resources and a successful conclusion of future interventions.

Trials and tribulations of recruiting 2,000 older women onto a clinical trial investigating falls and fractures: Vital D study

PubMed Central

2009-01-01

Background Randomised, placebo-controlled trials are needed to provide evidence demonstrating safe, effective interventions that reduce falls and fractures in the elderly. The quality of a clinical trial is dependent on successful recruitment of the target participant group. This paper documents the successes and failures of recruiting over 2,000 women aged at least 70 years and at higher risk of falls or fractures onto a placebo-controlled trial of six years duration. The characteristics of study participants at baseline are also described for this study. Methods The Vital D Study recruited older women identified at high risk of fracture through the use of an eligibility algorithm, adapted from identified risk factors for hip fracture. Participants were randomised to orally receive either 500,000 IU vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) or placebo every autumn for five consecutive years. A variety of recruitment strategies were employed to attract potential participants. Results Of the 2,317 participants randomised onto the study, 74% (n = 1716/2317) were consented onto the study in the last five months of recruiting. This was largely due to the success of a targeted mail-out. Prior to this only 541 women were consented in the 18 months of recruiting. A total of 70% of all participants were recruited as a result of targeted mail-out. The response rate from the letters increased from 2 to 7% following revision of the material by a public relations company. Participant demographic or risk factor profile did not differ between those recruited by targeted mail-outs compared with other methods. Conclusion The most successful recruitment strategy was the targeted mail-out and the response rate was no higher in the local region where the study had extensive exposure through other recruiting strategies. The strategies that were labour-intensive and did not result in successful recruitment include the activities directed towards the GP medical centres. Comprehensive recruitment programs employ overlapping strategies simultaneously with ongoing assessment of recruitment rates. In our experience, and others direct mail-outs work best although rights to privacy must be respected. Trial registration ISRCTN83409867 and ACTR12605000658617. PMID:19930724

A systematic review of strategies to recruit and retain primary care doctors.

PubMed

Verma, Puja; Ford, John A; Stuart, Arabella; Howe, Amanda; Everington, Sam; Steel, Nicholas

2016-04-12

There is a workforce crisis in primary care. Previous research has looked at the reasons underlying recruitment and retention problems, but little research has looked at what works to improve recruitment and retention. The aim of this systematic review is to evaluate interventions and strategies used to recruit and retain primary care doctors internationally. A systematic review was undertaken. MEDLINE, EMBASE, CENTRAL and grey literature were searched from inception to January 2015. Articles assessing interventions aimed at recruiting or retaining doctors in high income countries, applicable to primary care doctors were included. No restrictions on language or year of publication. The first author screened all titles and abstracts and a second author screened 20%. Data extraction was carried out by one author and checked by a second. Meta-analysis was not possible due to heterogeneity. Fifty-one studies assessing 42 interventions were retrieved. Interventions were categorised into thirteen groups: financial incentives (n = 11), recruiting rural students (n = 6), international recruitment (n = 4), rural or primary care focused undergraduate placements (n = 3), rural or underserved postgraduate training (n = 3), well-being or peer support initiatives (n = 3), marketing (n = 2), mixed interventions (n = 5), support for professional development or research (n = 5), retainer schemes (n = 4), re-entry schemes (n = 1), specialised recruiters or case managers (n = 2) and delayed partnerships (n = 2). Studies were of low methodological quality with no RCTs and only 15 studies with a comparison group. Weak evidence supported the use of postgraduate placements in underserved areas, undergraduate rural placements and recruiting students to medical school from rural areas. There was mixed evidence about financial incentives. A marketing campaign was associated with lower recruitment. This is the first systematic review of interventions to improve recruitment and retention of primary care doctors. Although the evidence base for recruiting and care doctors is weak and more high quality research is needed, this review found evidence to support undergraduate and postgraduate placements in underserved areas, and selective recruitment of medical students. Other initiatives covered may have potential to improve recruitment and retention of primary care practitioners, but their effectiveness has not been established.

Recruiting participants to walking intervention studies: a systematic review

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Purpose Most researchers who are conducting physical activity trials face difficulties in recruiting participants who are representative of the population or from specific population groups. Participants who are often the hardest to recruit are often those who stand to benefit most (the least active, from ethnic and other minority groups, from neighbourhoods with high levels of deprivation, or have poor health). The aim of our study was to conduct a systematic review of published literature of walking interventions, in order to identify the impact, characteristics, and differential effects of recruitment strategies among particular population groups. Methods We conducted standard searches for studies from four sources, (i) electronic literature databases and websites, (ii) grey literature from internet sources, (iii) contact with experts to identify additional "grey" and other literature, and (iv) snowballing from reference lists of retrieved articles. Included studies were randomised controlled trials, controlled before-and-after experimental or observational qualitative studies, examining the effects of an intervention to encourage people to walk independently or in a group setting, and detailing methods of recruitment. Results Forty seven studies met the inclusion criteria. The overall quality of the descriptions of recruitment in the studies was poor with little detail reported on who undertook recruitment, or how long was spent planning/preparing and implementing the recruitment phase. Recruitment was conducted at locations that either matched where the intervention was delivered, or where the potential participants were asked to attend for the screening and signing up process. We identified a lack of conceptual clarity about the recruitment process and no standard metric to evaluate the effectiveness of recruitment. Conclusion Recruitment concepts, methods, and reporting in walking intervention trials are poorly developed, adding to other limitations in the literature, such as limited generalisability. The lack of understanding of optimal and equitable recruitment strategies evident from this review limits the impact of interventions to promote walking to particular social groups. To improve the delivery of walking interventions to groups which can benefit most, specific attention to developing and evaluating targeted recruitment approaches is recommended. PMID:22171531

Spontaneous Effort During Mechanical Ventilation: Maximal Injury With Less Positive End-Expiratory Pressure.

PubMed

Yoshida, Takeshi; Roldan, Rollin; Beraldo, Marcelo A; Torsani, Vinicius; Gomes, Susimeire; De Santis, Roberta R; Costa, Eduardo L V; Tucci, Mauro R; Lima, Raul G; Kavanagh, Brian P; Amato, Marcelo B P

2016-08-01

We recently described how spontaneous effort during mechanical ventilation can cause "pendelluft," that is, displacement of gas from nondependent (more recruited) lung to dependent (less recruited) lung during early inspiration. Such transfer depends on the coexistence of more recruited (source) liquid-like lung regions together with less recruited (target) solid-like lung regions. Pendelluft may improve gas exchange, but because of tidal recruitment, it may also contribute to injury. We hypothesize that higher positive end-expiratory pressure levels decrease the propensity to pendelluft and that with lower positive end-expiratory pressure levels, pendelluft is associated with improved gas exchange but increased tidal recruitment. Crossover design. University animal research laboratory. Anesthetized landrace pigs. Surfactant depletion was achieved by saline lavage in anesthetized pigs, and ventilator-induced lung injury was produced by ventilation with high tidal volume and low positive end-expiratory pressure. Ventilation was continued in each of four conditions: positive end-expiratory pressure (low or optimized positive end-expiratory pressure after recruitment) and spontaneous breathing (present or absent). Tidal recruitment was assessed using dynamic CT and regional ventilation/perfusion using electric impedance tomography. Esophageal pressure was measured using an esophageal balloon manometer. Among the four conditions, spontaneous breathing at low positive end-expiratory pressure not only caused the largest degree of pendelluft, which was associated with improved ventilation/perfusion matching and oxygenation, but also generated the greatest tidal recruitment. At low positive end-expiratory pressure, paralysis worsened oxygenation but reduced tidal recruitment. Optimized positive end-expiratory pressure decreased the magnitude of spontaneous efforts (measured by esophageal pressure) despite using less sedation, from -5.6 ± 1.3 to -2.0 ± 0.7 cm H2O, while concomitantly reducing pendelluft and tidal recruitment. No pendelluft was observed in the absence of spontaneous effort. Spontaneous effort at low positive end-expiratory pressure improved oxygenation but promoted tidal recruitment associated with pendelluft. Optimized positive end-expiratory pressure (set after lung recruitment) may reverse the harmful effects of spontaneous breathing by reducing inspiratory effort, pendelluft, and tidal recruitment.

Participant Outcomes from Methods of Recruitment for Videogame Research.

PubMed

Ryan, Courtney; Dadabhoy, Hafza; Baranowski, Tom

2018-02-01

The most productive methods of recruitment for a videogame for health (G4H) trial are not known. Success or failure of recruitment methods has been reported for a variety of clinical trials, but few specifically for G4H trials. This study's goal was to recruit 444 overweight or obese (body mass index percentile between the 84.5th-99.4th percentiles) children between the ages of 10-12 years. The article reports the results of different methods of participant recruitment. Participants had to agree to three fasting blood samples (baseline, immediately after, and 2 months later); be willing to wear an accelerometer for 7 days at each assessment; read and speak English fluently (because the games were in English); have no history of any condition that would affect what he/she could eat or how much physical activity he/she could get; and have an eligible home computer purchased in the last 5 years with high-speed internet. Hardware criteria reflected the types of computers upon which Diab-Nano could be effectively played. Recruitment was conducted over a 35-month period and included electronic media, print advertising, community recruitment, and an internal volunteer list. Respondents were guided to a web-based screening questionnaire that asked for source of hearing about the study. Although diverse recruitment methods were used, slow recruitment resulted in obtaining only 45% of the recruitment goal (n = 199). Electronic media (e.g., radio, television, and internet), which reached millions of targeted parents, resulted in only 76 respondents, of whom 13 became participants; print media (e.g., magazine, newsletter/newspaper, and mail), which also reached large numbers of parents, resulted in 192 respondents, of whom 19 became participants; community recruitment (e.g., school, friend or family, doctors office, flyer, work, community program) resulted in 162 respondents, of whom 38 became participants; and the internal volunteer list resulted in 413 respondents, of whom 128 became participants. Inclusionary and exclusionary criteria and restricted access by gatekeepers could be deterrents to successful recruitment. The documented payoff of alternative comprehensive methods of recruitment should benefit other investigations in optimally allocating their recruitment resources.

Latino recruitment to cancer prevention/screening trials in the Southwest: setting a research agenda.

PubMed

Larkey, Linda K; Ogden, Sheryl L; Tenorio, Sally; Ewell, Teresa

2008-02-01

Examples of cancer prevention and screening trials in the Southwest are reviewed as a platform for highlighting gaps in research on Latino recruitment. Three trials are described, using "message/source/channel" categories as a framework. Each trial engaged community members to facilitate recruitment and developed tailored strategies to meet challenges emerging after recruitment began. Although we affirm that culturally relevant messages, community member referral networks, and adjustment to community realities seem important to Latino recruitment, current anecdotal and research findings do not allow evidence-based recommendations to be made. We suggest a research agenda to further illuminate critical factors for successful Latino recruitment.

Direct mailing was a successful recruitment strategy for a lung-cancer screening trial.

PubMed

Hinshaw, Lisa B; Jackson, Sharon A; Chen, Michael Y

2007-08-01

To analyze advertising, recruitment methods, and study participant demographics for the National Lung Screening Trial (NLST) site at Wake Forest University School of Medicine to define efficient ways to recruit participants for general clinical trials. Recruitment method data, demographics, geographic location, and date of enrollment were collected from all 1,112 NLST participants. Marketing data and financial records were analyzed to determine the effectiveness of each recruitment method. The total amount spent on advertising was $144,668, with the cost of enrollment per participant averaging $130. For black participants, the recruitment cost per person was $406, whereas for white and other race participants, the cost was $122 (P<0.0001). To encourage minority enrollment, $13,192 was spent on television advertising geared toward black viewers, resulting in eight black participants at an average cost per person of $1,649. Direct mailing cost $143 per participant recruited, whereas TV ads cost $382 per participant. Direct mailing to a targeted group was the most efficient way to recruit participants. Printed advertising methods, that is, newspaper ads and brochures, were quite effective, whereas television ads were expensive. Appropriate minority recruitment needs sufficient attention and resources to ensure census groups are adequately represented.

IRS proposes ruling on physician recruitment. How a hospital recruits physicians would affect its tax-exempt status.

PubMed

Griffith, G M

1996-01-01

On March 15, 1995, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced a proposed revenue ruling stating how certain physician recruitment practices could be implemented without threatening hospitals' tax-exemption. As proposed, the IRS ruling would provide flexibility for recruitment incentives rather than a list of strict physician recruitment guidelines. The proposed ruling is not legally binding until issued in final form, and there is no deadline for finalizing it. In the meantime, however, the standards outlined in the proposed ruling reflect arrangements the IRS likely would approve, which should be an incentive for tax-exempt hospitals to follow reasonable physician recruitment practices. Assuming a hospital complies with other legal requirements such as fraud and abuse laws, it must answer two key tax-exempt status questions for its recruitment or retention package: Will the incentives result in a disguised distribution of profits from the operation of the organization? Is the total incentive package reasonable under all the facts and circumstances, both in absolute total value for physician(s) recruited and in relation to services required by the hospital and the community? The proposed ruling also provides guidance on basic documentation requirements and a process for approving recruitment arrangements.

Strategies to enhance patient recruitment and retention in research involving patients with a first episode of mental illness.

PubMed

Furimsky, Ivana; Cheung, Amy H; Dewa, Carolyn S; Zipursky, Robert B

2008-11-01

Recruitment and retention of research participants is often the most labor-intensive and difficult component of clinical trials. Poor recruitment and retention frequently pose as a major barrier in the successful completion of clinical trials. In fact, many studies are prematurely terminated, or their findings questioned due to low recruitment and retention rates. The conduct of clinical trials involving youth with a first episode of mental illness comes with additional challenges in recruitment and retention including barriers associated with engagement and family involvement. To develop effective early interventions for first episode mental illness, it is necessary to develop strategies to enhance recruitment and retention in this patient population. This article presents the recruitment and retention challenges experienced in two clinical trials: one involving participants experiencing a first episode of depression and one involving participants experiencing a first episode psychosis. Challenges with recruitment and retention are identified and reviewed at both the patient level and clinician level. Strategies that were implemented to enhance recruitment and retention in these two studies are also discussed. Finally, ethical issues to consider when implementing these strategies are also highlighted.

Annual variation in habitat-specific recruitment success: Implications from an individual-based model of Lake Michigan alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus)

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hook, T.O.; Rutherford, E.S.; Croley, T.E.; Mason, D.M.; Madenjian, C.P.

2008-01-01

The identification of important spawning and nursery habitats for fish stocks can aid fisheries management, but is complicated by various factors, including annual variation in recruitment success. The alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus) is an ecologically important species in Lake Michigan that utilizes a variety of habitats for spawning and early life growth. While productive, warm tributary mouths (connected to Lake Michigan) may contribute disproportionately more recruits (relative to their habitat volume) to the adult alewife population than cooler, less productive nearshore habitats, the extent of interannual variation in the relative contributions of recruits from these two habitat types remains unknown. We used an individual-based bioenergetics simulation model and input data on daily temperatures to estimate alewife recruitment to the adult population by these different habitat types. Simulations suggest that nearshore lake habitats typically produce the vast majority of young alewife recruits. However, tributary habitats may contribute the majority of alewife recruits during years of low recruitment. We suggest that high interannual variation in the relative importance of habitats for recruitment is a common phenomenon, which should be considered when developing habitat management plans for fish populations. ?? 2008 NRC.

Evaluating outcome-correlated recruitment and geographic recruitment bias in a respondent-driven sample of people who inject drugs in Tijuana, Mexico

PubMed Central

Rudolph, Abby E.; Gaines, Tommi L.; Lozada, Remedios; Vera, Alicia; Brouwer, Kimberly C.

2015-01-01

Respondent-driven sampling’s (RDS) widespread use and reliance on untested assumptions suggests a need for new exploratory/diagnostic tests. We assessed geographic recruitment bias and outcome-correlated recruitment among 1048 RDS-recruited people who inject drugs (Tijuana, Mexico). Surveys gathered demographics, drug/sex behaviors, activity locations, and recruiter-recruit pairs. Simulations assessed geographic and network clustering of active syphilis (RPR titers≥1:8). Gender-specific predicted probabilities were estimated using logistic regression with GEE and robust standard errors. Active syphilis prevalence was 7% (crude: men=5.7% and women=16.6%; RDS-adjusted: men=6.7% and women=7.6%). Syphilis clustered in the Zona Norte, a neighborhood known for drug and sex markets. Network simulations revealed geographic recruitment bias and non-random recruitment by syphilis status. Gender-specific prevalence estimates accounting for clustering were highest among those living/working/injecting/buying drugs in the Zona Norte and directly/indirectly connected to syphilis cases (men:15.9%, women:25.6%) and lowest among those with neither exposure (men:3.0%, women:6.1%). Future RDS analyses should assess/account for network and spatial dependencies. PMID:24969586

An Empirical Analysis of the Impact of Recruitment Patterns on RDS Estimates among a Socially Ordered Population of Female Sex Workers in China

PubMed Central

Yamanis, Thespina J.; Merli, M. Giovanna; Neely, William Whipple; Tian, Felicia Feng; Moody, James; Tu, Xiaowen; Gao, Ersheng

2013-01-01

Respondent-driven sampling (RDS) is a method for recruiting “hidden” populations through a network-based, chain and peer referral process. RDS recruits hidden populations more effectively than other sampling methods and promises to generate unbiased estimates of their characteristics. RDS’s faithful representation of hidden populations relies on the validity of core assumptions regarding the unobserved referral process. With empirical recruitment data from an RDS study of female sex workers (FSWs) in Shanghai, we assess the RDS assumption that participants recruit nonpreferentially from among their network alters. We also present a bootstrap method for constructing the confidence intervals around RDS estimates. This approach uniquely incorporates real-world features of the population under study (e.g., the sample’s observed branching structure). We then extend this approach to approximate the distribution of RDS estimates under various peer recruitment scenarios consistent with the data as a means to quantify the impact of recruitment bias and of rejection bias on the RDS estimates. We find that the hierarchical social organization of FSWs leads to recruitment biases by constraining RDS recruitment across social classes and introducing bias in the RDS estimates. PMID:24288418

Evaluating outcome-correlated recruitment and geographic recruitment bias in a respondent-driven sample of people who inject drugs in Tijuana, Mexico.

PubMed

Rudolph, Abby E; Gaines, Tommi L; Lozada, Remedios; Vera, Alicia; Brouwer, Kimberly C

2014-12-01

Respondent-driven sampling's (RDS) widespread use and reliance on untested assumptions suggests a need for new exploratory/diagnostic tests. We assessed geographic recruitment bias and outcome-correlated recruitment among 1,048 RDS-recruited people who inject drugs (Tijuana, Mexico). Surveys gathered demographics, drug/sex behaviors, activity locations, and recruiter-recruit pairs. Simulations assessed geographic and network clustering of active syphilis (RPR titers ≥1:8). Gender-specific predicted probabilities were estimated using logistic regression with GEE and robust standard errors. Active syphilis prevalence was 7 % (crude: men = 5.7 % and women = 16.6 %; RDS-adjusted: men = 6.7 % and women = 7.6 %). Syphilis clustered in the Zona Norte, a neighborhood known for drug and sex markets. Network simulations revealed geographic recruitment bias and non-random recruitment by syphilis status. Gender-specific prevalence estimates accounting for clustering were highest among those living/working/injecting/buying drugs in the Zona Norte and directly/indirectly connected to syphilis cases (men: 15.9 %, women: 25.6 %) and lowest among those with neither exposure (men: 3.0 %, women: 6.1 %). Future RDS analyses should assess/account for network and spatial dependencies.

Density-associated recruitment mediates coral population dynamics on a coral reef

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bramanti, Lorenzo; Edmunds, Peter J.

2016-06-01

Theory suggests that density-associated processes can modulate community resilience following declines in population size. Here, we demonstrate density-associated processes in two scleractinian populations on the outer reef of Moorea, French Polynesia, that are rapidly increasing in size following the effects of two catastrophic disturbances. Between 2006 and 2010, predation by the corallivorous crown-of-thorns sea star reduced coral cover by 93 %; in 2010, the dead coral skeletons were removed by a cyclone, and in 2011 and 2012, high coral recruitment initiated population recovery. Coral recruitment was associated with coral cover, but the relationship differed between two coral genera that are almost exclusively broadcast spawners in Moorea. Acroporids recruited at low densities, and the density of recruits was positively associated with cover of Acropora, whereas pocilloporids recruited at high densities, and densities of their recruits were negatively associated with cover of Pocillopora. Together, our results suggest that associations between adult cover and density of both juveniles and recruits can mediate rapid coral community recovery after large disturbances. The difference between taxa in sign of the relationships between recruit density and coral cover indicate that they reflect contrasting mechanisms with the potential to mediate temporal shifts in taxonomic composition of coral communities.

Recruitment and retention of rural African Americans in diabetes research: lessons learned.

PubMed

Loftin, Wanda Anderson; Barnett, Steven K; Bunn, Peggy Summers; Sullivan, Patra

2005-01-01

The purpose of this article was to describe lessons learned about recruitment and retention of rural African Americans from published literature, the authors' research, and research experience. Two rural, community-based research studies with African Americans with diabetes are used to illustrate different issues and strategies in recruitment and retention. Relevant MEDLINE articles and clinical studies were reviewed, and the design, implementation, and results of the 2 community-based studies were evaluated. Information from the literature, research results, and sample selection, participation, and attrition experiences were synthesized to determine effective approaches for recruitment and retention. Research funding, design, and implementation; recruitment methods; culturally competent approaches; caring, trusting provider-patient relationships; incentives; follow-up; and factors in the rural environment emerged as important issues influencing recruitment and retention. Recruitment and retention of African Americans in rural diabetes research is a significant challenge, and adequate funding should be sought early in the research process. Culturally competent approaches; caring, trusting relationships; incentives; and follow-up are important concepts in successful recruitment, participation, and retention of African Americans. The lessons learned may be applicable to the more widespread issue of recruitment and retention of rural African Americans in diabetes education programs.

Assessing altered motor unit recruitment patterns in paretic muscles of stroke survivors using surface electromyography.

PubMed

Hu, Xiaogang; Suresh, Aneesha K; Rymer, William Z; Suresh, Nina L

2015-12-01

The advancement of surface electromyogram (sEMG) recording and signal processing techniques has allowed us to characterize the recruitment properties of a substantial population of motor units (MUs) non-invasively. Here we seek to determine whether MU recruitment properties are modified in paretic muscles of hemispheric stroke survivors. Using an advanced EMG sensor array, we recorded sEMG during isometric contractions of the first dorsal interosseous muscle over a range of contraction levels, from 20% to 60% of maximum, in both paretic and contralateral muscles of stroke survivors. Using MU decomposition techniques, MU action potential amplitudes and recruitment thresholds were derived for simultaneously activated MUs in each isometric contraction. Our results show a significant disruption of recruitment organization in paretic muscles, in that the size principle describing recruitment rank order was materially distorted. MUs were recruited over a very narrow force range with increasing force output, generating a strong clustering effect, when referenced to recruitment force magnitude. Such disturbances in MU properties also correlated well with the impairment of voluntary force generation. Our findings provide direct evidence regarding MU recruitment modifications in paretic muscles of stroke survivors, and suggest that these modifications may contribute to weakness for voluntary contractions.

Smooth muscle cell recruitment to lymphatic vessels requires PDGFB and impacts vessel size but not identity.

PubMed

Wang, Yixin; Jin, Yi; Mäe, Maarja Andaloussi; Zhang, Yang; Ortsäter, Henrik; Betsholtz, Christer; Mäkinen, Taija; Jakobsson, Lars

2017-10-01

Tissue fluid drains through blind-ended lymphatic capillaries, via smooth muscle cell (SMC)-covered collecting vessels into venous circulation. Both defective SMC recruitment to collecting vessels and ectopic recruitment to lymphatic capillaries are thought to contribute to vessel failure, leading to lymphedema. However, mechanisms controlling lymphatic SMC recruitment and its role in vessel maturation are unknown. Here, we demonstrate that platelet-derived growth factor B (PDGFB) regulates lymphatic SMC recruitment in multiple vascular beds. PDGFB is selectively expressed by lymphatic endothelial cells (LECs) of collecting vessels. LEC-specific deletion of Pdgfb prevented SMC recruitment causing dilation and failure of pulsatile contraction of collecting vessels. However, vessel remodelling and identity were unaffected. Unexpectedly, Pdgfb overexpression in LECs did not induce SMC recruitment to capillaries. This was explained by the demonstrated requirement of PDGFB extracellular matrix (ECM) retention for lymphatic SMC recruitment, and the low presence of PDGFB-binding ECM components around lymphatic capillaries. These results demonstrate the requirement of LEC-autonomous PDGFB expression and retention for SMC recruitment to lymphatic vessels, and suggest an ECM-controlled checkpoint that prevents SMC investment of capillaries, which is a common feature in lymphedematous skin. © 2017. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

Coast-wide recruitment dynamics of Olympia oysters reveal limited synchrony and multiple predictors of failure.

PubMed

Wasson, Kerstin; Hughes, Brent B; Berriman, John S; Chang, Andrew L; Deck, Anna K; Dinnel, Paul A; Endris, Charlie; Espinoza, Michael; Dudas, Sarah; Ferner, Matthew C; Grosholz, Edwin D; Kimbro, David; Ruesink, Jennifer L; Trimble, Alan C; Vander Schaaf, Dick; Zabin, Chela J; Zacherl, Danielle C

2016-12-01

Recruitment of new propagules into a population can be a critical determinant of adult density. We examined recruitment dynamics in the Olympia oyster (Ostrea lurida), a species occurring almost entirely in estuaries. We investigated spatial scales of interannual synchrony across 37 sites in eight estuaries along 2,500 km of Pacific North American coastline, predicting that high vs. low recruitment years would coincide among neighboring estuaries due to shared exposure to regional oceanographic factors. Such synchrony in recruitment has been found for many marine species and some migratory estuarine species, but has never been examined across estuaries in a species that can complete its entire life cycle within the same estuary. To inform ongoing restoration efforts for Olympia oysters, which have declined in abundance in many estuaries, we also investigated predictors of recruitment failure. We found striking contrasts in absolute recruitment rate and frequency of recruitment failure among sites, estuaries, and years. Although we found a positive relationship between upwelling and recruitment, there was little evidence of synchrony in recruitment among estuaries along the coast, and only limited synchrony of sites within estuaries, suggesting recruitment rates are affected more strongly by local dynamics within estuaries than by regional oceanographic factors operating at scales encompassing multiple estuaries. This highlights the importance of local wetland and watershed management for the demography of oysters, and perhaps other species that can complete their entire life cycle within estuaries. Estuaries with more homogeneous environmental conditions had greater synchrony among sites, and this led to the potential for estuary-wide failure when all sites had no recruitment in the same year. Environmental heterogeneity within estuaries may thus buffer against estuary-wide recruitment failure, analogous to the portfolio effect for diversity. Recruitment failure was correlated with lower summer water temperature, higher winter salinity, and shorter residence time: all indicators of stronger marine influence on estuaries. Recruitment failure was also more common in estuaries with limited networks of nearby adult oysters. Large existing oyster networks are thus of high conservation value, while estuaries that lack them would benefit from restoration efforts to increase the extent and connectivity of sites supporting oysters. © 2016 by the Ecological Society of America.

Recruiter-Applicant Differences in Perceptions of Extrinsic Rewards.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

David, Kermit R., Jr.; And Others

1991-01-01

Examined how accurate recruiters would be in estimating relative preferences of college seniors for important category of extrinsic rewards. Compared preferences of 602 graduating college seniors for 11 extrinsic rewards with preference estimates of 486 recruiters. Recruiters underestimated importance of medical and life insurance, pension plans,…

Adult Recruitment Practices.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kaufman, Juliet, Ed.; And Others

Findings of an American College Testing Program 1981 survey on college recruitment of adult students are summarized, and 12 articles on adult recruitment are presented. Titles and authors are as follows: "Adult Recruitment Practices: A Report of a National Survey" (Patricia Spratt, Juliet Kaufmann, Lee Noel); "Three Programs for Adults in Shopping…

Innovative Reactive and Proactive Graduate Student Recruiting Techniques.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Laird, Hugh E., II

1989-01-01

The evolution of the recruiting techniques used by the University of Arizona's pharmacology and toxicology graduate program are described, considerations in the development of recruitment efforts are discussed, and issues for the profession to examine in developing a long-term strategy for recruiting students are outlined. (MSE)

On Recruiting: A Multivariate Analysis of Marine Corps Recruiters and the Market

DTIC Science & Technology

Three recommendations result from this study. The quantitative recommendation developed in this thesis is to add approximately three missioned...canvassing recruiters per Recruiting Station, or 144 total, where the marginal cost of the 1,400 potentially gained contracts is the most economical manpower

45 CFR 1308.5 - Recruitment and enrollment of children with disabilities.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... WITH DISABILITIES Social Services Performance Standards § 1308.5 Recruitment and enrollment of children with disabilities. (a) The grantee or delegate agency outreach and recruitment activities must... 45 Public Welfare 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Recruitment and enrollment of children with...

Recruiting Strategically: Increasing Enrollment in Academic Programs of Agriculture

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baker, Lauri M.; Settle, Quisto; Chiarelli, Christy; Irani, Tracy

2013-01-01

Agriculture continues to struggle to find enough qualified students to advance the industry. Thus, recruiting practice improvement is imperative. This study assessed the efficacy of message strategies, message channels, recruiting materials, and messages for recruiting students into an academic program with low enrollment. Focus groups were…

20 CFR 655.158 - Duration of positive recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Duration of positive recruitment. 655.158 Section 655.158 Employees' Benefits EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR TEMPORARY... recruitment. Except as otherwise noted, the obligation to engage in positive recruitment described in §§ 655...

75 FR 30857 - Justice Management Division; Office of Attorney Recruitment and Management; Agency Information...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-06-02

... Recruitment and Management; Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Comments Requested... Recruitment and Management (OARM), will be submitting the following information collection request to the... Recruitment and Management, Justice Management Division, U.S. Department of Justice. (4) Affected public who...

75 FR 45665 - Justice Management Division; Office of Attorney Recruitment and Management; Agency Information...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-08-03

... Recruitment and Management; Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Comments Requested... Recruitment and Management (OARM), will be submitting the following information collection request for review... component of the Department sponsoring the collection: Form Number: none. Office of Attorney Recruitment and...

5 CFR 315.705 - Employees serving under transitional or veterans recruitment appointments.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... veterans recruitment appointments. 315.705 Section 315.705 Administrative Personnel OFFICE OF PERSONNEL... veterans recruitment appointments. (a) Agency action. (1) An agency shall convert the employment of an... substantially continuous service under a veterans recruitment appointment or under a combination of transitional...

29 CFR 500.60 - Farm labor contractors' recruitment, contractual and general obligations.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 29 Labor 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Farm labor contractors' recruitment, contractual and... labor contractors' recruitment, contractual and general obligations. The Act imposes certain specific recruitment, contractual and general obligations on farm labor contractors and farm labor contractor employees...

48 CFR 31.205-34 - Recruitment costs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Recruitment costs. 31.205....205-34 Recruitment costs. (a) Subject to paragraph (b) of this subsection, the following costs are... positions; or (2) Includes material that is not relevant for recruitment purposes, such as extensive...

Military Recruiting: Army National Guard Needs to Continue Monitoring, Collect Better Data, and Assess Incentives Programs

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-11-01

Study Recruiters are often referred to as the “face” of the ARNG. In the past, there have been allegations of recruiter misconduct and misuse of...face” of their respective military component. and any type of recruiter misconduct could have significant implications for DOD. In the past, there...have been allegations of recruiter misconduct with applicants resulting in negative perceptions about military service. This makes it important for

Leveraging social and digital media for participant recruitment: A review of methods from the Bayley Short Form Formative Study.

PubMed

Burke-Garcia, Amelia; Mathew, Sunitha

2017-06-01

Social media is increasingly being used in research, including recruitment. For the Bayley Short Form Formative Study, which was conducted under the the National Children's Study, traditional methods of recruitment proved to be ineffective. Therefore, digital media were identified as potential channels for recruitment. Results included successful recruitment of over 1800 infant and toddler participants to the Study. This paper outlines the methods, results, and future research opportunities.

Recruitment, mortality, and resilience potential of scleractinian corals at Eilat, Red Sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shlesinger, Tom; Loya, Yossi

2016-12-01

Events of mass coral bleaching and mortality have increased in recent decades worldwide, making coral recruitment more important than ever in sustaining coral-reef ecosystems and ensuring their resilience. During the last four decades, the coral reefs of Eilat have undergone severe deterioration due to both anthropogenic and natural causes. Recruitment failure has been frequently suggested as one of the main mechanisms underlying this deterioration. Here we assess the demographic replenishment and resilience potential of the local reefs, i.e., the potential for new sexually derived corals to recruit and exceed the community's mortality rate. We present a detailed analysis of coral community demography, obtained by means of high-resolution photographic monitoring of permanently marked plots. Coral spats as small as 1 mm were documented and the detailed dynamics of coral recruitment and mortality were recorded, in addition to other common ecological measurements. The cumulative quantity of recruited individuals was twofold to fivefold higher than total mortality. The most significant predictor variable for coral recruitment among all ecological parameters measured was the available substrate for settlement, and the survival of recruited corals was correlated with reef structural complexity. Two consecutive annual reproductive seasons (June-September of each year) with high recruitment rates were monitored. Combined with the high survival of recruits and the increase in coral live cover and abundance, the findings from this study indicate an encouraging potential for recovery of these reefs.

[Facilitation and limitation on plant recruitment by animal dispersers].

PubMed

Li, Ning; Wang, Zheng; Pan, Yang; Bai, Bing; Lu, Chang-Hu

2012-09-01

In plant-animal network, seed dispersers play both facilitation and limitation roles on plant recruitment. This paper summarized the effects of the dispersers foraging and spatial utilization behaviors on plant recruitment at population level, and analyzed the dispersal effectiveness of the dispersers in the facilitation and limitation on plant recruitment at community level. Different food-treating behaviors of animal dispersers have decisive role on the fate of seeds, and the seed fate has interspecific difference. The role of plants in animal dietary also determines the plants recruitment fate. When preferred by animal dispersers, the seeds can escape the impact of forest fragmentation. The spatial behavior of the dispersers can cause seed fate change. Whether the dispersers' movement distance can escape the distance limitation of conspecific adults determines the seed recruitment. The spatial concordance between the animal suitable habitat and the plant recruitment habitat directly affects the dispersal efficiency. The non-redundancy of effective dispersers not only leads the seed dispersal network to be more stable, but also benefits plant recruitment. Ineffective dispersal of the dispersers limits plant recruitment, but supplies suitable chance for other plants colonization. Future researches should incorporate the animal behavior in plant recruitment researches, and to explore the roles of animal dispersers in vegetation recovery from the aspect of ecosystem service should be the focus in the study of restoration ecology.

Substrate temperature constrains recruitment and trail following behavior in ants.

PubMed

van Oudenhove, Louise; Boulay, Raphaël; Lenoir, Alain; Bernstein, Carlos; Cerda, Xim

2012-06-01

In many ant species, foragers use pheromones to communicate the location of resources to nestmates. Mass-recruiting species deposit long-lasting anonymous chemical trails, while group-recruiting species use temporary chemical trails. We studied how high temperature influenced the foraging behavior of a mass-recruiting species (Tapinoma nigerrimum) and a group-recruiting species (Aphaenogaster senilis) through pheromone decay. First, under controlled laboratory conditions, we examined the effect of temperature on the trail pheromone of both species. A substrate, simulating soil, marked with gaster extract was heated for 10 min. at 25°, 35°, 45°, or 55 °C and offered to workers in a choice test. Heating gaster extract reduced the trail following behavior of the mass-recruiters significantly more than that of the group-recruiters. Second, analyses of the chemicals present on the substrate indicated that most T. nigerrimum gaster secretions vanished at 25 °C, and only iridodials persisted up to 55 °C. By contrast, A. senilis secretions were less volatile and resisted better to elevated temperatures to some extent. However, at 55 °C, the only chemicals that persisted were nonadecene and nonadecane. Overall, our results suggest that the foraging behavior of the group-recruiting species A. senilis is less affected by pheromone evaporation than that of the mass-recruiting species T. nigerrimum. This group-recruiting species might, thus, be particularly adapted to environments with fluctuating temperatures.

Rare lung disease research: strategies for improving identification and recruitment of research participants.

PubMed

Gupta, Samir; Bayoumi, Ahmed M; Faughnan, Marie E

2011-11-01

Research in rare lung diseases faces methodologic limitations by virtue of the small number of participants available to be studied. We explored several strategies that may improve researchers' ability to identify and recruit research participants with rare lung diseases. We provide an overview of strategies based on available evidence, previously used approaches, and reasoning. First, disease detection is generally poor and may be improved through strategies targeted at primary care practitioners or directly at patients, thus increasing the pool of patients available for research studies. Next, standardization of case definitions in rare lung diseases is often lacking, hindering research recruitment efforts because of confusion over appropriate recruitment criteria. Expert consensus statements can enhance both clinical care and research recruitment by standardizing definitions. Finally, recruitment strategies using rare lung disease registries, clinical research networks, novel Internet-based direct patient recruitment approaches, and patient organizations may facilitate recruitment of patients with rare lung diseases. In summary, although several strategies for improving the identification and recruitment of research participants with rare lung diseases have been proposed, published examples are few. Objective measurement and reporting of novel recruitment methods and collaboration among researchers facing the same limitations across various rare lung diseases are required. Advancements in this area are vital to the design and performance of much-needed robust clinical studies across the spectrum of rare lung diseases.

Recruitment bias in chronic pain research: whiplash as a model.

PubMed

Nijs, Jo; Inghelbrecht, Els; Daenen, Liesbeth; Hachimi-Idrissi, Said; Hens, Luc; Willems, Bert; Roussel, Nathalie; Cras, Patrick; Wouters, Kristien; Bernheim, Jan

2011-11-01

In science findings which cannot be extrapolated to other settings are of little value. Recruitment methods vary widely across chronic whiplash studies, but it remains unclear whether this generates recruitment bias. The present study aimed to examine whether the recruitment method accounts for differences in health status, social support, and personality traits in patients with chronic whiplash-associated disorders (WAD). Two different recruitment methods were compared: recruiting patients through a local whiplash patient support group (group 1) and local hospital emergency department (group 2). The participants (n=118) filled in a set of questionnaires: the Neck Disability Index, Medical Outcome Study Short-Form General Health Survey, Anamnestic Comparative Self-Assessment measure of overall well-being, Symptom Checklist-90, Dutch Personality Questionnaire, and the Social Support List. The recruitment method (either through the local emergency department or patient support group) accounted for the differences in insufficiency, somatization, disability, quality of life, self-satisfaction, and dominance (all p values <.01). The recruitment methods generated chronic WAD patients comparable for psychoneurotism, social support, self-sufficiency, (social) inadequacy, rigidity, and resentment (p>.01). The recruitment of chronic WAD patients solely through patient support groups generates bias with respect to the various aspects of health status and personality, but not social support. In order to enhance the external validity of study findings, chronic WAD studies should combine a variety of recruitment procedures.

Barriers and facilitators to recruitment of physicians and practices for primary care health services research at one centre.

PubMed

Johnston, Sharon; Liddy, Clare; Hogg, William; Donskov, Melissa; Russell, Grant; Gyorfi-Dyke, Elizabeth

2010-12-13

While some research has been conducted examining recruitment methods to engage physicians and practices in primary care research, further research is needed on recruitment methodology as it remains a recurrent challenge and plays a crucial role in primary care research. This paper reviews recruitment strategies, common challenges, and innovative practices from five recent primary care health services research studies in Ontario, Canada. We used mixed qualitative and quantitative methods to gather data from investigators and/or project staff from five research teams. Team members were interviewed and asked to fill out a brief survey on recruitment methods, results, and challenges encountered during a recent or ongoing project involving primary care practices or physicians. Data analysis included qualitative analysis of interview notes and descriptive statistics generated for each study. Recruitment rates varied markedly across the projects despite similar initial strategies. Common challenges and creative solutions were reported by many of the research teams, including building a sampling frame, developing front-office rapport, adapting recruitment strategies, promoting buy-in and interest in the research question, and training a staff recruiter. Investigators must continue to find effective ways of reaching and involving diverse and representative samples of primary care providers and practices by building personal connections with, and buy-in from, potential participants. Flexible recruitment strategies and an understanding of the needs and interests of potential participants may also facilitate recruitment.

Recruitment challenges in clinical research including cancer patients and their caregivers. A randomized controlled trial study and lessons learned.

PubMed

Sygna, Karin; Johansen, Safora; Ruland, Cornelia M

2015-09-25

To test seven different strategies for recruitment in a randomized controlled trial, to report documented response data from each strategy, and to discuss recruitment challenges. We used 5 opt-in (potential participants have to do something active to contact or be contacted by the researcher) and 2 opt-out (potential participants have the option to decline being contacted about a study) recruitment strategies from February 2013 until July 2014 to contact 1562 cancer patient candidates for participation in a randomized controlled trial. For each of these cancer patients a caregiver was also invited to take part in the study. Of the 1562 candidates, 22.6 % were ineligible on initial contact, 56.7 % declined to participate on initial contact, and 8.9 % agreed orally to participate but did not complete the enrollment. The 2 opt-out strategies, on-site recruitment and routine care letters recruitment, yielded the highest number of recruited participants with 79 dyads and 58 dyads respectively, constituting 42.7 % and 31.4 % of the total number of enrolled candidates. The 5 opt-in recruitment approaches yielded 49 dyads for the study. Almost half of these dyads were recruited using the approach termed "relying on providers at the hospital." In this study, opt-out recruitment strategies appeared to be the most effective. Registration number NCT01867723 , registered February 2012.

Beyond traditional advertisements: leveraging Facebook's social structures for research recruitment.

PubMed

Valdez, Rupa S; Guterbock, Thomas M; Thompson, Morgan J; Reilly, Jeremiah D; Menefee, Hannah K; Bennici, Maria S; Williams, Ishan C; Rexrode, Deborah L

2014-10-27

Obtaining access to a demographically and geographically diverse sample for health-related research can be costly and time consuming. Previous studies have reported mixed results regarding the potential of using social media-based advertisements to overcome these challenges. Our aim was to develop and assess the feasibility, benefits, and challenges of recruiting for research studies related to consumer health information technology (IT) by leveraging the social structures embedded in the social networking platform, Facebook. Two recruitment strategies that involved direct communication with existing Facebook groups and pages were developed and implemented in two distinct populations. The first recruitment strategy involved posting a survey link directly to consenting groups and pages and was used to recruit Filipino-Americans to a study assessing the perceptions, use of, and preferences for consumer health IT. This study took place between August and December 2013. The second recruitment strategy targeted individuals with type 2 diabetes and involved creating a study-related Facebook group and asking administrators of other groups and pages to publicize our group to their members. Group members were then directly invited to participate in an online pre-study survey. This portion of a larger study to understand existing health management practices as a foundation for consumer health IT design took place between May and June 2014. In executing both recruitment strategies, efforts were made to establish trust and transparency. Recruitment rate, cost, content of interaction, and characteristics of the sample obtained were used to assess the recruitment methods. The two recruitment methods yielded 87 and 79 complete responses, respectively. The first recruitment method yielded a rate of study completion proportionate to that of the rate of posts made, whereas recruitment successes of the second recruitment method seemed to follow directly from the actions of a subset of administrators. Excluding personnel time, the first recruitment method resulted in no direct costs, and the second recruitment method resulted in a total direct cost of US $118.17. Messages, posts, and comments received using both recruitment strategies reflected ten themes, including appreciation, assistance, clarification, concerns, encouragement, health information, interest, promotion, solicitations, and support. Both recruitment methods produced mixed results regarding sample representativeness with respect to characteristics such as gender, race, and ethnicity. The results of the study demonstrate that leveraging the social structures of Facebook for health-related research was feasible for obtaining small samples appropriate for qualitative research but not for obtaining large samples needed for quantitative research. The content of interactions with members of the target population prompted ethical deliberations concerning suitable target communities and appropriate boundaries between researchers and participants. Widespread replication of this method would benefit from a broad discussion among researchers, social media users, social media companies, and experts in research ethics to address appropriate protocols for such interactions.

Physician recruitment success: how to acquire top physician talent.

PubMed

Rosman, Judy

2011-01-01

This article provides step-by-step instructions on how to complete the strategic planning needed to ensure success in physician recruitment efforts, outlines how to build a successful recruitment team, and provides helpful advice to avoid common recruiting mistakes that can sabotage the recruitment efforts of even the best practices. This article discusses the role of the in-house hospital recruiter in the recruitment process, how to evaluate independent search firms, how to make use of the physicians in your group to ensure success during a site visit, and how to ensure that your new hire will be able to successfully develop a practice. The article also discusses how to find and use benchmarking data to ensure that your compensation package is competitive, and provides advice on how to help your new physician hit the ground running.

Recruitment strategies and challenges in a large intervention trial: Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT)

PubMed Central

Ramsey, Thomas M; Snyder, Joni K; Lovato, Laura C; Roumie, Christianne L; Glasser, Steven P; Cosgrove, Nora M; Olney, Christine M; Tang, Rocky H; Johnson, Karen C; Still, Carolyn H; Gren, Lisa H; Childs, Jeffery C; Crago, Osa L; Summerson, John H; Walsh, Sandy M; Perdue, Letitia H; Bankowski, Denise M; Goff, David C

2016-01-01

Background The Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT) is a multicenter, randomized clinical trial of 9,361 participants with hypertension who are ≥ 50 years old. The trial is designed to evaluate the effect of intensive systolic blood pressure control (systolic blood pressure goal <120 mm Hg) compared to standard control (systolic blood pressure goal <140 mm Hg) on cardiovascular events using commonly prescribed antihypertensive medications and lifestyle modification. Objective To describe the recruitment strategies and lessons learned during recruitment of the SPRINT cohort and five targeted participant subgroups: pre-existing cardiovascular disease, pre-existing chronic kidney disease, age ≥ 75 years, women, and minorities. Methods In collaboration with the National Institutes of Health Project Office and SPRINT Coordinating Center, five Clinical Center Networks oversaw clinical site selection, recruitment, and trial activities. Recruitment began November 8, 2010 and ended March 15, 2013 (about 28 months). Various recruitment strategies were used, including mass mailing, brochures, referrals from healthcare providers or friends, posters, newspaper ads, radio ads, and electronic medical record searches. Results Recruitment was scheduled to last 24 months to enroll a target of 9,250 participants; in just over 28 months, the trial enrolled 9,361 participants. The trial screened 14,692 volunteers, with 33% of initial screens originating from the use of mass mailing lists. Screening results show that participants also responded to recruitment efforts through referral by SPRINT staff, healthcare providers, or friends (45%); brochures or posters placed in clinic waiting areas (15%); and television, radio, newspaper, internet ads, or toll-free numbers (8%). The overall recruitment yield (number randomized /number screened) was 64% (9,361 randomized /14,692 screened), 77% for those with cardiovascular disease, 79% for those with chronic kidney disease, 70% for those age ≥ 75 years, 55% for women, and 61% for minorities. As recruitment was observed to lag behind expectations, additional clinics were included and inclusion criteria were broadened, keeping event rates and trial power in mind. As overall recruitment improved, a greater focus on subgroup recruitment was implemented. Conclusion SPRINT met its overall projected recruitment goal by using diverse, locally adapted enrollment strategies to specifically target persons with cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, ≥ 75 year old, women, and minority subgroups. The trial exceeded its recruitment goal for minorities but found it a challenge to meet the competing demands of the targeted goals for recruiting into the remaining four subgroups. Important lessons include the imperative to monitor the recruitment process carefully, decide early to add new clinics or modify inclusion and exclusion criteria if recruitment lags, and consider limiting enrollment to subgroups only. We found benefit in using multiple recruitment sources simultaneously; mass mailing produced the largest number of participants, but referrals resulted in the greater randomization yield. PMID:26911833

Recruitment strategies and challenges in a large intervention trial: Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial.

PubMed

Ramsey, Thomas M; Snyder, Joni K; Lovato, Laura C; Roumie, Christianne L; Glasser, Steven P; Cosgrove, Nora M; Olney, Christine M; Tang, Rocky H; Johnson, Karen C; Still, Carolyn H; Gren, Lisa H; Childs, Jeffery C; Crago, Osa L; Summerson, John H; Walsh, Sandy M; Perdue, Letitia H; Bankowski, Denise M; Goff, David C

2016-06-01

The Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial is a multicenter, randomized clinical trial of 9361 participants with hypertension who are ≥50 years old. The trial is designed to evaluate the effect of intensive systolic blood pressure control (systolic blood pressure goal <120 mm Hg) compared to standard control (systolic blood pressure goal <140 mm Hg) on cardiovascular events using commonly prescribed antihypertensive medications and lifestyle modification. To describe the recruitment strategies and lessons learned during recruitment of the Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial cohort and five targeted participant subgroups: pre-existing cardiovascular disease, pre-existing chronic kidney disease, age ≥75 years, women, and minorities. In collaboration with the National Institutes of Health Project Office and Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial Coordinating Center, five Clinical Center Networks oversaw clinical site selection, recruitment, and trial activities. Recruitment began on 8 November 2010 and ended on 15 March 2013 (about 28 months). Various recruitment strategies were used, including mass mailing, brochures, referrals from healthcare providers or friends, posters, newspaper ads, radio ads, and electronic medical record searches. Recruitment was scheduled to last 24 months to enroll a target of 9250 participants; in just over 28 months, the trial enrolled 9361 participants. The trial screened 14,692 volunteers, with 33% of initial screens originating from the use of mass mailing lists. Screening results show that participants also responded to recruitment efforts through referral by Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial staff, healthcare providers, or friends (45%); brochures or posters placed in clinic waiting areas (15%); and television, radio, newspaper, Internet ads, or toll-free numbers (8%). The overall recruitment yield (number randomized/number screened) was 64% (9361 randomized/14,692 screened), 77% for those with cardiovascular disease, 79% for those with chronic kidney disease, 70% for those aged ≥75 years, 55% for women, and 61% for minorities. As recruitment was observed to lag behind expectations, additional clinics were included and inclusion criteria were broadened, keeping event rates and trial power in mind. As overall recruitment improved, a greater focus on subgroup recruitment was implemented. Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial met its overall projected recruitment goal using diverse, locally adapted enrollment strategies to specifically target persons with cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, ≥75 years old, women, and minority subgroups. The trial exceeded its recruitment goal for minorities but found it a challenge to meet the competing demands of the targeted goals for recruiting into the remaining four subgroups. Important lessons include the imperative to monitor the recruitment process carefully, decide early to add new clinics or modify inclusion and exclusion criteria if recruitment lags, and consider limiting enrollment to subgroups only. We found benefit in using multiple recruitment sources simultaneously; mass mailing produced the largest number of participants, but referrals resulted in the greater randomization yield. © The Author(s) 2016.

Does recruitment source moderate treatment effectiveness? A subgroup analysis from the EVIDENT study, a randomised controlled trial of an internet intervention for depressive symptoms

PubMed Central

Gamon, Carla; Späth, Christina; Berger, Thomas; Meyer, Björn; Hohagen, Fritz; Hautzinger, Martin; Lutz, Wolfgang; Vettorazzi, Eik; Moritz, Steffen; Schröder, Johanna

2017-01-01

Objective This study aims to examine whether the effects of internet interventions for depression generalise to participants recruited in clinical settings. Design This study uses subgroup analysis of the results of a randomised, controlled, single-blind trial. Setting The study takes place in five diagnostic centres in Germany. Participants A total of 1013 people with mild to moderate depressive symptoms were recruited from clinical sources as well as internet forums, statutory insurance companies and other sources. Interventions This study uses either care-as-usual alone (control) or a 12-week internet intervention (Deprexis) plus usual care (intervention). Main outcome measures The primary outcome measure was self-rated depression severity (Patient Health Questionnaire-9) at 3 months and 6 months. Further measures ranged from demographic and clinical parameters to a measure of attitudes towards internet interventions (Attitudes towards Psychological Online Interventions Questionnaire). Results The recruitment source was only associated with very few of the examined demographic and clinical characteristics. Compared with participants recruited from clinical sources, participants recruited through insurance companies were more likely to be employed. Clinically recruited participants were as severely affected as those from other recruitment sources but more sceptical of internet interventions. The effectiveness of the intervention was not differentially associated with recruitment source (treatment by recruitment source interaction=0.28, p=0.84). Conclusion Our results support the hypothesis that the intervention we studied is effective across different recruitment sources including clinical settings. Trial registration number ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01636752. PMID:28710212

Recruitment methods in a clinical trial of provoked vulvodynia: Predictors of enrollment.

PubMed

Bachour, Candi C; Bachmann, Gloria A; Foster, David C; Wan, Jim Y; Rawlinson, Leslie A; Brown, Candace S

2017-02-01

Successful recruitment in clinical trials for chronic pain conditions is challenging, especially in women with provoked vulvodynia due to reluctance in discussing pain associated with sexual intercourse. The most successful recruitment methods and the characteristics of women reached with these methods are unknown. To compare the effectiveness and efficiency of four recruitment methods and to determine socioeconomic predictors for successful enrollment in a National Institutes of Health-sponsored multicenter clinical trial evaluating a gabapentin intervention in women with provoked vulvodynia. Recruitment methods utilized mass mailing, media, clinician referrals and community outreach. Effectiveness (number of participants enrolled) and efficiency (proportion screened who enrolled) were determined. Socioeconomic variables including race, educational level, annual household income, relationship status, age, menopausal status and employment status were also evaluated regarding which recruitment strategies were best at targeting specific cohorts. Of 868 potential study participants, 219 were enrolled. The most effective recruitment method in enrolling participants was mass mailing ( p < 0.001). There were no statistically significant differences in efficiency between recruitment methods ( p = 0.11). Relative to clinician referral, black women were 13 times as likely to be enrolled through mass mailing (adjusted odds ratio 12.5, 95% confidence interval, 3.6-43.1) as white women. There were no differences in enrollment according to educational level, annual income, relationship status, age, menopausal status, or employment status and recruitment method. In this clinical trial, mass mailing was the most effective recruitment method. Race of participants enrolled in a provoked vulvodynia trial was related to the recruitment method.

Variability in size-selective mortality obscures the importance of larval traits to recruitment success in a temperate marine fish.

PubMed

Murphy, Hannah M; Warren-Myers, Fletcher W; Jenkins, Gregory P; Hamer, Paul A; Swearer, Stephen E

2014-08-01

In fishes, the growth-mortality hypothesis has received broad acceptance as a driver of recruitment variability. Recruitment is likely to be lower in years when the risk of starvation and predation in the larval stage is greater, leading to higher mortality. Juvenile snapper, Pagrus auratus (Sparidae), experience high recruitment variation in Port Phillip Bay, Australia. Using a 5-year (2005, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011) data set of larval and juvenile snapper abundances and their daily growth histories, based on otolith microstructure, we found selective mortality acted on larval size at 5 days post-hatch in 4 low and average recruitment years. The highest recruitment year (2005) was characterised by no size-selective mortality. Larval growth of the initial larval population was related to recruitment, but larval growth of the juveniles was not. Selective mortality may have obscured the relationship between larval traits of the juveniles and recruitment as fast-growing and large larvae preferentially survived in lower recruitment years and fast growth was ubiquitous in high recruitment years. An index of daily mortality within and among 3 years (2007, 2008, 2010), where zooplankton were concurrently sampled with ichthyoplankton, was related to per capita availability of preferred larval prey, providing support for the match-mismatch hypothesis. In 2010, periods of low daily mortality resulted in no selective mortality. Thus both intra- and inter-annual variability in the magnitude and occurrence of selective mortality in species with complex life cycles can obscure relationships between larval traits and population replenishment, leading to underestimation of their importance in recruitment studies.

Recruitment strategies for caregivers of children with mental health problems.

PubMed

Oruche, Ukamaka M; Gerkensmeyer, Janis E; Austin, Joan K; Perkins, Susan M; Scott, Eric; Lindsey, Laura M; Mullins, Kristen

2012-01-01

The aim of this study was to describe strategies for recruiting participants into an intervention study that focused on improving problem-solving skills in caregivers of children with mental health problems. Caregivers of children with mental health problems report feeling physically and psychologically overwhelmed and have high rates of depression because of the demands of caregiving. Research on the needs of these caregivers and interventions to ameliorate their stress is needed. However, recruiting this population can be particularly difficult because of the stigma of mental illness. Available literature on recruitment of caregivers of persons with physical illness cannot be transferred to caregivers of children with mental health problems because of the different caregiving situations. There is a need to identify effective recruitment strategies to reduce cost and answer research questions. Clinical nurse specialists have the skills to facilitate the recruitment of research participants. We revised and expanded health system referrals, community outreach, and recruiting advertisement (ads). When these strategies did not increase recruitment, radio ads were used. The Andersen's Behavioral Model of Health Services Utilization was selected as a guiding framework. Radio ads were the most effective strategy for recruiting caregivers of children with mental health problems for this study. Recruitment was ultimately successful because we were flexible and made decisions consistent with the Andersen's Behavioral Model of Health Services Utilization. Clinical nurse specialists who study this population of caregivers should really consider the use of radio ads and systematically track which recruitment strategies lead to the greatest number of participants screened, eligible, and enrolled into studies.

Patient advocacy and patient centredness in participant recruitment to randomized-controlled trials: implications for informed consent.

PubMed

Tomlin, Zelda; deSalis, Isabel; Toerien, Merran; Donovan, Jenny L

2014-10-01

With the routinization of evidence-based medicine and of the randomized-controlled trial (RCT), more patients are becoming 'sites of evidence production' yet, little is known about how they are recruited as participants; there is some evidence that 'substantively valid consent' is difficult to achieve. To explore the views and experiences of nurses recruiting patients to randomized-controlled trials and to examine the extent to which their recruitment practices were patient-centred and patient empowering. Semi-structured in-depth interviews; audio recording of recruitment appointments; thematic interactional analysis (drawing on discourse and conversation analysis). Nurses recruiting patients to five publicly funded RCTs and patients consenting to the recording of their recruitment sessions. The views of recruiting nurses about their recruitment role; the extent to which nurse-patient interactions were patient-centred; the nature of the nurses' interactional strategies and the nature and extent of patient participation in the discussion. The nurses had a keen sense of themselves as clinicians and patient advocates and their perceptions of the trial and its interventions were inextricably linked to those of the patients. However, many of their recruitment practices made it difficult for patients to play an active and informed part in the discussion about trial participation, raising questions over the quality of consent decisions. Nurses working in patient recruitment to RCTs need to reconcile two different worlds with different demands and ethics. Evidence production, a central task in evidence-based medicine, poses a challenge to patient-centred practice and more research and relevant training are needed. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Accrual and recruitment practices at Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) institutions: a call for expectations, expertise, and evaluation.

PubMed

Kost, Rhonda G; Mervin-Blake, Sabrena; Hallarn, Rose; Rathmann, Charles; Kolb, H Robert; Himmelfarb, Cheryl Dennison; D'Agostino, Toni; Rubinstein, Eric P; Dozier, Ann M; Schuff, Kathryn G

2014-08-01

To respond to increased public and programmatic demand to address underenrollment of clinical translational research studies, the authors examined participant recruitment practices at Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) sites and make recommendations for performance metrics and accountability. The CTSA Recruitment and Retention taskforce in 2010 invited representatives at 46 CTSAs to complete an online 48-question survey querying accrual and recruitment outcomes, practices, evaluation methods, policies, and perceived gaps in related knowledge/practice. Descriptive statistical and thematic analyses were conducted. Forty-six respondents representing 44 CTSAs completed the survey. Recruitment conducted by study teams was the most common practice reported (78%-91%, by study type); 39% reported their institution offered recruitment services to investigators. Respondents valued study feasibility assessment as a successful practice (39%); desired additional resources included feasibility assessments (49%) and participant registries (44%). None reported their institution systematically required justification of feasibility; some indicated relevant information was considered prior to institutional review board (IRB) review (30%) or contract approval (22%). All respondents' IRBs tracked study progress, but only 10% of respondents could report outcome data for timely accrual. Few reported written policies addressing poor accrual or provided data to support recruitment practice effectiveness. Many CTSAs lack the necessary frame work to support study accrual. Recom men dations to enhance accrual include articulating institutional expectations and policy for routine recruitment plan ning; providing recruitment expertise to inform feasibility assessment and recruit ment planning; and developing interdepartmental coordination and integrated informatics infrastructure to drive the conduct, evaluation, and improvement of recruitment practices.

Accrual and Recruitment Practices at Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) Institutions: A Call for Expectations, Expertise, and Evaluation

PubMed Central

Kost, Rhonda G.; Mervin-Blake, Sabrena; Hallarn, Rose; Rathmann, Charles; Kolb, H. Robert; Himmelfarb, Cheryl Dennison; D’Agostino, Toni; Rubinstein, Eric P.; Dozier, Ann M.; Schuff, Kathryn G.

2014-01-01

Purpose To respond to increased public and programmatic demand to address underenrollment of clinical translational research studies, the authors examine participant recruitment practices at Clinical and Translational Science Award sites (CTSAs) and make recommendations for performance metrics and accountability. Method The CTSA Recruitment and Retention taskforce developed and, in 2010, invited representatives at 46 CTSAs to complete an online 48-question survey querying CTSA accrual and recruitment outcomes, practices, evaluation methods, policies, and perceived gaps in related knowledge/practice. Descriptive statistical and thematic analyses were conducted. Results Forty-six respondents representing 44 CTSAs completed the survey. Recruitment conducted by study teams was the most common practice reported (78–91%, by study type); 39% reported their institution offered recruitment services to investigators. Respondents valued study feasibility assessment as a successful practice (39%); their desired additional resources included feasibility assessments (49%) and participant registries (44%). None reported their institution systematically required justification of feasibility; some indicated relevant information was considered prior to IRB review (30%) or contract approval (22%). All respondents’ IRBs tracked study progress, but only 10% of respondents could report outcome data for timely accrual. Few reported written policies addressing poor accrual or provided data to support recruitment practice effectiveness. Conclusions Many CTSAs lack the necessary framework to support study accrual. Recommendations to enhance accrual include articulating institutional expectations and policy for routine recruitment planning; providing recruitment expertise to inform feasibility assessment and recruitment planning; and developing interdepartmental coordination and integrated informatics infrastructure to drive the conduct, evaluation, and improvement of recruitment practices. PMID:24826854

Effective recruitment of minority populations through community-led strategies.

PubMed

Horowitz, Carol R; Brenner, Barbara L; Lachapelle, Susanne; Amara, Duna A; Arniella, Guedy

2009-12-01

Traditional research approaches frequently fail to yield representative numbers of people of color in research. Community-based participatory research (CBPR) may be an important strategy for partnering with and reaching populations that bear a greater burden of illness but have been historically difficult to engage. The Community Action Board, consisting of 20 East Harlem residents, leaders, and advocates, used CBPR to compare the effectiveness of various strategies in recruiting and enrolling adults with prediabetes into a peer-led, diabetes prevention intervention. The board created five recruitment strategies: recruiting through clinicians; recruiting at large public events such as farmers markets; organizing special local recruitment events; recruiting at local organizations; and recruiting through a partner-led approach, in which community partners developed and managed the recruitment efforts at their sites. In 3 months, 555 local adults were approached; 249 were appropriate candidates for further evaluation (overweight, nonpregnant, East Harlem residents without known diabetes); 179 consented and returned in a fasting state for 1/2 day of prediabetes testing; 99 had prediabetes and enrolled in a pilot randomized trial. The partner-led approach was highly successful, recruiting 68% of those enrolled. This strategy was also the most efficient; 34% of those approached through partners were ultimately enrolled, versus 0%-17% enrolled through the other four strategies. Participants were predominantly low-income, uninsured, undereducated, Spanish-speaking women. This CBPR approach highlights the value of partner-led recruitment to identify, reach out to, and motivate a vulnerable population into participation in research, using techniques that may be unfamiliar to researchers but are nevertheless rigorous and effective.

Leader-based and self-organized communication: modelling group-mass recruitment in ants.

PubMed

Collignon, Bertrand; Deneubourg, Jean Louis; Detrain, Claire

2012-11-21

For collective decisions to be made, the information acquired by experienced individuals about resources' location has to be shared with naïve individuals through recruitment. Here, we investigate the properties of collective responses arising from a leader-based recruitment and a self-organized communication by chemical trails. We develop a generalized model based on biological data drawn from Tetramorium caespitum ant species of which collective foraging relies on the coupling of group leading and trail recruitment. We show that for leader-based recruitment, small groups of recruits have to be guided in a very efficient way to allow a collective exploitation of food while large group requires less attention from their leader. In the case of self-organized recruitment through a chemical trail, a critical value of trail amount has to be laid per forager in order to launch collective food exploitation. Thereafter, ants can maintain collective foraging by emitting signal intensity below this threshold. Finally, we demonstrate how the coupling of both recruitment mechanisms may benefit to collectively foraging species. These theoretical results are then compared with experimental data from recruitment by T. caespitum ant colonies performing group-mass recruitment towards a single food source. We evidence the key role of leaders as initiators and catalysts of recruitment before this leader-based process is overtaken by self-organised communication through trails. This model brings new insights as well as a theoretical background to empirical studies about cooperative foraging in group-living species. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

28 CFR 92.11 - Content of the recruitment and retention programs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Content of the recruitment and retention programs. 92.11 Section 92.11 Judicial Administration DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE (CONTINUED) OFFICE OF COMMUNITY ORIENTED POLICING SERVICES (COPS) Police Recruitment Program Guidelines § 92.11 Content of the recruitment...

28 CFR 92.11 - Content of the recruitment and retention programs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Content of the recruitment and retention programs. 92.11 Section 92.11 Judicial Administration DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE (CONTINUED) OFFICE OF COMMUNITY ORIENTED POLICING SERVICES (COPS) Police Recruitment Program Guidelines § 92.11 Content of the recruitment...

28 CFR 92.11 - Content of the recruitment and retention programs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Content of the recruitment and retention programs. 92.11 Section 92.11 Judicial Administration DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE (CONTINUED) OFFICE OF COMMUNITY ORIENTED POLICING SERVICES (COPS) Police Recruitment Program Guidelines § 92.11 Content of the recruitment...

28 CFR 92.11 - Content of the recruitment and retention programs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Content of the recruitment and retention programs. 92.11 Section 92.11 Judicial Administration DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE (CONTINUED) OFFICE OF COMMUNITY ORIENTED POLICING SERVICES (COPS) Police Recruitment Program Guidelines § 92.11 Content of the recruitment...

Changing Recruitment Outcomes: The "Why" and the "How"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

MacLean, Lisa; Pato, Michele T.

2011-01-01

Objective: Residency programs compete for applicants and commit extensive resources to the recruitment process. After failing to fill in the match for 5 years (1999-2004), this program decided to make changes in its recruitment process. The authors describe one program's experience in improving recruitment outcomes. Methods: The new training…

A Model for Recruiting the New Community College Student.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pitt Community Coll., Greenville, NC.

This proposal represents a systematic and research-based effort to revitalize traditional recruiting practices and to establish a new recruitment model for reaching the nontraditional student in North Carolina two-year colleges. It includes activities of and findings from a model adult recruiting project. A project overview includes the objectives…

The Application of Marketing Theory to Community College Faculty Recruitment: An Empirical Test.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Winter, Paul A.

1996-01-01

Reviews literature on faculty recruitment at community colleges. Describes a study using job-marketing theory and Winter's educational recruitment model to assess reactions to recruitment advertisements for a business faculty position. Reports that participants responded favorably to emphases on academic transfer program content. Discusses…

Designing the Future: The Recruitment Connection. Summary of Proceedings (Orlando, Florida, February 12-14, 1988).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

American Dental Hygienists' Association, Chicago, IL.

A summary of the proceedings from a hygienists' conference is presented. Papers are as follows: "Career Recruitment: A Vested Interest" (Marge Reveal); "Partners in Career Recruitment" (Sharon Kershaw); "Educational Structure: Its Role in Career Recruitment" (Sarah Turner); "Communicating Our Professional Goals" (Connie Tussing); "Career…

45 CFR 2520.35 - Must my program recruit or support volunteers?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 4 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Must my program recruit or support volunteers... my program recruit or support volunteers? (a) Unless the Corporation or the State commission, as... the Corporation must involve recruiting or supporting volunteers. (b) If you demonstrate that...

45 CFR 2520.35 - Must my program recruit or support volunteers?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 4 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Must my program recruit or support volunteers... my program recruit or support volunteers? (a) Unless the Corporation or the State commission, as... the Corporation must involve recruiting or supporting volunteers. (b) If you demonstrate that...

45 CFR 2520.35 - Must my program recruit or support volunteers?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Must my program recruit or support volunteers... my program recruit or support volunteers? (a) Unless the Corporation or the State commission, as... the Corporation must involve recruiting or supporting volunteers. (b) If you demonstrate that...

45 CFR 2520.35 - Must my program recruit or support volunteers?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 4 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Must my program recruit or support volunteers... my program recruit or support volunteers? (a) Unless the Corporation or the State commission, as... the Corporation must involve recruiting or supporting volunteers. (b) If you demonstrate that...

45 CFR 2520.35 - Must my program recruit or support volunteers?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 4 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Must my program recruit or support volunteers... my program recruit or support volunteers? (a) Unless the Corporation or the State commission, as... the Corporation must involve recruiting or supporting volunteers. (b) If you demonstrate that...

Corporate Recruiting in the 21st Century

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roach, Ronald

2006-01-01

Recruiting for diverse talent is a major priority in corporate America. And at a time when employee recruiting is being transformed by the Internet and other technologies, corporate recruiters and campus career services professionals share the belief that college and university campuses represent the most important source for diverse talent. They…

Student and Recruiter Insights on the Importance of Job Attributes.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Butler, Stephen A.; Sanders, D. Elaine; Whitecotton, Stacey M.

2000-01-01

This study presents evidence on the insight of accounting students and recruiters about the importance (to students) of six job attributes. Both students and recruiters underemphasized the importance of compensation; recruiters overestimated the importance of firm type; both groups overestimated the importance of opportunities for advancement and…

Recruiter Friendliness and Attraction to the Job: The Mediating Role of Inferences about the Organization.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goltz, Sonia M.; Giannantonio, Cristina M.

1995-01-01

Of 171 undergraduates, 90 viewed a videotape of a "friendly" recruiter and 81 an "unfriendly" recruiter. The former group made significantly more positive inferences regarding the recruiter's organization than did those watching the "unfriendly" tape. These inferences affected their attraction to the job. (SK)

"Ouch!" Recruitment of Overweight and Obese Adolescent Boys for Qualitative Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morrison, Zachary; Gregory, David; Thibodeau, Steven; Copeland, Jennifer

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study is to examine the complexities of recruiting overweight and obese adolescent boys for qualitative research, discuss specific recruitment considerations for this population, and offer guidance to researchers interested in recruiting overweight adolescent boys. Three overweight adolescent boys and six community…

Recruitment to Intellectual Disability Research: A Qualitative Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nicholson, L.; Colyer, M.; Cooper, S. -A.

2013-01-01

Background: Difficulties in the recruitment of adults with intellectual disability (ID) to research studies are well described but little studied. The aim of this study was to investigate the difficulties in recruiting to a specific research project, in order to inform future recruitment to ID research. Methods: Individual semi-structured…

28 CFR 42.3 - Responsibility for Department of Justice Equal Opportunity Recruitment Program.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Equal Opportunity Recruitment Program. 42.3 Section 42.3 Judicial Administration DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE... Department of Justice § 42.3 Responsibility for Department of Justice Equal Opportunity Recruitment Program... implementing the Department of Justice Equal Opportunity Recruitment Program under 5 U.S.C. 7201. [Order No...

20 CFR 655.205 - Recruitment period.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Recruitment period. 655.205 Section 655.205... Agricultural Employment § 655.205 Recruitment period. (a) If the OFLC Administrator determines that the... carry out the assurances contained in § 655.203 with respect to the recruitment of U.S. workers. The...

48 CFR 731.205-70 - Overseas recruitment incentive.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 5 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Overseas recruitment... Organizations 731.205-70 Overseas recruitment incentive. Note: the term employee as used in this section means... recruitment incentive (ORI), to the extent the ORI: Is authorized by the contractor's normal policy and...

28 CFR 27.4 - Corrective action and other relief; Director, Office of Attorney Recruitment and Management.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

...; Director, Office of Attorney Recruitment and Management. 27.4 Section 27.4 Judicial Administration..., Office of Attorney Recruitment and Management. (a) If, in connection with any investigation, the... recommendations for corrective action, to the Director, Office of Attorney Recruitment and Management (the...

5 CFR 532.801 - Payment of unrestricted rates for recruitment or retention purposes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... recruitment or retention purposes. 532.801 Section 532.801 Administrative Personnel OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT CIVIL SERVICE REGULATIONS PREVAILING RATE SYSTEMS Payment of Unrestricted Rates for Recruitment or Retention Purposes § 532.801 Payment of unrestricted rates for recruitment or retention purposes. (a) When...

Faculty Recruitment in an Era of Change

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Levine, Marilyn; Schimpf, Martin

2010-01-01

Faculty recruitment is a challenge for administration and departments, especially in an era of change in the academy. This article builds on information from an interactive conference panel session that focused on faculty recruitment best practices. The article addresses faculty recruitment strategies that focus on the optimization of search…

Defense Manpower Commission Staff Studies and Supporting Papers. Volume 3. Military Recruitment and Accessions and Future of the All Volunteer Force

DTIC Science & Technology

1976-05-01

active duty end additional Reserve recruiters were assigned to large ustropeliten areas. * The relationship of AF Reserve recruiting functions io...headquarters. There Also is a marked contrast between the Services in the comand relationship between recruiting and the initial training of recruits...the Deputy Chief of Staff, Personnel. Thus, the only formal command relationship between the two waste st the Office of the Chief of Staff. The sm

Recruitment standards and practices in occupational therapy, 1900-1930.

PubMed

Colman, W

1990-08-01

Debate regarding recruitment standards and practices exemplifies various visions of practice that exist within a profession. In occupational therapy, early recruitment criteria provide an example of how the field's founders envisioned the professional practitioner. As occupational therapy grew in membership throughout the 1920s, that vision was challenged. This paper identifies and describes the recruitment ideas expressed by both the founders of occupational therapy and their challengers from 1900 to 1930 and suggests the influence of their ideas on recruitment standards.

Recruitment variation of crappies in response to hydrology of Tennessee reservoirs

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sammons, S.M.; Bettoli, P.W.; Isermann, D.A.; Churchill, T.N.

2002-01-01

Black crappies Pomoxis nigromaculatus and white crappies P. annularis were sampled to index recruitment in seven Tennessee reservoirs (four main-stem and three tributary storage impoundments). Crappie recruitment in tributary storage impoundments appeared to be consistently higher in years of high discharge during the prespawn period (1 January-31 March). A similar relation was found in one main-stem impoundment; however, crappie recruitment in two main-stem impoundments was inversely related to discharge during the spawning period (1 April-30 May), and little recruitment variation was found in the fourth main-stem impoundment. In general, reservoir hydrology appeared to have a stronger effect on crappie recruitment in tributary storage impoundments than in main-stem impoundments, possibly because recruitment was more variable in tributary systems. Thus, it is likely that crappie populations will rarely have strong year-classes simultaneously over a wide geographic area or even within a single watershed.

Recruiting physicians for office-based research.

PubMed

Levinson, W; Dull, V T; Roter, D L; Chaumeton, N; Frankel, R M

1998-06-01

Research conducted in community outpatient offices can provide insight into the common experiences of patients and physicians. However, recruiting physicians to participate in office-based research is challenging and few descriptions of methods that have been used to successfully recruit random samples of physicians are available. This article describes recruitment strategies utilized in a project that achieved high rates of participation from community-based primary care physicians and surgeons. Recruitment methods included the use of advisory boards to identify potential barriers to participation, use of respected members of the medical community as recruiters, and obtaining endorsements from physician organizations and prominent members of the medical community. Overall, 81% of physicians contacted from a sample frame agreed to participate in the project. Participating physicians most frequently reported that they participated because the project could provide them with feedback about their interviewing style. The recruitment methods described here can be generalized to other types of investigations.

Assessment of revised recruitment standards for asthma in the Australian Defence Force.

PubMed

Ireland, Renee; Waller, Michael; MacKenzie, Alison; Peake, Jonathan; Nasveld, Peter

2014-11-01

To assess the impact of relaxed asthma recruitment standards adopted by the Australian Defence Force in 2007. A retrospective audit was conducted on clinical and administrative data for recruits, with and without mild asthma, in their first year of service. There was no evidence that mild asthmatics experienced worse outcomes than nonasthmatic recruits. Mild asthmatics had fewer illnesses and restricted duty days and were less costly compared to other recruits. There was no difference in the rate of discharge (attrition) between those with and without mild asthma. The revised recruitment standards for asthma in the Australian Defence Force have not resulted in unanticipated medical or administrative costs to the organization. Health and administrative outcomes differed little between mild asthmatics and nonasthmatic recruits in their first 12 months of service. Reprint & Copyright © 2014 Association of Military Surgeons of the U.S.

Participant recruitment and motivation for participation in optical technology for cervical cancer screening research trials.

PubMed

Shuhatovich, Olga M; Sharman, Mathilde P; Mirabal, Yvette N; Earle, Nan R; Follen, Michele; Basen-Engquist, Karen

2005-12-01

In order to improve recruitment for cervical cancer screening trials, it is necessary to analyze the effectiveness of recruitment strategies used in current trials. A trial to test optical spectroscopy for the diagnosis of cervical neoplasia recruited 1000 women from the community; the trial evaluated the emerging technology against Pap smears and colposcopically directed biopsies for cervical dysplasia. We have examined women's reasons for participating as well as the effectiveness and efficiency for each recruitment strategy. Reasons for participation were identified and compared between trials. The recruitment method that resulted in the most contacts was newspaper reportorial coverage and advertising, followed by family and friends, then television news coverage. The most cost-effective method for finding eligible women who attend the research appointment is word of mouth from a family member or friend. Recommendations are given for maximizing the efficiency of recruitment for cervical cancer screening trials.

Community-based recruitment strategies for a longitudinal interventional study: the VECAT experience.

PubMed

Garrett, S K; Thomas, A P; Cicuttini, F; Silagy, C; Taylor, H R; McNeil, J J

2000-05-01

This article examines different recruitment strategies for the VECAT Study, a 4-year, double-masked, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial of vitamin E in the prevention of cataract and age-related maculopathy. Five recruitment methods were employed: newspaper advertising, radio advertising, approaches to community groups, approaches via general practices, and an electoral roll mail-out. Participants (1204) from the community in Melbourne, Australia were recruited and enrolled within 15 months (age range: 55-80 years, mean 66 years; gender ratio: 57% female, 43% male). The electoral roll mail-out and newspaper advertising were the most efficient methods of recruitment in terms of absolute numbers of participants recruited and cost per participant. Recruitment for the VECAT study was successfully completed within the planned period. Although the electoral roll mail-out and newspaper advertising were the most efficient for this study, other methods may be of value for studies with different subject selection criteria.

A Brief Exploratory Report of Coping Strategies Among Police Recruits During Academy Training.

PubMed

Patterson, George T

2016-10-01

Few longitudinal studies have investigated the use of coping strategies among police recruits. This study investigated perceived life and work stressors, appraisal, and coping over a seven-month police recruit academy training program. Participants were 81 police recruits who completed the Ways of Coping Questionnaire at three time points approximately three months apart. The average age of the recruits was 27.6 years (SD = 5.1, range 20-51). Separate repeated measures analyses of variance were conducted to examine coping scores. Statistically significant decreases, although small, were observed in reported emotion-focused, problem-focused, and seeking social support coping strategies. Results suggested that as police recruits undergo academy training, they rely on fewer coping strategies to deal with life and work stress. More longitudinal studies are needed that assess the methods police recruits utilize to manage stress during academy training. Such results can inform stress management interventions. © The Author(s) 2016.

Participant outcomes from methods of recruitment for videogame research

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The most productive methods of recruitment for a video game for health (G4H) trial are not known. Success or failure of recruitment methods have been reported for a variety of clinical trials, but few specifically for G4H trials. This study's goal was to recruit 444 overweight or obese (BMI percenti...

South Carolina Center For Teacher Recruitment: 94-95 Annual Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

South Carolina Center for Teacher Recruitment, Rock Hill.

This publication reports on the 1994-95 activities of the South Carolina Center for Teacher Recruitment including the status of programs, mission, goals and budget for the next year. The Center was established in 1985 and has become a national model for teacher recruitment. Its most widely known programs are: Minority Recruitment, Crossroads…

Interpreting Recruitment Limitation in Forests

Treesearch

J.S. Clark; B. Beckage; P. Camill; B. Cleveland; J. HilleRisLambers; J. Lichter; J. McLachlan; J. Mohan; P. Wyckoff

1999-01-01

Studies of tree recruitment are many, but they provide few general insights into the role of recruitment limitation for population dynamics. That role depends on the vital rates (transitions) from seed production to sapling stages and on overall population growth. To determine the state of our understanding of recruitment limitation we examined how well we can estimate...

Recruitment Gaming: A New Tool at the Interface of Education and Employers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Porter, Gavin W.; Tanenbaum, Michael A.

2015-01-01

Recruitment gaming embodies an exciting new tool at the interface of the education and private sectors. Employers and recruitment platforms add new complications to the already problematic relationship between game designers and educators. To better understand the emerging recruitment aspects of gaming and identify areas for those in educational…

75 FR 3711 - Listing Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Designating Critical Habitat; 12-month...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-01-22

... recruitment, and successful reattachment and recruitment of asexual fragments in water depths shallower than 30 meters in four areas in Florida, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The petition seeks to... settlement and recruitment, and the reattachment and recruitment of asexual fragments in water depths...

Decoupling litter barrier and soil moisture influences on the establishment of an invasive grass

Treesearch

Robert J. Warren; Volker Bahn; Mark A. Bradford

2013-01-01

Through recruitment, plants establish in novel environments. Recruitment also is the stage where plants undergo the highest mortality. We investigate the recruitment niche for Microstegium vimineum, an annual grass from East Asia spreading throughout eastern North American forests. Current observational and greenhouse research indicates that M. vimineum recruitment may...

The Volunteer Recruitment (and Membership Development) Book. Second Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ellis, Susan J.

This book is designed to help nonprofit organizations recruit and retain volunteers. Following an introductory section covering the recruitment and use of volunteers, it contains 14 chapters organized in 3 sections. The chapters in the first section discuss what volunteer recruiters need to do before actually asking anyone to volunteer. They…

Recruiting Science Majors into Secondary Science Teaching: Paid Internships in Informal Science Settings

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Worsham, Heather M.; Friedrichsen, Patricia; Soucie, Marilyn; Barnett, Ellen; Akiba, Motoko

2014-01-01

Despite the importance of recruiting highly qualified individuals into the science teaching profession, little is known about the effectiveness of particular recruitment strategies. Over 3 years, 34 college science majors and undecided students were recruited into paid internships in informal science settings to consider secondary science teaching…

In-Hospital Recruitment to Observational Studies of Stroke

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pickering, Ruth M.; Kunkel, Dorit; Fitton, Carolyn; Ashburn, Ann; Jenkinson, Damian

2010-01-01

The objective of this study was to examine recruitment in three observational follow-up studies of patients with stroke, focusing on reasons for nonparticipation and the role of potential factors in explaining recruitment rates. It comprised secondary analysis of the three studies. Recruitment rates varied between the studies. Between 10 and 50%…

Somatosensory Gating Is Dependent on the Rate of Force Recruitment in the Human Orofacial System

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Andreatta, Richard D.; Barlow, Steven M.

2009-01-01

Purpose: Functional orofacial behaviors vary in their force endpoint and rate of recruitment. This study assessed the gating of orofacial cutaneous somatosensation during different cyclic lip force recruitment rates. Understanding how differences in the rate of force recruitment influences trigeminal system function is an important step toward…

Battling the War for Talent: An Application in a Military Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schreurs, Bert H. J.; Syed, Fariya

2011-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to introduce a comprehensive new recruitment model that brings together research findings in the different areas of recruitment. This model may serve as a general framework for further recruitment research, and is intended to support Human Resource managers in developing their recruitment policy. To highlight…

Rethinking Recruitment: The Comprehensive and Strategic Recruitment of Secondary Science Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Luft, Julie A.; Wong, Sissy S.; Semken, Steve

2011-01-01

The shortage of science teachers has spurred a discussion about their retention and recruitment. While discussion about retaining science teachers has increased dramatically in just the last few years, science teacher educators have not attended to the recruitment of science teachers with the same tenacity. This paper is our effort to initiate…

5 CFR 595.104 - What criteria are used to identify a recruitment and retention problem?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... recruitment and retention problem? 595.104 Section 595.104 Administrative Personnel OFFICE OF PERSONNEL... identify a recruitment and retention problem? The head of each agency may determine that a significant recruitment and retention problem exists for each category of physician position established under § 595.103...

Structural and Functional Impacts of ER Coactivator Sequential Recruitment.

PubMed

Yi, Ping; Wang, Zhao; Feng, Qin; Chou, Chao-Kai; Pintilie, Grigore D; Shen, Hong; Foulds, Charles E; Fan, Guizhen; Serysheva, Irina; Ludtke, Steven J; Schmid, Michael F; Hung, Mien-Chie; Chiu, Wah; O'Malley, Bert W

2017-09-07

Nuclear receptors recruit multiple coactivators sequentially to activate transcription. This "ordered" recruitment allows different coactivator activities to engage the nuclear receptor complex at different steps of transcription. Estrogen receptor (ER) recruits steroid receptor coactivator-3 (SRC-3) primary coactivator and secondary coactivators, p300/CBP and CARM1. CARM1 recruitment lags behind the binding of SRC-3 and p300 to ER. Combining cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) structure analysis and biochemical approaches, we demonstrate that there is a close crosstalk between early- and late-recruited coactivators. The sequential recruitment of CARM1 not only adds a protein arginine methyltransferase activity to the ER-coactivator complex, it also alters the structural organization of the pre-existing ERE/ERα/SRC-3/p300 complex. It induces a p300 conformational change and significantly increases p300 HAT activity on histone H3K18 residues, which, in turn, promotes CARM1 methylation activity on H3R17 residues to enhance transcriptional activity. This study reveals a structural role for a coactivator sequential recruitment and biochemical process in ER-mediated transcription. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Recruitment and retention monitoring: facilitating the mission of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)

PubMed Central

Roberts, J; Waddy, S; Kaufmann, P

2012-01-01

It is commonly accepted that inefficient recruitment and inadequate retention continue to threaten the completion of clinical trials intended to reduce the public health burden of neurological disease. This article will discuss the scientific, economic, and ethical implications of failure to recruit and retain adequate samples in clinical trials, including the consequences of failing to recruit adequately diverse samples. We will also discuss the more common challenges and barriers to efficient and effective recruitment and retention, and the impact these have on successful clinical trial planning. We will explain the newly established efforts within National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) to monitor recruitment and retention with well-defined metrics and implementation of grant awards that include feasibility milestones for continued funding. Finally, we will describe our efforts to address some of the common challenges to recruitment and retention through assistance to investigators and coordinators with evidence-based support, tools, and resources for planning and strategizing recruitment and retention as well as a trans-NIH effort to improve awareness of clinical research in the general public. PMID:23230460

Recruiting Fathers to Parenting Programs: Advice from Dads and Fatherhood Program Providers

PubMed Central

Stahlschmidt, Mary Jo; Threlfall, Jennifer; Seay, Kristen D.; Lewis, Ericka M.; Kohl, Patricia L.

2014-01-01

The benefits of high-quality father-child relationships for fathers and children alike are well documented. While evidence suggests parenting programs can improve the quality of father-child relationships, few fathers participate in such programs. This qualitative study aims to fill the gap in knowledge on best practices for recruiting urban African American fathers, a group of fathers with unique parenting challenges, to parenting programs. Focus groups were conducted with 29 fathers to gain their perspectives on recruitment strategies. Semi-structured interviews were also conducted with a nationwide sample of 19 fatherhood program providers to learn about their most successful recruitment strategies. Recruitment strategies based on emergent themes from the focus groups and interviews are presented here. Themes included using word-of-mouth recruitment, increasing advertising, targeting advertising specifically to urban African American fathers, providing transportation and incentives, recruiting through the courts, collaborating with other community agencies, and offering parenting programming along with other programming valued by fathers such as employment assistance. Implications for developing strategies for recruiting urban African American fathers to parenting programs are discussed. PMID:24791035

Recruitment of obese black women into a physical activity and nutrition intervention trial.

PubMed

Sharp, Lisa K; Fitzgibbon, Marian L; Schiffer, Linda

2008-11-01

Despite the increased health risks for obese Black women, relatively little research has explored physical activity and nutrition interventions for these women. This article describes the recruitment strategies used in a program designed specifically for obese Black women. Recruitment of Black women age 30 to 65 years with body mass indices between 30 kg/m2and 50 kg/m2was completed using in-person recruitment and flyers within 2 miles of the intervention site along with mass e-mails within the sponsoring university system. Medical clearance from a physician was an eligibility requirement because of Institutional Review Board safety concerns. Of the 690 women who were screened, 213 (31%) were eligible and randomized. The most common reason for exclusion was failure to return a medical clearance form (n = 167, 39% of ineligible). Different rates of efficiency were noted across recruitment approaches. Black women were successfully recruited using in-person community recruitment, e-mail, and community flyers within close proximity to the intervention site. Careful consideration should be given to the advantages and disadvantages of various recruitment strategies that might not generalize across studies.

Recruiting Fathers to Parenting Programs: Advice from Dads and Fatherhood Program Providers.

PubMed

Stahlschmidt, Mary Jo; Threlfall, Jennifer; Seay, Kristen D; Lewis, Ericka M; Kohl, Patricia L

2013-10-01

The benefits of high-quality father-child relationships for fathers and children alike are well documented. While evidence suggests parenting programs can improve the quality of father-child relationships, few fathers participate in such programs. This qualitative study aims to fill the gap in knowledge on best practices for recruiting urban African American fathers, a group of fathers with unique parenting challenges, to parenting programs. Focus groups were conducted with 29 fathers to gain their perspectives on recruitment strategies. Semi-structured interviews were also conducted with a nationwide sample of 19 fatherhood program providers to learn about their most successful recruitment strategies. Recruitment strategies based on emergent themes from the focus groups and interviews are presented here. Themes included using word-of-mouth recruitment, increasing advertising, targeting advertising specifically to urban African American fathers, providing transportation and incentives, recruiting through the courts, collaborating with other community agencies, and offering parenting programming along with other programming valued by fathers such as employment assistance. Implications for developing strategies for recruiting urban African American fathers to parenting programs are discussed.

Recruitment of general practices: Is a standardised approach helpful in the involvement of healthcare professionals in research?

PubMed

Riis, Allan; Jensen, Cathrine E; Maindal, Helle T; Bro, Flemming; Jensen, Martin B

2016-01-01

Health service research often involves the active participation of healthcare professionals. However, their ability and commitment to research varies. This can cause recruitment difficulties and thereby prolong the study period and inflate budgets. Solberg has identified seven R-factors as determinants for successfully recruiting healthcare professionals: relationships, reputation, requirements, rewards, reciprocity, resolution, and respect. This is a process evaluation of the seven R-factors. We applied these factors to guide the design of our recruitment strategy as well as to make adjustments when recruiting general practices in a guideline implementation study. In the guideline implementation study, we studied the effect of outreach visits, quality reports, and new patient stratification tools for low back pain patients. During a period of 15 months, we recruited 60 practices, which was fewer than planned (100 practices). In this evaluation, five of Solberg's seven R-factors were successfully addressed and two factors were not. The need to involve (reciprocity) end users in the development of new software and the amount of time needed to conduct recruitment (resolution) were underestimated. The framework of the seven R-factors was a feasible tool in our recruitment process. However, we suggest further investigation in developing systematic approaches to support the recruitment of healthcare professionals to research.

Recruitment rates in workplace physical activity interventions: characteristics for success.

PubMed

Ryde, Gemma C; Gilson, Nicholas D; Burton, Nicola W; Brown, Wendy J

2013-01-01

To conduct a systematic review to assess recruitment rates in workplace physical activity (PA) intervention studies and describe characteristics of studies with high recruitment rates. Data Source. Electronic and manual searches were conducted. Workplace PA intervention studies that reported the number of employees invited to participate and the number who responded were included. Studies with recruitment rates of ≥70% were categorized as high with the remaining studies (<70%) used as comparison. Key study characteristics were assessed. An approach called positive deviance was used to identify the extent to which study characteristics were unique to high recruitment rate. Seventy-six percent of studies failed to report recruitment rates (n = 30 included for review). Studies with high recruitment rates (n = 8) tended to have longer study duration (mean 1.6 years) and target smaller cohorts of employees (mean n = 199) than comparison studies (3.9 months; n = 1241). For recruitment strategies and intervention components of high studies, involvement of employees was driven by the organization, with PA interventions provided as part of the working day in paid time. These findings suggest a potential to improve recruitment through targeting small cohorts of employees, incorporating PA as a long-term strategy, facilitating organizationally driven employee involvement, and providing PA interventions during paid time.

Inhibition of coral recruitment by macroalgae and cyanobacteria

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kuffner, I.B.; Walters, L.J.; Becerro, M.A.; Paul, V.J.; Ritson-Williams, R.; Beach, K.S.

2006-01-01

Coral recruitment is a key process in the maintenance and recovery of coral reef ecosystems. While intense competition between coral and algae is often assumed on reefs that have undergone phase shifts from coral to algal dominance, data examining the competitive interactions involved, particularly during the larval and immediate post-settlement stage, are scarce. Using a series of field and outdoor seawater table experiments, we tested the hypothesis that common species of macroalgae and cyanobacteria inhibit coral recruitment. We examined the effects of Lyngbya spp., Dictyota spp., Lobophora variegata (J. V. Lamouroux) Womersley, and Chondrophycus poiteaui (J. V. Lamouroux) Nam (formerly Laurencia poiteaui) on the recruitment success of Porites astreoides larvae. All species but C. poiteaui caused either recruitment inhibition or avoidance behavior in P. astreoides larvae, while L. confervoides and D. menstrualis significantly increased mortality rates of P. astreoides recruits. We also tested the effect of some of these macrophytes on larvae of the gorgonian octocoral Briareum asbestinum. Exposure to Lyngbya majuscula reduced survival and recruitment in the octocoral larvae. Our results provide evidence that algae and cyanobacteria use tactics beyond space occupation to inhibit coral recruitment. On reefs experiencing phase shifts or temporary algal blooms, the restocking of adult coral populations may be slowed due to recruitment inhibition, thereby perpetuating reduced coral cover and limiting coral community recovery. ?? Inter-Research 2006.

Testing for synchrony in recruitment among four Lake Michigan fish species

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bunnell, David B.; Höök, Tomas O.; Troy, Cary D.; Liu, Wentao; Madenjian, Charles P.; Adams, Jean V.

2017-01-01

In the Great Lakes region, multiple fish species display intra-specific spatial synchrony in 28 recruitment success, with inter-annual climate variation hypothesized as the most likely driver. 29 In Lake Michigan, we evaluated whether climatic or other physical variables could also induce 30 spatial synchrony across multiple species, including bloater (Coregonus hoyi), rainbow smelt 31 (Osmerus mordax), yellow perch (Perca flavescens), and alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus). The 32 residuals from stock-recruitment relationships revealed yellow perch recruitment to be correlated 33 with recruitment of both rainbow smelt (r = 0.37) and alewife (r = 0.36). Across all four species, 34 higher than expected recruitment occurred in 5 years between 1978 and 1987 and then switched 35 to lower than expected recruitment in 5 years between 1996 and 2004. Generalized additive 36 models revealed warmer spring and summer water temperatures and lower wind speeds 37 corresponded to higher than expected recruitment for the nearshore-spawning species, and 38 overall variance explained ranged from 14% (yellow perch) to 61% (alewife). For all species 39 but rainbow smelt, higher recruitment also occurred in extremely high or low years of the North 40 Atlantic Oscillation index. Future development of indices that describe the physical Great Lakes 41 environment could improve understanding of how climate can synchronize fish populations 42 within and across species.

Patient recruitment for clinical trials on traditional Chinese medicine: Challenges, barriers, and strategies.

PubMed

King-Fai, Cheng; Ping-Chung, Leung; Lai-Yi, Wong; Yuet-Shim, Fong

2008-02-02

Failure to recruit sufficient numbers of participants is a major barrier to the completion of randomized controlled trials in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) clinical trials. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the commonly used strategies for the recruitment of patients in TCM clinical trials, to identify the most common reasons for attrition and refusal, and to identify barriers and potential solutions to the difficulties. There are four stages in the actual recruitment process, which included introducing the project to the potential patients, explaining how to implement the project, assessing and intensifying the understanding and facilitating patient decision-making. When insufficient recruitment occurred, the following steps should be considered: reevaluating the required sample size; adding new sites to the trial; eliminating hospitals that had poor recruiting records; extending the patient recruitment period, modifying the patient inclusion/exclusion criteria; and shifting placebo-controlled to active-controlled arrangements. Success in reaching target recruitment depended largely on being able to directly contact patients through posters, newspaper advertisements, television interviews, patient support groups, and physician referrals in hospitals. Suspicions against the placebo and unwillingness to stop taking other herbal supplements made recruitment more difficult, time-consuming, and costly. In a Chinese community, open advertising in the local newspaper may be particularly attractive.

Assessing altered motor unit recruitment patterns in paretic muscles of stroke survivors using surface electromyography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hu, Xiaogang; Suresh, Aneesha K.; Rymer, William Z.; Suresh, Nina L.

2015-12-01

Objective. The advancement of surface electromyogram (sEMG) recording and signal processing techniques has allowed us to characterize the recruitment properties of a substantial population of motor units (MUs) non-invasively. Here we seek to determine whether MU recruitment properties are modified in paretic muscles of hemispheric stroke survivors. Approach. Using an advanced EMG sensor array, we recorded sEMG during isometric contractions of the first dorsal interosseous muscle over a range of contraction levels, from 20% to 60% of maximum, in both paretic and contralateral muscles of stroke survivors. Using MU decomposition techniques, MU action potential amplitudes and recruitment thresholds were derived for simultaneously activated MUs in each isometric contraction. Main results. Our results show a significant disruption of recruitment organization in paretic muscles, in that the size principle describing recruitment rank order was materially distorted. MUs were recruited over a very narrow force range with increasing force output, generating a strong clustering effect, when referenced to recruitment force magnitude. Such disturbances in MU properties also correlated well with the impairment of voluntary force generation. Significance. Our findings provide direct evidence regarding MU recruitment modifications in paretic muscles of stroke survivors, and suggest that these modifications may contribute to weakness for voluntary contractions.

Patterns of motor recruitment can be determined using surface EMG.

PubMed

Wakeling, James M

2009-04-01

Previous studies have reported how different populations of motor units (MUs) can be recruited during dynamic and locomotor tasks. It was hypothesised that the higher-threshold units would contribute higher-frequency components to the sEMG spectra due to their faster conduction velocities, and thus recruitment patterns that increase the proportion of high-threshold units active would lead to higher-frequency elements in the sEMG spectra. This idea was tested by using a model of varying recruitment coupled to a three-layer volume conductor model to generate a series of sEMG signals. The recruitment varied from (A) orderly recruitment where the lowest-threshold MUs were initially activated and higher-threshold MUs were sequentially recruited as the contraction progressed, (B) a recurrent inhibition model that started with orderly recruitment, but as the higher-threshold units were activated they inhibited the lower-threshold MUs (C) nine models with intermediate properties that were graded between these two extremes. The sEMG was processed using wavelet analysis and the spectral properties quantified by their mean frequency, and an angle theta that was determined from the principal components of the spectra. Recruitment strategies that resulted in a greater proportion of faster MUs being active had a significantly lower theta and higher mean frequency.

Assessing altered motor unit recruitment patterns in paretic muscles of stroke survivors using surface electromyography

PubMed Central

Hu, Xiaogang; Suresh, Aneesha K; Rymer, William Z; Suresh, Nina L

2017-01-01

Objective The advancement of surface electromyogram (sEMG) recording and signal processing techniques has allowed us to characterize the recruitment properties of a substantial population of motor units (MUs) non-invasively. Here we seek to determine whether MU recruitment properties are modified in paretic muscles of hemispheric stroke survivors. Approach Using an advanced EMG sensor array, we recorded sEMG during isometric contractions of the first dorsal interosseous muscle over a range of contraction levels, from 20% to 60% of maximum, in both paretic and contralateral muscles of stroke survivors. Using MU decomposition techniques, MU action potential amplitudes and recruitment thresholds were derived for simultaneously activated MUs in each isometric contraction. Main results Our results show a significant disruption of recruitment organization in paretic muscles, in that the size principle describing recruitment rank order was materially distorted. MUs were recruited over a very narrow force range with increasing force output, generating a strong clustering effect, when referenced to recruitment force magnitude. Such disturbances in MU properties also correlated well with the impairment of voluntary force generation. Significance Our findings provide direct evidence regarding MU recruitment modifications in paretic muscles of stroke survivors, and suggest that these modifications may contribute to weakness for voluntary contractions. PMID:26402920

Empirically based models of oceanographic and biological influences on Pacific Herring recruitment in Prince William Sound

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sewall, Fletcher; Norcross, Brenda; Mueter, Franz; Heintz, Ron

2018-01-01

Abundances of small pelagic fish can change dramatically over time and are difficult to forecast, partially due to variable numbers of fish that annually mature and recruit to the spawning population. Recruitment strength of age-3 Pacific Herring (Clupea pallasii) in Prince William Sound, Alaska, is estimated in an age-structured model framework as a function of spawning stock biomass via a Ricker stock-recruitment model, and forecasted using the 10-year median recruitment estimates. However, stock size has little influence on subsequent numbers of recruits. This study evaluated the usefulness of herring recruitment models that incorporate oceanographic and biological variables. Results indicated herring recruitment estimates were significantly improved by modifying the standard Ricker model to include an index of young-of-the-year (YOY) Walleye Pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) abundance. The positive relationship between herring recruits-per-spawner and YOY pollock abundance has persisted through three decades, including the herring stock crash of the early 1990s. Including sea surface temperature, primary productivity, and additional predator or competitor abundances singly or in combination did not improve model performance. We suggest that synchrony of juvenile herring and pollock survival may be caused by increased abundance of their zooplankton prey, or high juvenile pollock abundance may promote prey switching and satiation of predators. Regardless of the mechanism, the relationship has practical application to herring recruitment forecasting, and serves as an example of incorporating ecosystem components into a stock assessment model.

'Any body is better than nobody?' Ethical questions around recruiting and/or retaining health professionals in rural areas.

PubMed

Simpson, C; McDonald, F

2011-01-01

The literature on recruiting and/or retaining health professionals in rural areas focuses primarily on the development of recruitment and retention strategies and assessing whether such strategies are effective. The objective of this article is to argue that it is important for all stakeholders involved in rural recruitment and/or retention processes to consider their decisions and actions from an ethics perspective. Recruitment and/or retention processes are not value neutral and it is important to understand their ethical dimensions. From the literature, elements of the recruitment and/or retention strategies that have been employed were identified and organised in respect of levels of governance (namely, the levels of health system/government, community, and individual health professionals). The elements identified in these levels were subjected to analysis to identify their ethical dimensions and to determine whether a clash or complement of values arose at each level of governance or between governance levels. There is very little literature in this area that considers the ethical dimensions of rural recruitment and/or retention processes. However, all policies and practices have ethical dimensions that need to be identified and understood as they may have significant implications for recruitment and/or retention processes. This article recommends the application of an ethics perspective when reflecting on rural recruitment and/or retention strategies. The collective decisions of all involved in rural recruitment and/or retention processes may fundamentally influence the 'health' (broadly understood) of rural communities.

Solving the Supreme Problem: 100 years of selection and recruitment at the Journal of Applied Psychology.

PubMed

Ployhart, Robert E; Schmitt, Neal; Tippins, Nancy T

2017-03-01

This article reviews 100 years of research on recruitment and selection published in the Journal of Applied Psychology. Recruitment and selection research has been present in the Journal from the very first issue, where Hall (1917) suggested that the challenge of recruitment and selection was the Supreme Problem facing the field of applied psychology. As this article shows, the various topics related to recruitment and selection have ebbed and flowed over the years in response to business, legal, and societal changes, but this Supreme Problem has captivated the attention of scientist-practitioners for a century. Our review starts by identifying the practical challenges and macro forces that shaped the sciences of recruitment and selection and helped to define the research questions the field has addressed. We then describe the evolution of recruitment and selection research and the ways the resulting scientific advancements have contributed to staffing practices. We conclude with speculations on how recruitment and selection research may proceed in the future. Supplemental material posted online provides additional depth by including a summary of practice challenges and scientific advancements that affected the direction of selection and recruitment research and an outline of seminal articles published in the Journal and corresponding time line. The 100-year anniversary of the Journal of Applied Psychology is very much the celebration of recruitment and selection research, although predictions about the future suggest there is still much exciting work to be done. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Food availability affects onset of reproduction in a long-lived seabird.

PubMed

Vincenzi, Simone; Hatch, Scott; Mangel, Marc; Kitaysky, Alexander

2013-06-07

Life-history theory predicts that suboptimal developmental conditions may lead to faster life histories (younger age at recruitment and higher reproductive investment), but experimental testing of this prediction is still scarce in long-lived species. We report the effects of an experimental manipulation of food availability during early development and at recruitment on the onset of reproduction and reproductive performance (productivity at first breeding) in a long-lived seabird, the black-legged kittiwake Rissa tridactyla, breeding on Middleton Island, Alaska. Birds were born and raised in nests with supplemented food ('fed') or unsupplemented control nests ('unfed'), and later recruited into either fed or unfed nests. Fed chicks grew faster than unfed chicks, and males grew faster than females. Birds were more likely to reproduce at younger ages when recruiting into fed nests. Faster growth during development tended to increase age at recruitment in all individuals. Social rank of individuals also affected age at recruitment: B-chicks recruited earlier than A-chicks and singletons recruited later than A- and B-chicks. Productivity increased with the age at recruitment and growth rate as chick, but much of the variability remained unexplained. We conclude that results of this study at least partially support predictions of life-history theory: younger age at first breeding for kittiwakes that experienced suboptimal natal conditions, as well as greater productivity of early recruiting kittiwakes that grew in control nests compared with those that grew in food-supplemented nests.

A pragmatic examination of active and passive recruitment methods to improve the reach of community lifestyle programs: The Talking Health Trial.

PubMed

Estabrooks, Paul; You, Wen; Hedrick, Valisa; Reinholt, Margaret; Dohm, Erin; Zoellner, Jamie

2017-01-19

A primary challenge for behavior change strategies is ensuring that interventions can be effective while also attracting a broad and representative sample of the target population. The purpose of this case-study was to report on (1) the reach of a randomized controlled trial targeting reduced sugary beverages, (2) potential participant characteristic differences based on active versus passive recruitment strategies, and (3) recruitment strategy cost. Demographic and recruitment information was obtained for 8 counties and for individuals screened for participation. Personnel activities and time were tracked. Costs were calculated and compared by active versus passive recruitment. Six-hundred and twenty, of 1,056 screened, individuals were eligible and 301enrolled (77% women; 90% white; mean income $21,981 ± 16,443). Eighty-two and 44% of those responding to passive and active methods, respectively, enrolled in the trial. However, active recruitment strategies yielded considerably more enrolled (active = 199; passive = 102) individuals. Passive recruitment strategies yielded a less representative sample in terms of gender (more women), education (higher), and income (higher; p's <0.05). The average cost of an actively recruited and enrolled participant was $278 compared to $117 for a passively recruited and enrolled participant. Though passive recruitment is more cost efficient it may reduce the reach of sugary drink reduction strategies in lower educated and economic residents in rural communities. Clinicaltrials.gov; ID: NCT02193009 , July 2014, retrospectively registered.

A Comparison of a Centralized Versus De-Centralized Recruitment Schema in Two Community-Based Participatory Research Studies for Cancer Prevention

PubMed Central

Adams, Swann Arp; Heiney, Sue P.; Brandt, Heather M.; Wirth, Michael D.; Khan, Samira; Johnson, Hiluv; Davis, Lisa; Wineglass, Cassandra M.; Warren-Jones, Tatiana Y.; Felder, Tisha M.; Drayton, Ruby F.; Davis, Briana; Farr, Deeonna E.; Hébert, James R.

2014-01-01

Use of community-based participatory research (CBPR) approaches is increasing with the goal of making more meaningful and impactful advances in eliminating cancer-related health disparities. While many reports have espoused its advantages, few investigations have focused on comparing CBPR-oriented recruitment and retention. Consequently, the purpose of this analysis was to report and compare two different CBPR approaches in two cancer prevention studies. We utilized frequencies and chi-squared tests to compare and contrast subject recruitment and retention for two studies that incorporated a randomized, controlled intervention design of a dietary and physical activity intervention among African Americans. One study utilized a de-centralized approach to recruitment in which primary responsibility for recruitment was assigned to the general AA community of various church partners whereas the other incorporated a centralized approach to recruitment in which a single lay community individual was hired as research personnel to lead recruitment and intervention delivery. Both studies performed equally well for both recruitment and retention (75 and 88% recruitment rates and 71 and 66% retention rates) far exceeding those rates traditionally cited for cancer clinical trials (~5%). The de-centralized approach to retention appeared to result in statistically greater retention for the control participants compared to the centralized approach (77 vs 51%, P<0.01). Consequently, both CBPR approaches appeared to greatly enhance recruitment and retention rates of AA populations. We further note lessons learned and challenges to consider for future research opportunities. PMID:25086566

Community regulation: the relative importance of recruitment and predation intensity of an intertidal community dominant in a seascape context.

PubMed

Rilov, Gil; Schiel, David R

2011-01-01

Predicting the strength and context-dependency of species interactions across multiple scales is a core area in ecology. This is especially challenging in the marine environment, where populations of most predators and prey are generally open, because of their pelagic larval phase, and recruitment of both is highly variable. In this study we use a comparative-experimental approach on small and large spatial scales to test the relationship between predation intensity and prey recruitment and their relative importance in shaping populations of a dominant rocky intertidal space occupier, mussels, in the context of seascape (availability of nearby subtidal reef habitat). Predation intensity on transplanted mussels was tested inside and outside cages and recruitment was measured with standard larval settlement collectors. We found that on intertidal rocky benches with contiguous subtidal reefs in New Zealand, mussel larval recruitment is usually low but predation on recruits by subtidal consumers (fish, crabs) is intense during high tide. On nearby intertidal rocky benches with adjacent sandy subtidal habitats, larval recruitment is usually greater but subtidal predators are typically rare and predation is weaker. Multiple regression analysis showed that predation intensity accounts for most of the variability in the abundance of adult mussels compared to recruitment. This seascape-dependent, predation-recruitment relationship could scale up to explain regional community variability. We argue that community ecology models should include seascape context-dependency and its effects on recruitment and species interactions for better predictions of coastal community dynamics and structure.

The National Children's Study: Recruitment Outcomes Using an Enhanced Household-Based Approach.

PubMed

Blaisdell, Laura L; Zellner, Jennifer A; King, Alison A; Faustman, Elaine; Wilhelm, Mari; Hudak, Mark L; Annett, Robert D

2016-06-01

Ten National Children's Study (NCS) study locations with diverse demographic characteristics used an enhanced household-based recruitment (EHBR) approach to enroll preconceptional and pregnant women. Study centers used different types and dosages of community outreach and engagement (COE) activities and supplemental strategies. The goal of the study was to determine whether variability in enumeration and recruitment outcomes correlated with study location characteristics or types and dosages of COE activities (number of COE events, number of advance household mailings, total media expenditures, and total COE expenditures). Each of the sites provided data on COE activities, protocol implementation, supplemental recruitment activities, location demographic characteristics, and enumeration/recruitment outcomes. COE activities varied across sites in breadth and scope. Numerous strategies were used, including media advertising, social media, participation in community-wide events, presentations to stakeholders, and creation of advisory boards. Some sites included supplemental recruitment efforts. EHBR sites enrolled 1404 women at the initial pregnancy screening. No significant relationships were found between study location demographic characteristics or between the types and dosages of COE activities and recruitment outcomes. Probability sampling for a long-term study requires a positive image with stakeholders and within communities; this requirement may be especially true for door-to-door recruitment. EHBR sites successfully recruited a representative sample of preconceptional and pregnant women. Sites reported implementing similar COE activities but with varying dosage and cost; however, analyses did not support a benefit of COE strategies on study recruitment. Copyright © 2016 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Reaching young adult smokers through the internet: comparison of three recruitment mechanisms.

PubMed

Ramo, Danielle E; Hall, Sharon M; Prochaska, Judith J

2010-07-01

While young adults have the highest prevalence of cigarette smoking of any adult age group, studies of tobacco and other substance use have reported challenges in recruiting this age group. The Internet may be a useful tool for reaching young adult smokers. The present study compared three Internet-based recruitment methods for young adult smokers to complete a survey about tobacco and other substance use: Craigslist advertisements, other Internet advertisements, and E-mail invitations through a survey sampling service. Recruitment campaigns invited young adults aged 18-25 years who had smoked at least one cigarette in the past 30 days to complete an online survey. Recruitment methods were compared across recruitment numbers, costeffectiveness, and demographic and smoking characteristics of recruited participants. In 6 months, 920 people gave online consent to determine eligibility to complete the survey, of which 336 (36.5%) were eligible, and 201 (59.8%) completed the survey. While Internet advertisements yielded the largest proportion of recruited participants and completed surveys overall, Craigslist and sampling strategies were more successful at targeting young adult smokers who went on to complete the survey and were more costeffective. Participants differed in demographic and substance use characteristics across the three recruitment mechanisms. We identified success at reaching young adults who have smoked cigarettes recently through the Internet, though costs, participant eligibility, proportion of completed surveys, and respondent characteristics differed among the three methods. A multipronged approach to Internet recruitment is most likely to generate a broad diverse sample of young adult smokers.

Nurses as participants in research: an evaluation of recruitment techniques.

PubMed

Luck, Lauretta; Chok, Harrison Ng; Wilkes, Lesley

2017-09-19

Recruitment and retention of participants, as well as response rates, can be challenging in nursing research. This can be because of the questions asked; the choice of methodology; the methods used to collect data; the characteristics of potential participants; the sample size required; and the duration of the study. Additionally, conducting research with nurses as participants presents several issues for them, including the time needed to participate in the research, the competing commitments for clinical practice, the political and environmental climate, and recruitment itself. To report on research studies conducted by the authors at a tertiary teaching hospital, to show the lessons learned when recruiting nurses to participate in nursing research. The authors discuss factors that supported recruitment of nurses in these studies, including the use of the personal touch and multiple recruitment strategies in a single study. Videos and photography facilitate interdisciplinary research and can be a valuable means of non-verbal data collection, especially with participants affected by disabilities, and can support research methods, such as the use of questionnaires. Recruiting nurses for research can be challenging. We suggest that researchers consider using more than one recruitment strategy when recruiting nurse participants. Recruitment is more successful if researchers align the aim(s) of the research with nurse's concerns and contexts. ©2012 RCN Publishing Company Ltd. All rights reserved. Not to be copied, transmitted or recorded in any way, in whole or part, without prior permission of the publishers.

What factors influence successful recruitment of siblings of individuals with first episode psychosis to e-health interventions? A qualitative study.

PubMed

Sin, Jacqueline; Henderson, Claire; Spain, Debbie; Gamble, Catherine; Norman, Ian

2017-08-01

Recruitment to clinical research studies can prove complex. This is particularly true of mental health research, given factors such as confidentiality, capacity and consent, or when attempting to recruit family members as opposed to service users themselves. This study investigated the challenges experienced and strategies employed in the recruitment of siblings of people with first episode psychosis using Early Intervention in Psychosis Services (EIPS) in England. As part of a randomized controlled trial (RCT) of an e-health intervention for siblings, we conducted a process evaluation study whereby semistructured interview was undertaken with clinical and research staff involved in recruitment of siblings. Data were analysed thematically. Twelve participants from six EIPS were interviewed. Data analysis revealed seven key themes: (i) limited comprehensive family data available; (ii) data governance and consent issues; (iii) organizational factors; (iv) convoluted recruitment methods; (v) concerns about service users' opinions; (vi) fluidity in siblings' needs and expectations; and (vii) strategies to enhance recruitment. Recruitment challenges identified in this study concerned administrative, organizational, process and attitudinal issues. These are similar to other studies recruiting mental health service users as well as family members. Failure to recruit to target implies that studies are underpowered to detect potential statistically or clinically meaningful changes. Future studies should establish how best to enhance family inclusiveness in clinical practice and research. © 2016 The Authors. Health Expectations published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Facilitation of Allergic Sensitization and Allergic Airway Inflammation by Pollen-Induced Innate Neutrophil Recruitment

PubMed Central

Hosoki, Koa; Aguilera-Aguirre, Leopoldo; Brasier, Allan R.; Kurosky, Alexander; Boldogh, Istvan

2016-01-01

Neutrophil recruitment is a hallmark of rapid innate immune responses. Exposure of airways of naive mice to pollens rapidly induces neutrophil recruitment. The innate mechanisms that regulate pollen-induced neutrophil recruitment and the contribution of this neutrophilic response to subsequent induction of allergic sensitization and inflammation need to be elucidated. Here we show that ragweed pollen extract (RWPE) challenge in naive mice induces C-X-C motif ligand (CXCL) chemokine synthesis, which stimulates chemokine (C-X-C motif) receptor 2 (CXCR2)-dependent recruitment of neutrophils into the airways. Deletion of Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) abolishes CXCL chemokine secretion and neutrophil recruitment induced by a single RWPE challenge and inhibits induction of allergic sensitization and airway inflammation after repeated exposures to RWPE. Forced induction of CXCL chemokine secretion and neutrophil recruitment in mice lacking TLR4 also reconstitutes the ability of multiple challenges of RWPE to induce allergic airway inflammation. Blocking RWPE-induced neutrophil recruitment in wild-type mice by administration of a CXCR2 inhibitor inhibits the ability of repeated exposures to RWPE to stimulate allergic sensitization and airway inflammation. Administration of neutrophils derived from naive donor mice into the airways of Tlr4 knockout recipient mice after each repeated RWPE challenge reconstitutes allergic sensitization and inflammation in these mice. Together these observations indicate that pollen-induced recruitment of neutrophils is TLR4 and CXCR2 dependent and that recruitment of neutrophils is a critical rate-limiting event that stimulates induction of allergic sensitization and airway inflammation. Inhibiting pollen-induced recruitment of neutrophils, such as by administration of CXCR2 antagonists, may be a novel strategy to prevent initiation of pollen-induced allergic airway inflammation. PMID:26086549

Facilitation of Allergic Sensitization and Allergic Airway Inflammation by Pollen-Induced Innate Neutrophil Recruitment.

PubMed

Hosoki, Koa; Aguilera-Aguirre, Leopoldo; Brasier, Allan R; Kurosky, Alexander; Boldogh, Istvan; Sur, Sanjiv

2016-01-01

Neutrophil recruitment is a hallmark of rapid innate immune responses. Exposure of airways of naive mice to pollens rapidly induces neutrophil recruitment. The innate mechanisms that regulate pollen-induced neutrophil recruitment and the contribution of this neutrophilic response to subsequent induction of allergic sensitization and inflammation need to be elucidated. Here we show that ragweed pollen extract (RWPE) challenge in naive mice induces C-X-C motif ligand (CXCL) chemokine synthesis, which stimulates chemokine (C-X-C motif) receptor 2 (CXCR2)-dependent recruitment of neutrophils into the airways. Deletion of Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) abolishes CXCL chemokine secretion and neutrophil recruitment induced by a single RWPE challenge and inhibits induction of allergic sensitization and airway inflammation after repeated exposures to RWPE. Forced induction of CXCL chemokine secretion and neutrophil recruitment in mice lacking TLR4 also reconstitutes the ability of multiple challenges of RWPE to induce allergic airway inflammation. Blocking RWPE-induced neutrophil recruitment in wild-type mice by administration of a CXCR2 inhibitor inhibits the ability of repeated exposures to RWPE to stimulate allergic sensitization and airway inflammation. Administration of neutrophils derived from naive donor mice into the airways of Tlr4 knockout recipient mice after each repeated RWPE challenge reconstitutes allergic sensitization and inflammation in these mice. Together these observations indicate that pollen-induced recruitment of neutrophils is TLR4 and CXCR2 dependent and that recruitment of neutrophils is a critical rate-limiting event that stimulates induction of allergic sensitization and airway inflammation. Inhibiting pollen-induced recruitment of neutrophils, such as by administration of CXCR2 antagonists, may be a novel strategy to prevent initiation of pollen-induced allergic airway inflammation.

Recruitment methods employed in the prostate, lung, colorectal, and ovarian cancer screening trial

PubMed Central

Gren, Lisa; Broski, Karen; Childs, Jeffery; Cordes, Jill; Engelhard, Deborah; Gahagan, Betsy; Gamito, Eduard; Gardner, Vivien; Geisser, Mindy; Higgins, Darlene; Jenkins, Victoria; Lamerato, Lois; Lappe, Karen; Lowery, Heidi; McGuire, Colleen; Miedzinski, Mollie; Ogden, Sheryl; Tenorio, Sally; Watt, Gavin; Wohlers, Bonita; Marcus, Pamela

2015-01-01

Background The Prostate, Lung, Colorectal and Ovarian Cancer Screening Trial (PLCO) is a US National Cancer Institute (NCI)-funded randomized controlled trial designed to evaluate whether certain screening tests reduce mortality from prostate, lung, colorectal, and ovarian cancer. To obtain adequate statistical power, it was necessary to enroll over 150,000 healthy volunteers. Recruitment began in 1993 and ended in 2001. Purpose Our goal is to evaluate the success of recruitment methods employed by the 10 PLCO screening centers. We also provide estimates of recruitment yield and cost for our most successful strategy, direct mail. Methods Each screening center selected its own methods of recruitment. Methods changed throughout the recruitment period as needed. For this manuscript, representatives from each screening center provided information on methods utilized and their success. Results In the United States between 1993 and 2001, ten screening centers enrolled 154,934 study participants. Based on participant self-report, an estimated 95% of individuals were recruited by direct mail. Overall, enrollment yield for direct mail was 1.0%. Individual center enrollment yield ranged from 0.7% to 3.8%. Cost per enrolled participant was $9.64–35.38 for direct mail, excluding personnel costs. Limitations Numeric data on recruitment processes were not kept consistently at individual screening centers. Numeric data in this manuscript are based on the experiences of 5 of the 10 centers. Conclusions Direct mail, using rosters of names and addresses from profit and not-for-profit (including government) organizations, was the most successful and most often used recruitment method. Other recruitment strategies, such as community outreach and use of mass media, can be an important adjunct to direct mail in recruiting minority populations. PMID:19254935

A qualitative analysis of peer recruitment pressures in respondent driven sampling: Are risks above the ethical limit?

PubMed

Mosher, Heather I; Moorthi, Gayatri; Li, JiangHong; Weeks, Margaret R

2015-09-01

This paper examines peer recruitment dynamics through respondent driven sampling (RDS) with a sample of injection drug users in Hartford, CT to understand the strategies participants use to recruit peers into a study and the extent to which these strategies may introduce risks above the ethical limit despite safeguards in RDS. Out of 526 injection drug users who participated in a mixed-method RDS methodology evaluation study, a nested sample of 61 participants completed an in-depth semi-structured interview at a 2-month follow-up to explore their experiences with the recruitment process. Findings revealed that participants used a variety of strategies to recruit peers, ranging from one-time interactions to more persistent strategies to encourage participation (e.g., selecting peers that can easily be found and contacted later, following up with peers to remind them of their appointment, accompanying peers to the study site, etc.). Some participants described the more persistent strategies as helpful, while some others experienced these strategies as minor peer pressure, creating a feeling of obligation to participate. Narratives revealed that overall, the probability of experiencing study-related risks remains relatively low for most participants; however, a disconcerting finding was that higher study-related risks (e.g., relationship conflict, loss of relationship, physical fights, violence) were seen for recruits who participated but switched coupons or for recruits who decided not to participate in the study and did not return the coupon to the recruiter. Findings indicate that peer recruitment practices in RDS generally pose minimal risk, but that peer recruitment may occasionally exceed the ethical limit, and that enhanced safeguards for studies using peer recruitment methods are recommended. Suggestions for possible enhancements are described. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The effects of model composition design choices on high-fidelity simulations of motoneuron recruitment and firing behaviors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Allen, John M.; Elbasiouny, Sherif M.

2018-06-01

Objective. Computational models often require tradeoffs, such as balancing detail with efficiency; yet optimal balance should incorporate sound design features that do not bias the results of the specific scientific question under investigation. The present study examines how model design choices impact simulation results. Approach. We developed a rigorously-validated high-fidelity computational model of the spinal motoneuron pool to study three long-standing model design practices which have yet to be examined for their impact on motoneuron recruitment, firing rate, and force simulations. The practices examined were the use of: (1) generic cell models to simulate different motoneuron types, (2) discrete property ranges for different motoneuron types, and (3) biological homogeneity of cell properties within motoneuron types. Main results. Our results show that each of these practices accentuates conditions of motoneuron recruitment based on the size principle, and minimizes conditions of mixed and reversed recruitment orders, which have been observed in animal and human recordings. Specifically, strict motoneuron orderly size recruitment occurs, but in a compressed range, after which mixed and reverse motoneuron recruitment occurs due to the overlap in electrical properties of different motoneuron types. Additionally, these practices underestimate the motoneuron firing rates and force data simulated by existing models. Significance. Our results indicate that current modeling practices increase conditions of motoneuron recruitment based on the size principle, and decrease conditions of mixed and reversed recruitment order, which, in turn, impacts the predictions made by existing models on motoneuron recruitment, firing rate, and force. Additionally, mixed and reverse motoneuron recruitment generated higher muscle force than orderly size motoneuron recruitment in these simulations and represents one potential scheme to increase muscle efficiency. The examined model design practices, as well as the present results, are applicable to neuronal modeling throughout the nervous system.

Seasonal regulation of herbivory and nutrient effects on macroalgal recruitment and succession in a Florida coral reef

PubMed Central

Collado-Vides, Ligia; Burkepile, Deron E.

2016-01-01

Herbivory and nutrient enrichment are drivers of benthic dynamics of coral reef macroalgae; however, their impact may vary seasonally. In this study we evaluated the effects of herbivore pressure, nutrient availability and potential propagule supply on seasonal recruitment and succession of macroalgal communities on a Florida coral reef. Recruitment tiles, replaced every three months, and succession tiles, kept in the field for nine months, were established in an ongoing factorial nutrient enrichment-herbivore exclusion experiment. The ongoing experiment had already created very different algal communities across the different herbivory and nutrient treatments. We tracked algal recruitment, species richness, and species abundance through time. Our results show seasonal variation in the effect of herbivory and nutrient availability on recruitment of coral reef macroalgae. In the spring, when there was higher macroalgal species richness and abundance of recruits, herbivory appeared to have more control on macroalgal community structure than did nutrients. In contrast, there was no effect of either herbivory or nutrient enrichment on macroalgal communities on recruitment tiles in cooler seasons. The abundance of recruits on tiles was positively correlated with the abundance of algal in the ongoing, established experiment, suggesting that propagule abundance is likely a strong influence on algal recruitment and early succession. Results of the present study suggest that abundant herbivorous fishes control recruitment and succession of macroalgae, particularly in the warm season when macroalgal growth is higher. However, herbivory appears less impactful on algal recruitment and community dynamics in cooler seasons. Ultimately, our data suggest that the timing of coral mortality (e.g., summer vs. winter mortality) and freeing of benthic space may strongly influence the dynamics of algae that colonize open space. PMID:27833810

Piloting proactive marketing to recruit disadvantaged adults to a community-wide obesity prevention program.

PubMed

O'Hara, Blythe J; Eggins, Dianne; Phongsavan, Philayrath; Milat, Andrew J; Bauman, Adrian E; Wiggers, John

2015-03-30

Population-wide obesity prevention and treatment programs are fundamental to addressing the increasing overweight and obesity rates in socioeconomically disadvantaged populations. Innovative recruitment strategies, including proactive marketing strategies, are needed to ensure such programs have universal reach and target vulnerable populations. This study aimed to determine the success of proactive recruitment to Australia's Get Healthy Information and Coaching Service® (GHS) and to assess whether the recruitment strategy influenced participants' outcomes. Sociodemographic information was collected from all GHS participants who joined the service between February 2009 and August 2013, and anthropometric information regarding behavioural risk factors was collected from all GHS coaching participants at baseline and six months. Data were analysed according to the participants' referral source (self-referral and secondary referral versus proactive recruitment). Participants recruited through proactive marketing were more likely to be male, aged 50 years or older, have high school education, not be in paid employment and be from the lowest three quintiles of socioeconomic advantage. The risk factor profile of coaching participants recruited through proactive marketing did not vary significantly from those recruited via other mechanisms, although they were less likely to be obese and less likely to have a higher 'at risk' waist circumference measurement. Proactively recruited coaching participants reported significant improvements from baseline to six months (consistent with improvements made by participants recruited through other strategies), although they were significantly more likely to withdraw from coaching before they completed the six-month program.Proactive marketing facilitated use of an obesity prevention service; similar services may have greater reach if proactive marketing recruitment strategies are used. These strategies could be encouraged to assist such services to achieve optimal population impact among hard-to-reach populations.

Recruitment Methods and Show Rates to a Prostate Cancer Early Detection Program for High-Risk Men: A Comprehensive Analysis

PubMed Central

Giri, Veda N.; Coups, Elliot J.; Ruth, Karen; Goplerud, Julia; Raysor, Susan; Kim, Taylor Y.; Bagden, Loretta; Mastalski, Kathleen; Zakrzewski, Debra; Leimkuhler, Suzanne; Watkins-Bruner, Deborah

2009-01-01

Purpose Men with a family history (FH) of prostate cancer (PCA) and African American (AA) men are at higher risk for PCA. Recruitment and retention of these high-risk men into early detection programs has been challenging. We report a comprehensive analysis on recruitment methods, show rates, and participant factors from the Prostate Cancer Risk Assessment Program (PRAP), which is a prospective, longitudinal PCA screening study. Materials and Methods Men 35–69 years are eligible if they have a FH of PCA, are AA, or have a BRCA1/2 mutation. Recruitment methods were analyzed with respect to participant demographics and show to the first PRAP appointment using standard statistical methods Results Out of 707 men recruited, 64.9% showed to the initial PRAP appointment. More individuals were recruited via radio than from referral or other methods (χ2 = 298.13, p < .0001). Men recruited via radio were more likely to be AA (p<0.001), less educated (p=0.003), not married or partnered (p=0.007), and have no FH of PCA (p<0.001). Men recruited via referrals had higher incomes (p=0.007). Men recruited via referral were more likely to attend their initial PRAP visit than those recruited by radio or other methods (χ2 = 27.08, p < .0001). Conclusions This comprehensive analysis finds that radio leads to higher recruitment of AA men with lower socioeconomic status. However, these are the high-risk men that have lower show rates for PCA screening. Targeted motivational measures need to be studied to improve show rates for PCA risk assessment for these high-risk men. PMID:19758657

Facebook advertising for participant recruitment into a blood pressure clinical trial.

PubMed

Nash, Erin L; Gilroy, Deborah; Srikusalanukul, Wichat; Abhayaratna, Walter P; Stanton, Tony; Mitchell, Geoffrey; Stowasser, Michael; Sharman, James E

2017-12-01

Recruitment of sufficient sample size into clinical trials is challenging. Conventional advertising methods are expensive and are often ineffective. The effectiveness of Facebook for recruitment into blood pressure clinical trials of middle-to-older-aged people is unknown. This study aimed to assess this by comparing Facebook advertising with conventional recruitment methods from a retrospective analysis within a clinical trial. Conventional advertisements (newspaper, radio and posters) were employed for the first 20 months of a randomized controlled clinical trial conducted in three Australian capital cities from Tasmania, Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory. With dwindling participant recruitment, at 20 months a Facebook advertising campaign was employed intermittently over a 4-month period. Recruitment results were retrospectively compared with those using conventional methods in the previous 4 months. Compared with conventional recruitment methods, Facebook advertisement was associated with a significant increase in the number of participants recruited in the Australian Capital Territory (from an average 1.8-7.3/month; P < 0.05). There was also an increase in Tasmania that was of borderline significance (from 4.0 participants recruited/month to 9.3/month; P = 0.052). However, there was no effect in Queensland (from 6.0 participants recruited/month to 3.0/month; P = 0.15). Facebook advertisement was associated with a significant decrease in the age of participants enquiring into the study (from 60.9 to 58.7 years; P < 0.001). Facebook advertising was successful in helping to increase recruitment of middle-to-older aged participants into a blood pressure clinical trial, although there may be some variability in effect that is dependent on location.

Experiences with Recruitment of Marginalized Groups in a Danish Health Promotion Program: A Document Evaluation Study.

PubMed

Rasmussen, Marianne; Poulsen, Eva Kanstrup; Rytter, Anne Stoffersen; Kristiansen, Tine Mechlenborg; Bak, Carsten Kronborg

2016-01-01

Studies have found that marginalized groups living in deprived neighborhoods are less likely to participate in health programs compared to the majority of society. This study evaluates recruitment approaches conducted during a national government-funded project in 12 deprived neighborhoods across Denmark between 2010 and 2014. The aim of this study was to understand how recruitment approaches could promote participation in health programs within deprived neighborhoods to reach marginalized groups. Documents from all 12 of the included municipalities were collected to conduct a document evaluation. The collected documents consisted of 1,500 pages of written material with 12 project descriptions, three midterm and 10 final evaluations. The collected data were analyzed through a qualitative content analysis. The results are based on the fact that only 10 municipalities have developed evaluations related to recruitment, and only three evaluations provided a description of which marginalized groups were recruited. Challenges related to recruitment consist of difficulties involving the target group, including general distrust, language barriers and a lack of ability to cope with new situations and strangers. Additional geographical challenges emerged, especially in rural areas. Positive experiences with recruitment approaches were mainly related to relationship building and trust building, especially through face-to-face contact and the project employees' presence in the neighborhood. Additionally, adjusting some of the interventions and the recruitment strategy increased participation. This study found that relation and trust between the residents and the project employees is an important factor in the recruitment of marginalized groups in deprived neighborhoods as well as adjusting the health interventions or recruitment strategy to the target groups. In future research, it is necessary to examine which recruitment approaches are effective under which circumstances to increase participation among marginalized groups.

"Congratulations, you have been randomized into the control group!(?)": issues to consider when recruiting schools for matched-pair randomized control trials of prevention programs.

PubMed

Ji, Peter; DuBois, David L; Flay, Brian R; Brechling, Vanessa

2008-03-01

Recruiting schools into a matched-pair randomized control trial (MP-RCT) to evaluate the efficacy of a school-level prevention program presents challenges for researchers. We considered which of 2 procedures would be most effective for recruiting schools into the study and assigning them to conditions. In 1 procedure (recruit and match/randomize), we would recruit schools and match them prior to randomization, and in the other (match/randomize and recruitment), we would match schools and randomize them prior to recruitment. We considered how each procedure impacted the randomization process and our ability to recruit schools into the study. After implementing the selected procedure, the equivalence of both treatment and control group schools and the participating and nonparticipating schools on school demographic variables was evaluated. We decided on the recruit and match/randomize procedure because we thought it would provide the opportunity to build rapport with the schools and prepare them for the randomization process, thereby increasing the likelihood that they would accept their randomly assigned conditions. Neither the treatment and control group schools nor the participating and nonparticipating schools exhibited statistically significant differences from each other on any of the school demographic variables. Recruitment of schools prior to matching and randomization in an MP-RCT may facilitate the recruitment of schools and thus enhance both the statistical power and the representativeness of study findings. Future research would benefit from the consideration of a broader range of variables (eg, readiness to implement a comprehensive prevention program) both in matching schools and in evaluating their representativeness to nonparticipating schools.

Why is it so difficult to recruit patients to research in emergency care? Lessons from the AHEAD study.

PubMed

Johnson, Rowena; Kuczawski, Maxine; Mason, Suzanne

2016-01-01

In February 2014, all 23 National Institute for Health Research medical research specialities were failing to meet recruitment targets, with 'Injuries and Emergencies' research performing particularly poorly. In this paper, the multicentre AHEAD study was used to explore issues surrounding recruitment in UK emergency departments. The AHEAD study investigated management and outcomes in over 3000 anticoagulated patients who suffered a head injury. Data from the study were used to compare patient recruitment at 33 Type-1 emergency departments. A questionnaire was sent to a research nurse at each of these sites and 30 replied (91% response rate). The survey investigated the difficulties encountered during patient recruitment and whether these were related to recruitment methods. More detailed interviews were conducted with three research nurses, to gain further insight into the barriers and facilitators involved. Overall recruitment varied widely between sites with an eightfold variation in recruitment rates. Population demographics and other uncontrollable factors will partly contribute to this variation. However, research nurses reported many problems, including site resources, lack of staff engagement and flaws in recruitment strategies, which could be improved. Many of the barriers to recruiting patients for research studies encountered by research nurses have previously been reported in the literature, but there remain consistent problems. Until solutions are found, researchers will continue to miss recruitment targets and this will have implications for the efficiency and quality of emergency medicine research in the UK. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

Factors influencing recruitment to research: qualitative study of the experiences and perceptions of research teams

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background Recruiting the required number of participants is vital to the success of clinical research and yet many studies fail to achieve their expected recruitment rate. Increasing research participation is a key agenda within the NHS and elsewhere, but the optimal methods of improving recruitment to clinical research remain elusive. The aim of this study was to identify the factors that researchers perceive as influential in the recruitment of participants to clinically focused research. Methods Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 11 individuals from three clinical research teams based in London. Sampling was a combination of convenience and purposive. The interviews were audio recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed using the framework method to identify key themes. Results Four themes were identified as influential to recruitment: infrastructure, nature of the research, recruiter characteristics and participant characteristics. The main reason individuals participate in clinical research was believed to be altruism, while logistical issues were considered important for those who declined. Suggestions to improve recruitment included reducing participant burden, providing support for individuals who do not speak English, and forming collaborations with primary care to improve the identification of, and access to, potentially eligible participants. Conclusions Recruiting the target number of research participants was perceived as difficult, especially for clinical trials. New and diverse strategies to ensure that all potentially eligible patients are invited to participate may be beneficial and require further exploration in different settings. Establishing integrated clinical and academic teams with shared responsibilities for recruitment may also facilitate this process. Language barriers and long journey times were considered negative influences to recruitment; although more prominent, these issues are not unique to London and are likely to be important influences in other locations. PMID:24456229

Does recruitment source moderate treatment effectiveness? A subgroup analysis from the EVIDENT study, a randomised controlled trial of an internet intervention for depressive symptoms.

PubMed

Klein, Jan Philipp; Gamon, Carla; Späth, Christina; Berger, Thomas; Meyer, Björn; Hohagen, Fritz; Hautzinger, Martin; Lutz, Wolfgang; Vettorazzi, Eik; Moritz, Steffen; Schröder, Johanna

2017-07-13

This study aims to examine whether the effects of internet interventions for depression generalise to participants recruited in clinical settings. This study uses subgroup analysis of the results of a randomised, controlled, single-blind trial. The study takes place in five diagnostic centres in Germany. A total of 1013 people with mild to moderate depressive symptoms were recruited from clinical sources as well as internet forums, statutory insurance companies and other sources. This study uses either care-as-usual alone (control) or a 12-week internet intervention (Deprexis) plus usual care (intervention). The primary outcome measure was self-rated depression severity (Patient Health Questionnaire-9) at 3 months and 6 months. Further measures ranged from demographic and clinical parameters to a measure of attitudes towards internet interventions (Attitudes towards Psychological Online Interventions Questionnaire). The recruitment source was only associated with very few of the examined demographic and clinical characteristics. Compared with participants recruited from clinical sources, participants recruited through insurance companies were more likely to be employed. Clinically recruited participants were as severely affected as those from other recruitment sources but more sceptical of internet interventions. The effectiveness of the intervention was not differentially associated with recruitment source (treatment by recruitment source interaction=0.28, p=0.84). Our results support the hypothesis that the intervention we studied is effective across different recruitment sources including clinical settings. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01636752. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

The Adoption of Social Media to Recruit Participants for the Cool Runnings Randomized Controlled Trial in Australia

PubMed Central

Kimble, Roy M; Watt, Kerrianne; Cameron, Cate M

2017-01-01

Background Using social media to recruit specific populations for research studies is gaining popularity. Given that mothers of young children are the most active on social media, and young children are the most at risk of preventable burn injuries, social media was used to recruit mothers of young children to a burn prevention intervention. Objective The aim of this paper was to describe the social media recruitment methods used to enroll mothers of young children to the app-based burn prevention intervention Cool Runnings. Methods Participants were recruited via paid Facebook and Instagram advertisements to a 2-group, parallel, single-blinded, randomized controlled trial (RCT). The advertisements were targeted at women 18 years and older, living in Queensland, Australia, with at least 1 child aged 5 to 12 months at the time of recruitment. Results Over the 30-day recruitment period from January to February 2016, Facebook and Instagram advertisements reached 65,268 people, generating 2573 link clicks, 1161 app downloads, and 498 enrolled participants to the Cool Runnings RCT. The cost per enrolled participant was Aus $13.08. Saturdays were the most effective day of the week for advertising results. The most popular time of day for enrolments was between 5 to 11 PM. This recruitment strategy campaign resulted in a broad reach of participants from regional, rural, and remote Queensland. Participants were representative of the population in regard to age and education levels. Conclusions To our knowledge, this is the first use of social media recruitment for an injury prevention campaign. This recruitment method resulted in the rapid and cost-effective recruitment of participants with social, geographic, and economic diversity that were largely representative of the population. PMID:29066427

Live-cell imaging to measure BAX recruitment kinetics to mitochondria during apoptosis

PubMed Central

Maes, Margaret E.; Schlamp, Cassandra L.

2017-01-01

The pro-apoptotic BCL2 gene family member, BAX, plays a pivotal role in the intrinsic apoptotic pathway. Under cellular stress, BAX recruitment to the mitochondria occurs when activated BAX forms dimers, then oligomers, to initiate mitochondria outer membrane permeabilization (MOMP), a process critical for apoptotic progression. The activation and recruitment of BAX to form oligomers has been studied for two decades using fusion proteins with a fluorescent reporter attached in-frame to the BAX N-terminus. We applied high-speed live cell imaging to monitor the recruitment of BAX fusion proteins in dying cells. Data from time-lapse imaging was validated against the activity of endogenous BAX in cells, and analyzed using sigmoid mathematical functions to obtain detail of the kinetic parameters of the recruitment process at individual mitochondrial foci. BAX fusion proteins behave like endogenous BAX during apoptosis. Kinetic studies show that fusion protein recruitment is also minimally affected in cells lacking endogenous BAK or BAX genes, but that the kinetics are moderately, but significantly, different with different fluorescent tags in the fusion constructs. In experiments testing BAX recruitment in 3 different cell lines, our results show that regardless of cell type, once activated, BAX recruitment initiates simultaneously within a cell, but exhibits varying rates of recruitment at individual mitochondrial foci. Very early during BAX recruitment, pro-apoptotic molecules are released in the process of MOMP, but different molecules are released at different times and rates relative to the time of BAX recruitment initiation. These results provide a method for BAX kinetic analysis in living cells and yield greater detail of multiple characteristics of BAX-induced MOMP in living cells that were initially observed in cell free studies. PMID:28880942

Overcoming barriers to recruiting ethnic minorities to mental health research: a typology of recruitment strategies.

PubMed

Waheed, Waquas; Hughes-Morley, Adwoa; Woodham, Adrine; Allen, Gill; Bower, Peter

2015-05-02

The ethnic minority population in developed countries is increasing over time. These groups are at higher risk of mental illness and demonstrate lower participation in research. Published evidence suggests that multiple factors like stigma, lack of trust, differences in explanatory models, logistical issues and lack of culturally aware researchers act as barriers to ethnic minority recruitment into mental health research. To reduce inequalities in participation, there is a need to devise innovative and culturally sensitive recruitment strategies. It is important that researchers share their experience of employing these strategies so that ethnic minority participation can be facilitated. We previously published a systematic review of barriers to recruiting ethnic minority participants into mental health research. The nine papers included in our prior review formed the basis for developing a typology of barriers to recruiting ethnic minorities into mental health research. This typology identified 33 barriers, described under five themes. We further extracted data on the strategies used to overcome these recruitment barriers, as described in the included studies. The strategies employed by the authors could be matched to all but two barriers (psychopathology/substance misuse and limited resource availability). There was evidence that multiple strategies were employed, and that these depended upon the population, clinical set-up and resources available. This typology of strategies to overcome barriers to recruiting ethnic minorities provides guidance on achieving higher rates of recruitment. It is important that researchers plan to deploy these strategies well in advance of initiating recruitment. Whilst adopting these strategies, the authors have not been able to quantify the positive impact of these strategies on recruitment. The typology should encourage researchers to employ these strategies in future research, refine them further and quantitatively evaluate their impact.

Effective recruitment strategies in primary care research: a systematic review.

PubMed

Ngune, Irene; Jiwa, Moyez; Dadich, Ann; Lotriet, Jaco; Sriram, Deepa

2012-01-01

Patient recruitment in primary care research is often a protracted and frustrating process, affecting project timeframes, budget and the dissemination of research findings. Yet, clear guidance on patient recruitment strategies in primary care research is limited. This paper addresses this issue through a systematic review. Articles were sourced from five academic databases - AustHealth, CINAHL, the Cochrane Methodology Group, EMBASE and PubMed/Medline; grey literature was also sourced from an academic library and the Primary Healthcare Research & Information Service (PHCRIS) website. Two reviewers independently screened the articles using the following criteria: (1) published in English, (2) reported empirical research, (3) focused on interventions designed to increase patient recruitment in primary care settings, and (4) reported patient recruitment in primary care settings. Sixty-six articles met the inclusion criteria. Of these, 23 specifically focused on recruitment strategies and included randomised trials (n = 7), systematic reviews (n = 8) and qualitative studies (n = 8). Of the remaining articles, 30 evaluated recruitment strategies, while 13 addressed the value of recruitment strategies using descriptive statistics and/or qualitative data. Among the 66 articles, primary care chiefly included general practice (n = 30); nursing and allied health services, multiple settings, as well as other community settings (n = 30); and pharmacy (n = 6). Effective recruitment strategies included the involvement of a discipline champion, simple patient eligibility criteria, patient incentives and organisational strategies that reduce practitioner workload. The most effective recruitment in primary care research requires practitioner involvement. The active participation of primary care practitioners in both the design and conduct of research helps to identify strategies that are congruent with the context in which patient care is delivered. This is reported to be the optimal recruitment strategy.

Recruitment and rate coding organisation for soleus motor units across entire range of voluntary isometric plantar flexions.

PubMed

Oya, Tomomichi; Riek, Stephan; Cresswell, Andrew G

2009-10-01

Unlike upper limb muscles, it remains undocumented as to how motor units in the soleus muscle are organised in terms of recruitment range and discharge rates with respect to their recruitment and de-recruitment thresholds. The possible influence of neuromodulation, such as persistent inward currents (PICs) on lower limb motor unit recruitment and discharge rates has also yet to be reported. To address these issues, electromyographic (EMG) activities from the soleus muscle were recorded using selective branched-wire intramuscular electrodes during ramp-and-hold contractions with intensities up to maximal voluntary contraction (MVC). The multiple single motor unit activities were then derived using a decomposition technique. The onset-offset hysteresis of motor unit discharge, i.e. a difference between recruitment and de-recruitment thresholds, as well as PIC magnitude calculated by a paired motor unit analysis were used to examine the neuromodulatory effects on discharge behaviours, such as minimum firing rate, peak firing rate and degree of increase in firing rate. Forty-two clearly identified motor units from five subjects revealed that soleus motor units are recruited progressively from rest to contraction strengths close to 95% of MVC, with low-threshold motor units discharging action potentials slower at their recruitment and with a lower peak rate than later recruited high-threshold units. This observation is in contrast to the 'onion skin phenomenon' often reported for the upper limb muscles. Based on positive correlations of the peak discharge rates, initial rates and recruitment order of the units with the magnitude of the onset-offset hysteresis and not PIC contribution, we conclude that discharge behaviours among motor units appear to be related to a variation in an intrinsic property other than PICs.

Patient-centered recruitment and retention for a randomized controlled study.

PubMed

Chhatre, Sumedha; Jefferson, Ashlie; Cook, Ratna; Meeker, Caitlin R; Kim, Ji Hyun; Hartz, Kayla Marie; Wong, Yu-Ning; Caruso, Adele; Newman, Diane K; Morales, Knashawn H; Jayadevappa, Ravishankar

2018-03-27

Recruitment and retention strategies for patient-centered outcomes research are evolving and research on the subject is limited. In this work, we present a conceptual model of patient-centered recruitment and retention, and describe the recruitment and retention activities and related challenges in a patient-centered comparative effectiveness trial. This is a multicenter, longitudinal randomized controlled trial in localized prostate cancer patients. We recruited 743 participants from three sites over 15 months period (January 2014 to March 2015), and followed them for 24 months. At site 1, of the 773 eligible participants, 551 (72%) were enrolled. At site 2, 34 participants were eligible and 23 (68%) enrolled. Of the 434 eligible participants at site 3, 169 (39%) enrolled. We observed that strategies related to the concepts of trust (e.g., physician involvement, ensuring protection of information), communication (e.g., brochures and pamphlets in physicians' offices, continued contact during regular clinic visits and calling/emailing assessment), attitude (e.g., emphasizing the altruistic value of research, positive attitude of providers and research staff), and expectations (e.g., full disclosure of study requirements and time commitment, update letters) facilitated successful patient recruitment and retention. A stakeholders' advisory board provided important input for the recruitment and retention activities. Active engagement, reminders at the offices, and personalized update letters helped retention during follow-up. Usefulness of telephone recruitment was site specific and, at one site, the time requirement for telephone recruitment was a challenge. We have presented multilevel strategies for successful recruitment and retention in a clinical trial using a patient-centered approach. Our strategies were flexible to accommodate site-level requirements. These strategies as well as the challenges can aid recruitment and retention efforts of future large-scale, patient-centered research studies. Clinicaltrials.gov , ID: NCT02032550 . Registered on 22 November 2013.

Influence of intertidal recreational fisheries and 'bouchot' mussel culture on bivalve recruitment.

PubMed

Toupoint, Nicolas; Barbier, Pierrick; Tremblay, Réjean; Archambault, Philippe; McKindsey, Christopher W; Winkler, Gesche; Meziane, Tarik; Olivier, Frédéric

2016-06-01

In coastal environments, fishing and aquaculture may be important sources of disturbance to ecosystem functioning, the quantification of which must be assessed to make them more sustainable. In the Chausey Archipelago, France, recreational fishing and commercial shellfish farming are the only two evident anthropogenic activities, dominated by bivalve hand-raking and 'bouchot' mussel culture, respectively. This study evaluates the impact of both activities on bivalve recruitment dynamics by comparing primary recruitment intensity (short-term effect) and recruitment efficiency (medium-term effect) by sampling bivalves in reference (undisturbed) and disturbed (i.e. subjected to hand-raking or in 'bouchot' mussel culture areas) parcels throughout and at the end of the recruitment season, respectively. Specific hypotheses evaluated were that (H1) bivalve hand-raking negatively affects bivalve recruitment and that (H2) 'bouchot' mussel culture promotes bivalve recruitment. Patterns in bivalve community structure in reference parcels (i.e. natural pattern) differed between initial and final recruitment, underlining the great importance of early post-settlement processes, particularly secondary dispersal. Primary recruitment intensity was inhibited in hand-raking parcels whereas it was promoted in 'bouchot' mussel culture parcels, but the effect on recruitment efficiency was muted for both activities due to post-settlement processes. Nevertheless, the importance of effects that occur during the first step of recruitment should not be ignored as they may affect bivalve communities and induce immediate consequences on the trophic web through a cascade effect. Finally, it is highlighted that hand-raking damages all life stages of the common cockle Cerastoderma edule, one of the major target species, suggesting that this activity should be managed with greater caution than is currently done. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The effects of model composition design choices on high-fidelity simulations of motoneuron recruitment and firing behaviors.

PubMed

Allen, John M; Elbasiouny, Sherif M

2018-06-01

Computational models often require tradeoffs, such as balancing detail with efficiency; yet optimal balance should incorporate sound design features that do not bias the results of the specific scientific question under investigation. The present study examines how model design choices impact simulation results. We developed a rigorously-validated high-fidelity computational model of the spinal motoneuron pool to study three long-standing model design practices which have yet to be examined for their impact on motoneuron recruitment, firing rate, and force simulations. The practices examined were the use of: (1) generic cell models to simulate different motoneuron types, (2) discrete property ranges for different motoneuron types, and (3) biological homogeneity of cell properties within motoneuron types. Our results show that each of these practices accentuates conditions of motoneuron recruitment based on the size principle, and minimizes conditions of mixed and reversed recruitment orders, which have been observed in animal and human recordings. Specifically, strict motoneuron orderly size recruitment occurs, but in a compressed range, after which mixed and reverse motoneuron recruitment occurs due to the overlap in electrical properties of different motoneuron types. Additionally, these practices underestimate the motoneuron firing rates and force data simulated by existing models. Our results indicate that current modeling practices increase conditions of motoneuron recruitment based on the size principle, and decrease conditions of mixed and reversed recruitment order, which, in turn, impacts the predictions made by existing models on motoneuron recruitment, firing rate, and force. Additionally, mixed and reverse motoneuron recruitment generated higher muscle force than orderly size motoneuron recruitment in these simulations and represents one potential scheme to increase muscle efficiency. The examined model design practices, as well as the present results, are applicable to neuronal modeling throughout the nervous system.

Live-cell imaging to measure BAX recruitment kinetics to mitochondria during apoptosis.

PubMed

Maes, Margaret E; Schlamp, Cassandra L; Nickells, Robert W

2017-01-01

The pro-apoptotic BCL2 gene family member, BAX, plays a pivotal role in the intrinsic apoptotic pathway. Under cellular stress, BAX recruitment to the mitochondria occurs when activated BAX forms dimers, then oligomers, to initiate mitochondria outer membrane permeabilization (MOMP), a process critical for apoptotic progression. The activation and recruitment of BAX to form oligomers has been studied for two decades using fusion proteins with a fluorescent reporter attached in-frame to the BAX N-terminus. We applied high-speed live cell imaging to monitor the recruitment of BAX fusion proteins in dying cells. Data from time-lapse imaging was validated against the activity of endogenous BAX in cells, and analyzed using sigmoid mathematical functions to obtain detail of the kinetic parameters of the recruitment process at individual mitochondrial foci. BAX fusion proteins behave like endogenous BAX during apoptosis. Kinetic studies show that fusion protein recruitment is also minimally affected in cells lacking endogenous BAK or BAX genes, but that the kinetics are moderately, but significantly, different with different fluorescent tags in the fusion constructs. In experiments testing BAX recruitment in 3 different cell lines, our results show that regardless of cell type, once activated, BAX recruitment initiates simultaneously within a cell, but exhibits varying rates of recruitment at individual mitochondrial foci. Very early during BAX recruitment, pro-apoptotic molecules are released in the process of MOMP, but different molecules are released at different times and rates relative to the time of BAX recruitment initiation. These results provide a method for BAX kinetic analysis in living cells and yield greater detail of multiple characteristics of BAX-induced MOMP in living cells that were initially observed in cell free studies.

Seasonal regulation of herbivory and nutrient effects on macroalgal recruitment and succession in a Florida coral reef.

PubMed

Duran, Alain; Collado-Vides, Ligia; Burkepile, Deron E

2016-01-01

Herbivory and nutrient enrichment are drivers of benthic dynamics of coral reef macroalgae; however, their impact may vary seasonally. In this study we evaluated the effects of herbivore pressure, nutrient availability and potential propagule supply on seasonal recruitment and succession of macroalgal communities on a Florida coral reef. Recruitment tiles, replaced every three months, and succession tiles, kept in the field for nine months, were established in an ongoing factorial nutrient enrichment-herbivore exclusion experiment. The ongoing experiment had already created very different algal communities across the different herbivory and nutrient treatments. We tracked algal recruitment, species richness, and species abundance through time. Our results show seasonal variation in the effect of herbivory and nutrient availability on recruitment of coral reef macroalgae. In the spring, when there was higher macroalgal species richness and abundance of recruits, herbivory appeared to have more control on macroalgal community structure than did nutrients. In contrast, there was no effect of either herbivory or nutrient enrichment on macroalgal communities on recruitment tiles in cooler seasons. The abundance of recruits on tiles was positively correlated with the abundance of algal in the ongoing, established experiment, suggesting that propagule abundance is likely a strong influence on algal recruitment and early succession. Results of the present study suggest that abundant herbivorous fishes control recruitment and succession of macroalgae, particularly in the warm season when macroalgal growth is higher. However, herbivory appears less impactful on algal recruitment and community dynamics in cooler seasons. Ultimately, our data suggest that the timing of coral mortality (e.g., summer vs. winter mortality) and freeing of benthic space may strongly influence the dynamics of algae that colonize open space.

Recruitment strategies in a prospective longitudinal family study on parents with obesity and their toddlers.

PubMed

Bergmann, Sarah; Keitel-Korndörfer, Anja; Herfurth-Majstorovic, Katharina; Wendt, Verena; Klein, Annette M; von Klitzing, Kai; Grube, Matthias

2017-02-01

Recruitment of participants with obesity is a real challenge. To reduce time and costs in similar projects, we investigated various recruiting strategies used in a longitudinal family study with respect to their enrolment yield and cost effectiveness. Results may help other research groups to optimize their recruitment strategies. We applied different recruitment strategies to acquire families with children aged 6 to 47 months and at least one parent with obesity (risk group) or two parents of normal weight (control group) for a longitudinal non-interventional study. Based on four main strategies-via media, kindergartens, health professionals and focusing on the community-we examined 15 different subcategories of strategies. Based on enrolment yield and relative costs (e.g., material expenses, staff time) we analyzed the effectiveness of each recruitment strategy. Following different recruitment approaches, 685 families contacted us; 26% (n = 178) of these met the inclusion criteria. Of the four main strategies, the community-focused strategy was the most successful one (accounting for 36.5% of the sample) followed by contacts with kindergartens (accounting for 28.1% of the sample). Of the subcategories, two strategies were outstanding: Posters (community-focused strategies), and recruitment via kindergartens using phone contacts rather than emailing. Only a small number of participants were recruited via announcements in newspapers (lower cost strategy), advertisements on public transport or face-to-face recruitment at various places (higher cost strategies). Results revealed that only a combination of different active and passive methods and approaches led to a sufficient sample size. In this study, recruitment via posters and contacting kindergartens on the phone produced the highest numbers of participants (high enrolment yield) at moderate costs.

Unimodal relationship between small-scale barnacle recruitment and the density of pre-existing barnacle adults.

PubMed

Scrosati, Ricardo A; Ellrich, Julius A

2017-01-01

Recruitment is a key demographic process for population persistence. This paper focuses on barnacle ( Semibalanus balanoides ) recruitment. In rocky intertidal habitats from the Gulf of St. Lawrence coast of Nova Scotia (Canada), ice scour is common during the winter. At the onset of intertidal barnacle recruitment in early May (after sea ice has fully melted), mostly only adult barnacles and bare substrate are visible at high elevations in wave-exposed habitats. We conducted a multiannual study to investigate if small-scale barnacle recruitment could be predicted from the density of pre-existing adult barnacles. In a year that exhibited a wide adult density range (ca. 0-130 individuals dm -2 ), the relationship between adult density and recruit density (scaled to the available area for recruitment, which excluded adult barnacles) was unimodal. In years that exhibited a lower adult density range (ca. 0-40/50 individuals dm -2 ), the relationship between adult and recruit density was positive and resembled the lower half of the unimodal relationship. Overall, adult barnacle density was able to explain 26-40% of the observed variation in recruit density. The unimodal adult-recruit relationship is consistent with previously documented intraspecific interactions. Between low and intermediate adult densities, the positive nature of the relationship relates to the previously documented fact that settlement-seeking larvae are chemically and visually attracted to adults, which might be important for local population persistence. Between intermediate and high adult densities, where population persistence may be less compromised and the abundant adults may limit recruit growth and survival, the negative nature of the relationship suggests that adult barnacles at increasingly high densities stimulate larvae to settle elsewhere. The unimodal pattern may be especially common on shores with moderate rates of larval supply to the shore, because high rates of larval supply may swamp the coast with settlers, decoupling recruit density from local adult abundance.

Barriers and facilitators to recruitment in mental health services: care coordinators' expectations and experience of referring to a psychosis research trial.

PubMed

Bucci, Sandra; Butcher, Isabelle; Hartley, Samantha; Neil, Sandra T; Mulligan, John; Haddock, Gillian

2015-09-01

High-quality research trials are necessary to provide evidence for the effective management of mental health difficulties, but successful recruitment can be challenging. This qualitative study examines the perceived barriers and facilitators to referring mental health service users to research trials. Seven care coordinators (n = 7) who facilitated the recruitment of participants to a cognitive behaviour therapy - informed psychosis intervention trial were interviewed. Demographic information was collected by questionnaire and a semi-structured guide was used to explore barriers and facilitators to referring to a partially randomized participant preference trial. Qualitative data were thematically analysed. Four key themes, each with a number of sub-themes, were identified: (1) engage the care coordinator in the recruitment process, (2) barriers to referring to research studies, (3) facilitators to referring to research studies; (4) organisational constraints impact on implementing research outcomes into routine clinical practice. Understanding the barriers and facilitators to recruitment in mental health research could improve recruitment strategies. Our findings highlight the need for researchers' to closely consider their recruitment strategies as service users are not always given the choice to participate in research. Several key recommendations are made based on these findings in order to maximize successful recruitment to research studies. Overall, we recommend that researchers' adopt a flexible, tailor-made approach for each clinical team to ensure a collaborative relationship is developed between research staff and clinicians. A qualitative approach to understanding recruitment challenges provides a useful opportunity to explore the barriers and facilitators to recruiting participants to research studies. These findings have practical implications that highlight the need for a collaborative partnership between researchers and clinical services. Understanding the challenges and issues related to recruitment can help researchers consider strategies to overcome recruitment issues. More research with a larger sample, across a broader population and in different mental health services is required. © 2014 The British Psychological Society.

Feasibility of Recruiting a Diverse Sample of Men Who Have Sex with Men: Observation from Nanjing, China

PubMed Central

Tang, Weiming; Yang, Haitao; Mahapatra, Tanmay; Huan, Xiping; Yan, Hongjing; Li, Jianjun; Fu, Gengfeng; Zhao, Jinkou; Detels, Roger

2013-01-01

Background Respondent-driven-sampling (RDS) has well been recognized as a method for sampling from most hard-to-reach populations like commercial sex workers, drug users and men who have sex with men. However the feasibility of this sampling strategy in terms of recruiting a diverse spectrum of these hidden populations has not been understood well yet in developing countries. Methods In a cross sectional study in Nanjing city of Jiangsu province of China, 430 MSM were recruited including 9 seeds in 14 weeks of study period using RDS. Information regarding socio-demographic characteristics and sexual risk behavior were collected and testing was done for HIV and syphilis. Duration, completion, participant characteristics and the equilibrium of key factors were used for assessing feasibility of RDS. Homophily of key variables, socio-demographic distribution and social network size were used as the indicators of diversity. Results In the study sample, adjusted HIV and syphilis prevalence were 6.6% and 14.6% respectively. Majority (96.3%) of the participants were recruited by members of their own social network. Although there was a tendency for recruitment within the same self-identified group (homosexuals recruited 60.0% homosexuals), considerable cross-group recruitment (bisexuals recruited 52.3% homosexuals) was also seen. Homophily of the self-identified sexual orientations was 0.111 for homosexuals. Upon completion of the recruitment process, participant characteristics and the equilibrium of key factors indicated that RDS was feasible for sampling MSM in Nanjing. Participants recruited by RDS were found to be diverse after assessing the homophily of key variables in successive waves of recruitment, the proportion of characteristics after reaching equilibrium and the social network size. The observed design effects were nearly the same or even better than the theoretical design effect of 2. Conclusion RDS was found to be an efficient and feasible sampling method for recruiting a diverse sample of MSM in a reasonable time. PMID:24244280

Effect of cardiovascular and muscular endurance is not associated with stress fracture incidence in female military recruits: a 12-month follow up study.

PubMed

Scheinowitz, Mickey; Yanovich, Ran; Sharvit, Nurit; Arnon, Michal; Moran, Daniel S

2017-05-01

Stress fracture (SF) is a common injury among military recruits, especially among women, during the army basic training (ABT). The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of health habits and physical activity before recruitment on the fitness level and the incidence of SF during the 4-month ABT. We screened 226 female recruit volunteers (weight: 60.5±10 kg; height: 163±6 cm) from an integrated combat unit and 124 aged-matched female controls (weight: 57.0±8.3 kg, height 162±7 cm) from a non-combat unit. A self-report questionnaire on their habits pertaining to smoking, physical activity, and orthopedic injuries prior to recruitment were analyzed in relation to the incidences of SF during ABT. Aerobic fitness was similar between the two groups. The overall incidence of SFs was 10.2%. Physical training prior to recruitment had no significant effect on the incidence of SF during ABT (11.7% vs. 9.6% in those who trained and did not train before recruitment, respectively) (Odds ratio, OR)=1.24, p=0.236). Nearly 42% of the female recruits smoked regularly, and the incidence of SFs among smokers was 10.5% compared with 9.9% among the non-smokers (OR=1.07, p=0.188). The overall incidence of SFs 12 months after recruitment was 1.78%. The use of contraceptive medication did not affect the incidence of SF: 10.0% among prior-trained vs. 6.4% in non-prior trained (p>0.05) recruits. SFs were not correlated to these variables at the end of the ABT program and 16 months after recruitment. In the present female cohort, physical activity prior to recruitment had no protective effect against SF during or after ABT. The incidence of SFs during the 12-month period after ABT was negligible.

Comparison of the physical fitness of men and women entering the U.S. Army: 1978-1998.

PubMed

Sharp, Marilyn A; Patton, John F; Knapik, Joseph J; Hauret, Keith; Mello, Robert P; Ito, Max; Frykman, Peter N

2002-02-01

To compare the physical fitness levels of recruits entering the U.S. Army in 1998 to those entering in 1978 and 1983. In 1998, 182 men and 168 women were tested before beginning basic training at Fort Jackson, SC. The measurements were 1) skin-fold estimation of percent body fat (%BF); 2) maximum oxygen uptake by treadmill running (VO2max); and 3) upper-body (UB), lower-body (LB), and upright pulling (UP) isometric strength. These data were compared to data from basic trainees at Fort Jackson in 1978 (skin folds, VO2max, UB, and LB) and 1983 (skin folds and UP). Body weight (BW) of 1998 recruits was greater (P < 0.05) than 1978 recruits (men, 12%; women, 6%) and 1983 recruits (men, 8%; women, 7%). %BF of 1998 recruits was greater (P < 0.05) than 1978 recruits (men, 15%; women, 5%) and 1983 recruits (men, 15%; women, 17%). The 1998 men had more fat-free mass (FFM) (P < 0.05) than men in 1978 (8%) or 1983 (5%), whereas 1998 women were only different from those measured in 1978 (4%, P < 0.05). The VO2max of men (50.6 +/- 6.2 mL x kg(-1) x min(-1)) was equivalent to men in 1978, whereas that of women (39.7 +/- 5.2 mL x kg(-1) x min(-1)) was 6% greater (P < 0.05). The 1998 recruits were stronger (P < 0.05) on all measures of muscle strength than recruits measured in 1978 (men, UB = 16%, LB = 12%; women, UB = 18%, LB = 6%) and 1983 (men, UP = 7%; women, UP = 6%). The aerobic capacity, muscle strength, and FFM of 1998 recruits is comparable to or greater than that of 1978 and 1983 recruits; however, 1998 recruits tended to have more BW and a greater %BF.

Barriers and opportunities for enhancing patient recruitment and retention in clinical research: findings from an interview study in an NHS academic health science centre.

PubMed

Adams, Mary; Caffrey, Louise; McKevitt, Christopher

2015-03-12

In the UK, the recruitment of patients into clinical research is a national health research and development policy priority. There has been limited investigation of how national level factors operate as barriers or facilitators to recruitment work, particularly from the perspective of staff undertaking patient recruitment work. The aim of this study is to identify and examine staff views of the key organisational barriers and facilitators to patient recruitment work in one clinical research group located in an NHS Academic Health Science Centre. A qualitative study utilizing in-depth, one-to-one semi-structured interviews with 11 purposively selected staff with particular responsibilities to recruit and retain patients as clinical research subjects. Thematic analysis classified interview data by recurring themes, concepts, and emergent categories for the purposes of establishing explanatory accounts. The findings highlight four key factors that staff perceived to be most significant for the successful recruitment and retention of patients in research and identify how staff located these factors within patients, studies, the research centre, the trust, and beyond the trust. Firstly, competition for research participants at an organisational and national level was perceived to undermine recruitment success. Secondly, the tension between clinical and clinical research workloads was seen to interrupt patient recruitment into studies, despite national funding arrangements to manage excess treatment costs. Thirdly, staff perceived an imbalance between personal patient burden and benefit. Ethical committee regulation, designed to protect patients, was perceived by some staff to detract from clarification and systematisation of incentivisation strategies. Finally, the structure and relationships within clinical research teams, in particular the low tacit status of recruitment skills, was seen as influential. The results of this case-study, conducted in an exemplary NHS academic research centre, highlight current systematic challenges to patient recruitment and retention in clinical studies more generally as seen from the perspective of staff at the 'sharp end' of recruiting. Staff experience is that, beyond individual clinical research design and protocol factors, wider organisational and extra-organisational norms, structures, and processes operate as significant facilitators or hindrances in the recruitment of patients as research subjects.

A process evaluation: does recruitment for an exercise program through ethnically specific channels and key figures contribute to its reach and receptivity in ethnic minority mothers?

PubMed

Hartman, Marieke A; Nierkens, Vera; Cremer, Stephan W; Stronks, Karien; Verhoeff, Arnoud P

2013-08-19

Ethnic minority women from low-income countries who live in high-income countries are more physically inactive than ethnic majority women in those countries. At the same time, they can be harder to reach with health promotion programs. Targeting recruitment channels and execution to ethnic groups could increase reach and receptivity to program participation. We explored using ethnically specific channels and key figures to reach Ghanaian, Antillean, and Surinamese mothers with an invitation for an exercise program, and subsequently, to determine the mothers' receptivity and participation. We conducted a mixed methods process evaluation in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. To recruit mothers, we employed ethnically specific community organizations and ethnically matched key figures as recruiters over Dutch health educators. Reach and participation were measured using reply cards and the attendance records from the exercise programs. Observations were made of the recruitment process. We interviewed 14 key figures and 32 mothers to respond to the recruitment channel and recruiter used. Content analysis was used to analyze qualitative data. Recruitment through ethnically specific community channels was successful among Ghanaian mothers, but less so among Antillean and Surinamese mothers. The more close-knit an ethnic community was, retaining their own culture and having poorer comprehension of the Dutch language, the more likely we were to reach mothers through ethnically specific organizations. Furthermore, we found that using ethnically matched recruiters resulted in higher receptivity to the program and, among the Ghanaian mothers in particular, in greater participation. This was because the ethnically matched recruiter was a familiar, trusted person, a translator, and a motivator who was enthusiastic, encouraging, and able to adapt her message (targeting/tailoring). Using a health expert was preferred in order to increase the credibility and professionalism of the recruitment. Recruitment for an exercise program through ethnically specific organizations seems to contribute to its reach, particularly in close-knit, highly organized ethnic communities with limited fluency in the local language. Using ethnically matched recruiters as motivator, translator, and trusted person seems to enhance receptivity of a health promotion program. An expert is likely to be needed for effective information delivery.

The decentralisation-centralisation dilemma: recruitment and distribution of health workers in remote districts of Tanzania.

PubMed

Munga, Michael A; Songstad, Nils Gunnar; Blystad, Astrid; Maestad, Ottar

2009-04-30

The implementation of decentralisation reforms in the health sector of Tanzania started in the 1980s. These reforms were intended to relinquish substantial powers and resources to districts to improve the development of the health sector. Little is known about the impact of decentralisation on recruitment and distribution of health workers at the district level. Reported difficulties in recruiting health workers to remote districts led the Government of Tanzania to partly re-instate central recruitment of health workers in 2006. The effects of this policy change are not yet documented. This study highlights the experiences and challenges associated with decentralisation and the partial re-centralisation in relation to the recruitment and distribution of health workers. An exploratory qualitative study was conducted among informants recruited from five underserved, remote districts of mainland Tanzania. Additional informants were recruited from the central government, the NGO sector, international organisations and academia. A comparison of decentralised and the reinstated centralised systems was carried out in order to draw lessons necessary for improving recruitment, distribution and retention of health workers. The study has shown that recruitment of health workers under a decentralised arrangement has not only been characterised by complex bureaucratic procedures, but by severe delays and sometimes failure to get the required health workers. The study also revealed that recruitment of highly skilled health workers under decentralised arrangements may be both very difficult and expensive. Decentralised recruitment was perceived to be more effective in improving retention of the lower cadre health workers within the districts. In contrast, the centralised arrangement was perceived to be more effective both in recruiting qualified staff and balancing their distribution across districts, but poor in ensuring the retention of employees. A combination of centralised and decentralised recruitment represents a promising hybrid form of health sector organisation in managing human resources by bringing the benefits of two worlds together. In order to ensure that the potential benefits of the two approaches are effectively integrated, careful balancing defining the local-central relationships in the management of human resources needs to be worked out.

Motor unit recruitment in human biceps brachii during sustained voluntary contractions.

PubMed

Riley, Zachary A; Maerz, Adam H; Litsey, Jane C; Enoka, Roger M

2008-04-15

The purpose of the study was to examine the influence of the difference between the recruitment threshold of a motor unit and the target force of the sustained contraction on the discharge of the motor unit at recruitment. The discharge characteristics of 53 motor units in biceps brachii were recorded after being recruited during a sustained contraction. Some motor units (n = 22) discharged action potentials tonically after being recruited, whereas others (n = 31) discharged intermittent trains of action potentials. The two groups of motor units were distinguished by the difference between the recruitment threshold of the motor unit and the target force for the sustained contraction: tonic, 5.9 +/- 2.5%; intermittent, 10.7 +/- 2.9%. Discharge rate for the tonic units decreased progressively (13.9 +/- 2.7 to 11.7 +/- 2.6 pulses s(-1); P = 0.04) during the 99 +/- 111 s contraction. Train rate, train duration and average discharge rate for the intermittent motor units did not change across 211 +/- 153 s of intermittent discharge. The initial discharge rate at recruitment during the sustained contraction was lower for the intermittent motor units (11.0 +/- 3.3 pulses s(-1)) than the tonic motor units (13.7 +/- 3.3 pulses s(-1); P = 0.005), and the coefficient of variation for interspike interval was higher for the intermittent motor units (34.6 +/- 12.3%) than the tonic motor units (21.2 +/- 9.4%) at recruitment (P = 0.001) and remained elevated for discharge duration (34.6 +/- 9.2% versus 19.1 +/- 11.7%, P < 0.001). In an additional experiment, 12 motor units were recorded at two different target forces below recruitment threshold (5.7 +/- 1.9% and 10.5 +/- 2.4%). Each motor unit exhibited the two discharge patterns (tonic and intermittent) as observed for the 53 motor units. The results suggest that newly recruited motor units with recruitment thresholds closer to the target force experienced less synaptic noise at the time of recruitment that resulted in them discharging action potentials at more regular and greater rates than motor units with recruitment thresholds further from the target force.

Design of a cluster-randomized minority recruitment trial: RECRUIT.

PubMed

Tilley, Barbara C; Mainous, Arch G; Smith, Daniel W; McKee, M Diane; Amorrortu, Rossybelle P; Alvidrez, Jennifer; Diaz, Vanessa; Ford, Marvella E; Fernandez, Maria E; Hauser, Robert A; Singer, Carlos; Landa, Veronica; Trevino, Aron; DeSantis, Stacia M; Zhang, Yefei; Daniels, Elvan; Tabor, Derrick; Vernon, Sally W

2017-06-01

Racial/ethnic minority groups remain underrepresented in clinical trials. Many strategies to increase minority recruitment focus on minority communities and emphasize common diseases such as hypertension. Scant literature focuses on minority recruitment to trials of less common conditions, often conducted in specialty clinics and dependent on physician referrals. We identified trust/mistrust of specialist physician investigators and institutions conducting medical research and consequent participant reluctance to participate in clinical trials as key-shared barriers across racial/ethnic groups. We developed a trust-based continuous quality improvement intervention to build trust between specialist physician investigators and community minority-serving physicians and ultimately potential trial participants. To avoid the inherent biases of non-randomized studies, we evaluated the intervention in the national Randomized Recruitment Intervention Trial (RECRUIT). This report presents the design of RECRUIT. Specialty clinic follow-up continues through April 2017. We hypothesized that specialist physician investigators and coordinators trained in the trust-based continuous quality improvement intervention would enroll a greater proportion of minority participants in their specialty clinics than specialist physician investigators in control specialty clinics. Specialty clinic was the unit of randomization. Using continuous quality improvement, the specialist physician investigators and coordinators tailored recruitment approaches to their specialty clinic characteristics and populations. Primary analyses were adjusted for clustering by specialty clinic within parent trial and matching covariates. RECRUIT was implemented in four multi-site clinical trials (parent trials) supported by three National Institutes of Health institutes and included 50 associated specialty clinics from these parent trials. Using current data, we have 88% power or greater to detect a 0.15 or greater difference from the currently observed control proportion adjusting for clustering. We detected no differences in baseline matching criteria between intervention and control specialty clinics (all p values > 0.17). RECRUIT was the first multi-site randomized control trial to examine the effectiveness of a trust-based continuous quality improvement intervention to increase minority recruitment into clinical trials. RECRUIT's innovations included its focus on building trust between specialist investigators and minority-serving physicians, the use of continuous quality improvement to tailor the intervention to each specialty clinic's specific racial/ethnic populations and barriers to minority recruitment, and the use of specialty clinics from more than one parent multi-site trial to increase generalizability. The effectiveness of the RECRUIT intervention will be determined after the completion of trial data collection and planned analyses.

Recruiting pregnant smokers into a clinical trial: using a network-model managed care organization versus community-based practices.

PubMed

Park, Elyse R; Quinn, Virginia P; Chang, Yuchiao; Regan, Susan; Loudin, Beverly; Cummins, Sharon; Perry, Kristin; Rigotti, Nancy A

2007-03-01

Recruiting pregnant smokers into smoking cessation intervention trials is challenging. Changes in health care systems offer new opportunities to overcome many of the obstacles encountered by researchers attempting to address the significant harm from maternal smoking. Investigators could facilitate smoking cessation study recruitment by collaborating with health care systems that systematically collect patient smoking status and record it in a centralized, retrievable fashion. This paper reports the results of utilizing this novel approach and compares it with a typical decentralized practice-based recruitment strategy. The study was conducted at Massachusetts General Hospital, in Boston, Massachusetts, from 2000 to 2005. Four hundred forty-two pregnant smokers were recruited for a randomized controlled trial of telephone-delivered smoking counseling from two sources: a network-model managed care health plan and community-based practices (CBP). At the health plan, study recruitment was built on an existing system that permitted pregnant smokers to be identified centrally. At the CBPs, identification and referral systems had to be developed at each practice specifically for the study. The two strategies were compared on the efficiency of recruitment, characteristics of enrollees, and study outcome and process measures. The health plan strategy generated referrals nearly twice as fast as the CBP strategy (30.4 vs. 17.0 per month), but because referrals were not timely, a large proportion of women from the plan were too advanced in pregnancy to be eligible to enroll in the study. As a result, the two strategies yielded a comparable enrollment rate. Participants from the health plan were older, better educated, less racially diverse, more likely to be living with the baby's father, and less likely to have smokers in their environment. These differences were largely explained by the socioeconomic diversity of women recruited from the CBPs. Smoking cessation outcomes did not differ by recruitment source. A recruitment strategy using a health plan's centralized system was more efficient than a practice-based recruitment strategy at identifying potential study participants, but less efficient at generating study participants from the referrals received. Importantly, participants recruited by the two strategies differed by socioeconomic, but not cessation-related, characteristics. To date, recruiting pregnant smokers into intervention studies remains resource intensive and time consuming. Participant identification and recruitment will be greatly enhanced by health system innovations such as implementation of electronic medical records.

The Use of Facebook in Recruiting Participants for Health Research Purposes: A Systematic Review

PubMed Central

Stevelink, Sharon; Fear, Nicola

2017-01-01

Background Social media is a popular online tool that allows users to communicate and exchange information. It allows digital content such as pictures, videos and websites to be shared, discussed, republished and endorsed by its users, their friends and businesses. Adverts can be posted and promoted to specific target audiences by demographics such as region, age or gender. Recruiting for health research is complex with strict requirement criteria imposed on the participants. Traditional research recruitment relies on flyers, newspaper adverts, radio and television broadcasts, letters, emails, website listings, and word of mouth. These methods are potentially poor at recruiting hard to reach demographics, can be slow and expensive. Recruitment via social media, in particular Facebook, may be faster and cheaper. Objective The aim of this study was to systematically review the literature regarding the current use and success of Facebook to recruit participants for health research purposes. Methods A literature review was completed in March 2017 in the English language using MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Science, PubMed, PsycInfo, Google Scholar, and a hand search of article references. Papers from the past 12 years were included and number of participants, recruitment period, number of impressions, cost per click or participant, and conversion rate extracted. Results A total of 35 studies were identified from the United States (n=22), Australia (n=9), Canada (n=2), Japan (n=1), and Germany (n=1) and appraised using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP) checklist. All focused on the feasibility of recruitment via Facebook, with some (n=10) also testing interventions, such as smoking cessation and depression reduction. Most recruited young age groups (16-24 years), with the remaining targeting specific demographics, for example, military veterans. Information from the 35 studies was analyzed with median values being 264 recruited participants, a 3-month recruitment period, 3.3 million impressions, cost per click of US $0.51, conversion rate of 4% (range 0.06-29.50), eligibility of 61% (range 17-100), and cost per participant of US $14.41. The studies showed success in penetrating hard to reach populations, finding the results representative of their control or comparison demographic, except for an over representation of young white women. Conclusions There is growing evidence to suggest that Facebook is a useful recruitment tool and its use, therefore, should be considered when implementing future health research. When compared with traditional recruitment methods (print, radio, television, and email), benefits include reduced costs, shorter recruitment periods, better representation, and improved participant selection in young and hard to reach demographics. It however, remains limited by Internet access and the over representation of young white women. Future studies should recruit across all ages and explore recruitment via other forms of social media. PMID:28851679

Beyond Traditional Advertisements: Leveraging Facebook’s Social Structures for Research Recruitment

PubMed Central

Guterbock, Thomas M; Thompson, Morgan J; Reilly, Jeremiah D; Menefee, Hannah K; Bennici, Maria S; Williams, Ishan C; Rexrode, Deborah L

2014-01-01

Background Obtaining access to a demographically and geographically diverse sample for health-related research can be costly and time consuming. Previous studies have reported mixed results regarding the potential of using social media-based advertisements to overcome these challenges. Objective Our aim was to develop and assess the feasibility, benefits, and challenges of recruiting for research studies related to consumer health information technology (IT) by leveraging the social structures embedded in the social networking platform, Facebook. Methods Two recruitment strategies that involved direct communication with existing Facebook groups and pages were developed and implemented in two distinct populations. The first recruitment strategy involved posting a survey link directly to consenting groups and pages and was used to recruit Filipino-Americans to a study assessing the perceptions, use of, and preferences for consumer health IT. This study took place between August and December 2013. The second recruitment strategy targeted individuals with type 2 diabetes and involved creating a study-related Facebook group and asking administrators of other groups and pages to publicize our group to their members. Group members were then directly invited to participate in an online pre-study survey. This portion of a larger study to understand existing health management practices as a foundation for consumer health IT design took place between May and June 2014. In executing both recruitment strategies, efforts were made to establish trust and transparency. Recruitment rate, cost, content of interaction, and characteristics of the sample obtained were used to assess the recruitment methods. Results The two recruitment methods yielded 87 and 79 complete responses, respectively. The first recruitment method yielded a rate of study completion proportionate to that of the rate of posts made, whereas recruitment successes of the second recruitment method seemed to follow directly from the actions of a subset of administrators. Excluding personnel time, the first recruitment method resulted in no direct costs, and the second recruitment method resulted in a total direct cost of US $118.17. Messages, posts, and comments received using both recruitment strategies reflected ten themes, including appreciation, assistance, clarification, concerns, encouragement, health information, interest, promotion, solicitations, and support. Both recruitment methods produced mixed results regarding sample representativeness with respect to characteristics such as gender, race, and ethnicity. Conclusions The results of the study demonstrate that leveraging the social structures of Facebook for health-related research was feasible for obtaining small samples appropriate for qualitative research but not for obtaining large samples needed for quantitative research. The content of interactions with members of the target population prompted ethical deliberations concerning suitable target communities and appropriate boundaries between researchers and participants. Widespread replication of this method would benefit from a broad discussion among researchers, social media users, social media companies, and experts in research ethics to address appropriate protocols for such interactions. PMID:25348050

Using Data to Inform Decision Making in Recruitment of Prospective Public Health Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Joshi, Ashish; Amadi, Chioma; Alam, Amina; Krudysz, Margaret A.; Hernandez, Gabriela

2017-01-01

The objective of this study was to compare recruitment methods for prospective students to the public health programs at the CUNY School of Public Health. Recruitment data on prospective Masters and Doctoral Public Health students were gathered during the period of July 2014 to July 2015, using 4 recruitment methods: Schools of Public Health…

25 CFR 166.906 - What can happen if we recruit you after graduation?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 25 Indians 1 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false What can happen if we recruit you after graduation? 166.906 Section 166.906 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER... happen if we recruit you after graduation? (a) The purpose of the post graduation recruitment program is...

25 CFR 166.906 - What can happen if we recruit you after graduation?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 25 Indians 1 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false What can happen if we recruit you after graduation? 166.906 Section 166.906 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER... happen if we recruit you after graduation? (a) The purpose of the post graduation recruitment program is...

25 CFR 166.906 - What can happen if we recruit you after graduation?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 25 Indians 1 2012-04-01 2011-04-01 true What can happen if we recruit you after graduation? 166.906 Section 166.906 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER... happen if we recruit you after graduation? (a) The purpose of the post graduation recruitment program is...

25 CFR 166.906 - What can happen if we recruit you after graduation?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 25 Indians 1 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false What can happen if we recruit you after graduation? 166.906 Section 166.906 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER... happen if we recruit you after graduation? (a) The purpose of the post graduation recruitment program is...

Strategies for Recruitment and Retention of Secondary Teachers in Central Region Rural Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beesley, Andrea; Atwill, Kim; Blair, Pamela; Barley, Zoe

2008-01-01

Recruiting and retaining teachers is a nationwide issue for schools in all locales. For rural schools, however, lower salaries, small school sizes, and geographic isolation can make it even more difficult to recruit and retain a qualified teaching staff. This study sought to quantify and characterize differences in recruiting teachers between…

Recruitment and Selection in Business and Industry: Learning from the Private Sector Theory and Practice.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Munoz, Maria D.; Munoz, Marco A.

Recruitment and selection practices in the private sector were examined through a literature review to identify strategies that human resource (HR) departments can use in designing new employee recruitment and selection processes or improving existing processes. The following were among the findings: (1) new employees recruited by using informal…

Development of a Model for Minority Recruitment at the United States Naval Academy.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Corpin, Owen D.

The study proposes a recruiting model, which is a coordinated and integrated recruiting effort employing the professional aid of the National Urban League and an expanded minority recruiting staff at the Naval Academy. The model aims to promote interest in the Academy's professional naval education among the black urban community. It is hoped this…

Navy Recruitment in Junior Colleges. Final Report. Technical Report No. 76-1.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fisher, Allan H., Jr.; And Others

The major objective of this survey research project was to estimate the Navy recruitment potential of male, junior college students. The results of a national survey of 807 students that a promising recruitment market exists for officer and enlisted recruiting, including both the active force and the Reserve. A second objective was to determine if…

38 CFR 2.4 - Delegation of authority to order paid advertising for use in recruitment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 38 Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans' Relief 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Delegation of authority to order paid advertising for use in recruitment. 2.4 Section 2.4 Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans... paid advertising for use in recruitment. Paid advertisements may be used in recruitment for VA...

76 FR 77237 - U.S. National Authority for the WHO Global Code of Practice on the International Recruitment of...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-12-12

... Authority for the WHO Global Code of Practice on the International Recruitment of Health Personnel; Notice... Global Code of Practice on the International Recruitment of Health Personnel, notice is hereby given of... Global Code of Practice on International Recruitment of Health Personnel is ``to establish and promote...

"We Gave up Our Letters so You Can Find Yours": Recruitment Counselors' Negotiation of Voluntary Disassociation from Sorority Membership

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carnell, Katherine E.

2017-01-01

One opportunity for involvement within a sorority community is serving as a sorority recruitment counselor. The sorority recruitment counselor guides potential new members (PNMs) through the sorority recruitment process. This position is considered a peer-leadership educator role, filled by an experienced, undergraduate sorority woman, who is…

Values-based recruitment in health care.

PubMed

Miller, Sam Louise

2015-01-27

Values-based recruitment is a process being introduced to student selection for nursing courses and appointment to registered nurse posts. This article discusses the process of values-based recruitment and demonstrates why it is important in health care today. It examines the implications of values-based recruitment for candidates applying to nursing courses and to newly qualified nurses applying for their first posts in England. To ensure the best chance of success, candidates should understand the principles and process of values-based recruitment and how to prepare for this type of interview.

Influence of Food on Recruitment Pattern in the Termite, Microcerotermes fuscotibialis

PubMed Central

Olugbemi, B.O.

2010-01-01

Recruitment pattern in the termite, Microcerotermes fuscotibialis Sjostedt (Isoptera: Termitidae) was found to be largely influenced by the presence or absence of food. This is reflected in the quantitative recruitment that occurred after food had been detected by the scouting foragers. Results showed that this information was communicated and responded to by other confederates in the nest within four to seven minutes after food addition or removal. The presence of an additional food source relative to an already existing one did not have any significant impact on the recruitment activities of this termite. Recruitment decision pattern in M. fuscotibialis involve to a large extent an “autocratic” decision strategy in the development and maintenance of recruitment process in this termite species. PMID:21070170

Recruitment of motor units in the medial gastrocnemius muscle during human quiet standing: is recruitment intermittent? What triggers recruitment?

PubMed Central

Loram, Ian D.; Muceli, Silvia; Merletti, Roberto; Farina, Dario

2012-01-01

The recruitment and the rate of discharge of motor units are determinants of muscle force. Within a motoneuron pool, recruitment and rate coding of individual motor units might be controlled independently, depending on the circumstances. In this study, we tested whether, during human quiet standing, the force of the medial gastrocnemius (MG) muscle is predominantly controlled by recruitment or rate coding. If MG control during standing was mainly due to recruitment, then we further asked what the trigger mechanism is. Is it determined internally, or is it related to body kinematics? While seven healthy subjects stood quietly, intramuscular electromyograms were recorded from the MG muscle with three pairs of wire electrodes. The number of active motor units and their mean discharge rate were compared for different sway velocities and positions. Motor unit discharges occurred more frequently when the body swayed faster and forward (Pearson R = 0.63; P < 0.0001). This higher likelihood of observing motor unit potentials was explained chiefly by the recruitment of additional units. During forward body shifts, the median number of units detected increased from 3 to 11 (P < 0.0001), whereas the discharge rate changed from 8 ± 1.1 (mean ± SD) to 10 ± 0.9 pulses/s (P = 0.001). Strikingly, motor units did not discharge continuously throughout standing. They were recruited within individual, forward sways and intermittently, with a modal rate of two recruitments per second. This modal rate is consistent with previous circumstantial evidence relating the control of standing to an intrinsic, higher level planning process. PMID:21994258

The Recruitment Experience of a Randomized Clinical Trial to Aid Young Adult Smokers to Stop Smoking without Weight Gain with Interactive Technology.

PubMed

Coday, Mace; Richey, Phyllis; Thomas, Fridtjof; Tran, Quynh T; Terrell, Sarah B; Tylavsky, Fran; Miro, Danielle; Caufield, Margaret; Johnson, Karen C

2016-04-15

Multiple recruitment strategies are often needed to recruit an adequate number of participants, especially hard to reach groups. Technology-based recruitment methods hold promise as a more robust form of reaching and enrolling historically hard to reach young adults. The TARGIT study is a randomized two-arm clinical trial in young adults using interactive technology testing an efficacious proactive telephone Quitline versus the Quitline plus a behavioral weight management intervention focusing on smoking cessation and weight change. All randomized participants in the TARGIT study were required to be a young adult smoker (18-35 years), who reported smoking at least 10 cigarettes per day, had a BMI < 40 kg/m 2, and were willing to stop smoking and not gain weight. Traditional recruitment methods were compared to technology-based strategies using standard descriptive statistics based on counts and proportions to describe the recruitment process from initial pre-screening (PS) to randomization into TARGIT. Participants at PS were majority Black (59.80%), female (52.66%), normal or over weight (combined 62.42%), 29.5 years old, and smoked 18.4 cigarettes per day. There were differences in men and women with respect to reasons for ineligibility during PS (p < 0.001; ignoring gender specific pregnancy-related ineligibility). TARGIT experienced a disproportionate loss of minorities during recruitment as well as a prolonged recruitment period due to either study ineligibility or not completing screening activities. Recruitment into longer term behavioral change intervention trials can be challenging and multiple methods are often required to recruit hard to reach groups.

Community Regulation: The Relative Importance of Recruitment and Predation Intensity of an Intertidal Community Dominant in a Seascape Context

PubMed Central

Rilov, Gil; Schiel, David R.

2011-01-01

Predicting the strength and context-dependency of species interactions across multiple scales is a core area in ecology. This is especially challenging in the marine environment, where populations of most predators and prey are generally open, because of their pelagic larval phase, and recruitment of both is highly variable. In this study we use a comparative-experimental approach on small and large spatial scales to test the relationship between predation intensity and prey recruitment and their relative importance in shaping populations of a dominant rocky intertidal space occupier, mussels, in the context of seascape (availability of nearby subtidal reef habitat). Predation intensity on transplanted mussels was tested inside and outside cages and recruitment was measured with standard larval settlement collectors. We found that on intertidal rocky benches with contiguous subtidal reefs in New Zealand, mussel larval recruitment is usually low but predation on recruits by subtidal consumers (fish, crabs) is intense during high tide. On nearby intertidal rocky benches with adjacent sandy subtidal habitats, larval recruitment is usually greater but subtidal predators are typically rare and predation is weaker. Multiple regression analysis showed that predation intensity accounts for most of the variability in the abundance of adult mussels compared to recruitment. This seascape-dependent, predation-recruitment relationship could scale up to explain regional community variability. We argue that community ecology models should include seascape context-dependency and its effects on recruitment and species interactions for better predictions of coastal community dynamics and structure. PMID:21887351

Studying physician-adolescent patient communication in community-based practices: recruitment challenges and solutions.

PubMed

Bodner, Michael E; Bilheimer, Alicia; Gao, Xiaomei; Lyna, Pauline; Alexander, Stewart C; Dolor, Rowena J; Østbye, Truls; Bravender, Terrill; Tulsky, James A; Graves, Sidney; Irons, Alexis; Pollak, Kathryn I

2015-11-13

Practice-based studies are needed to assess how physicians communicate health messages about weight to overweight/obese adolescent patients, but successful recruitment to such studies is challenging. This paper describes challenges, solutions, and lessons learned to recruit physicians and adolescents to the Teen Communicating Health Analyzing Talk (CHAT) study, a randomized controlled trial of a communication skills intervention for primary care physicians to enhance communication about weight with overweight/obese adolescents. A "peer-to-peer" approach was used to recruit physicians, including the use of "clinic champions" who liaised between study leaders and physicians. Consistent rapport and cooperative working relationships with physicians and clinic staff were developed and maintained. Adolescent clinic files were reviewed (HIPAA waiver) to assess eligibility. Parents could elect to opt-out for their children. To encourage enrollment, confidentiality of audio recordings was emphasized, and financial incentives were offered to all participants. We recruited 49 physicians and audio-recorded 391 of their overweight/obese adolescents' visits. Recruitment challenges included 1) physician reticence to participate; 2) variability in clinic operating procedures; 3) variability in adolescent accrual rates; 4) clinic open access scheduling; and 5) establishing communication with parents and adolescents. Key solutions included the use of a "clinic champion" to help recruit physicians, pro-active, consistent communication with clinic staff, and adapting calling times to reach parents and adolescents. Recruiting physicians and adolescents to audio-recorded, practice-based health communication studies can be successful. Anticipated challenges to recruiting can be met with advanced planning; however, optimal solutions to challenges evolve as recruitment progresses.

Managing Multi-Center Recruitment in the PLCO Cancer Screening Trial.

PubMed

Gohagan, John K; Broski, Karen; Gren, Lisa H; Fouad, Mona N; Higgins, Darlene; Lappe, Karen; Ogden, Sheryl; Shambaugh, Vicki; Pinsky, Paul F; O'Brien, Barbara; Yurgalevich, Susan; Riley, Tom; Wright, Patrick; Prorok, Philip C

2015-01-01

There were significant recruitment challenges specific to the PLCO Cancer Screening Trial. Large numbers of participants were to be randomized from ten catchment areas nationwide within time and budgetary constraints. The eligible population was elderly and had to meet health and behavioral thresholds. Informed consent was required to participate and be randomized to screening for three cancers at periodic clinic visits or to a usual care arm that included no clinical visits. Consenting required special efforts to fully explain the trial and its potential scientific benefit to future patients with potentially no benefits but possible harms to PLCO participants. Participation would include continued follow-up for at least 13 years after randomization. Strong collaborative investments were required by the NCI and screening centers (SCs) to assure timely recruitment and appropriate racial participation. A trial-wide pilot phase tested recruitment and protocol follow through at SCs and produced a vanguard population of 11,406 participants. NCI announced the trial nationally in advance of the pilot and followed with an even more intense collaborative role with SCs for the main phase to facilitate trial-wide efficient and timely recruitment. Special efforts to enhance recruitment in the main phase included centralized and local monitoring of progress, cross-linking SCs to share experiences in problem solving, centralized training, substantial additional funding dedicated to recruitment and retention, including specialized programs for minority recruitment, obtaining national endorsement by the American Cancer Society, launching satellite recruitment and screening centers, including minority focused satellites, and adding a new SC dedicated to minority recruitment.

Lessons learned from recruiting nursing homes to a quantitative cross-sectional pilot study.

PubMed

Tzouvara, Vasiliki; Papadopoulos, Chris; Randhawa, Gurch

2016-03-01

A growing older adult population is leading to increased admission rates to long-term care facilities such as nursing homes and residential care homes. Assisted healthcare services should be flexible, integrated, and responsive to older adults' needs. However, there is a limited body of empirical evidence because of the recruitment challenges in these settings. To describe the barriers and challenges faced in recruiting to a recent pilot study, consider previously implemented and proposed recruitment strategies, and propose a new multi-method approach to maximising recruitment of care homes. The proposed multi-method approach harnesses key recruitment strategies previously highlighted as effective in navigating the many challenges and barriers that are likely to be encountered, such as mistrust, scepticism and concerns about disruption to routines. This includes making strategic use of existing personal and professional connections within the research team, engaging with care homes that have previously engaged with the research process, forming relationships of trust, and employing a range of incentives. Implementing carefully planned recruitment strategies is likely to improve relationships between nursing homes and researchers. As a consequence, recruitment can be augmented which can enable the production of rigorous evidence required for achieving effective nursing practice and patient wellbeing. Boosting recruitment rates is crucial in helping to build new and less biased research evidence and for informing and underpinning all forms of evidence-based practice. The lessons learned from our pilot and the review of the literature highlight these issues and better enable investigators to access research settings that commonly possess many complex recruitment barriers and challenges.

The cues have it; nest-based, cue-mediated recruitment to carbohydrate resources in a swarm-founding social wasp.

PubMed

Schueller, Teresa I; Nordheim, Erik V; Taylor, Benjamin J; Jeanne, Robert L

2010-11-01

This study explores whether or not foragers of the Neotropical swarm-founding wasp Polybia occidentalis use nest-based recruitment to direct colony mates to carbohydrate resources. Recruitment allows social insect colonies to rapidly exploit ephemeral resources, an ability especially advantageous to species such as P. occidentalis, which store nectar and prey in their nests. Although recruitment is often defined as being strictly signal mediated, it can also occur via cue-mediated information transfer. Previous studies indicated that P. occidentalis employs local enhancement, a type of cue-mediated recruitment in which the presence of conspecifics at a site attracts foragers. This recruitment is resource-based, and as such, is a blunt recruitment tool, which does not exclude non-colony mates. We therefore investigated whether P. occidentalis also employs a form of nest-based recruitment. A scented sucrose solution was applied directly to the nest. This mimicked a scented carbohydrate resource brought back by employed foragers, but, as foragers were not allowed to return to the nest with the resource, there was no possibility for on-nest recruitment behavior. Foragers were offered two dishes--one containing the test scent and the other an alternate scent. Foragers chose the test scent more often, signifying that its presence in the nest induces naïve foragers to search for it off-nest. P. occidentalis, therefore, employs a form of nest-based recruitment to carbohydrate resources that is mediated by a cue, the presence of a scented resource in the nest.

The cues have it; nest-based, cue-mediated recruitment to carbohydrate resources in a swarm-founding social wasp

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schueller, Teresa I.; Nordheim, Erik V.; Taylor, Benjamin J.; Jeanne, Robert L.

2010-11-01

This study explores whether or not foragers of the Neotropical swarm-founding wasp Polybia occidentalis use nest-based recruitment to direct colony mates to carbohydrate resources. Recruitment allows social insect colonies to rapidly exploit ephemeral resources, an ability especially advantageous to species such as P. occidentalis, which store nectar and prey in their nests. Although recruitment is often defined as being strictly signal mediated, it can also occur via cue-mediated information transfer. Previous studies indicated that P. occidentalis employs local enhancement, a type of cue-mediated recruitment in which the presence of conspecifics at a site attracts foragers. This recruitment is resource-based, and as such, is a blunt recruitment tool, which does not exclude non-colony mates. We therefore investigated whether P. occidentalis also employs a form of nest-based recruitment. A scented sucrose solution was applied directly to the nest. This mimicked a scented carbohydrate resource brought back by employed foragers, but, as foragers were not allowed to return to the nest with the resource, there was no possibility for on-nest recruitment behavior. Foragers were offered two dishes—one containing the test scent and the other an alternate scent. Foragers chose the test scent more often, signifying that its presence in the nest induces naïve foragers to search for it off-nest. P. occidentalis, therefore, employs a form of nest-based recruitment to carbohydrate resources that is mediated by a cue, the presence of a scented resource in the nest.

Challenges of research recruitment in a university setting in England.

PubMed

Vadeboncoeur, Claudia; Foster, Charlie; Townsend, Nick

2017-05-20

The recruitment is an integral part of most research projects in medical sciences involving human participants. In health promotion research, there is increasing work on the impact of environments. Settings represent environments such as schools where social, physical and psychological development unfolds. In this study, we investigated weight gain in students within a university setting. Barriers to access and recruitment of university students within a specific setting, in the context of health research are discussed. An online survey on health behaviours of first year students across 101 universities in England was developed. Ethics committees of each institutions were contacted to obtain permission to recruit and access their students. Recruitment adverts were standardized and distributed within restrictions imposed by universities. Three time points and incentives were used. Several challenges in recruiting from a university setting were found. These included (i) ethics approval, (ii) recruitment approval, (iii) navigating restrictions on advertisement and (iv) logistics of varying university academic calendars. We also faced challenges of online surveys including low recruitment, retention and low eligibility of respondents. From the 101 universities, 28 allowed dissemination of adverts. We obtained 1026 responses at T1, 599 at T2 and 497 at T3. The complete-case sample represented 13% of those originally recruited at T1. Conducting research on students within the university setting is a time consuming and challenging task. To improve research-based health promotion, universities could work together to increase consistency as to their policies on student recruitment. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Reaching young adult smokers through the Internet: Comparison of three recruitment mechanisms

PubMed Central

Hall, Sharon M.; Prochaska, Judith J.

2010-01-01

Introduction: While young adults have the highest prevalence of cigarette smoking of any adult age group, studies of tobacco and other substance use have reported challenges in recruiting this age group. The Internet may be a useful tool for reaching young adult smokers. The present study compared three Internet-based recruitment methods for young adult smokers to complete a survey about tobacco and other substance use: Craigslist advertisements, other Internet advertisements, and E-mail invitations through a survey sampling service. Methods: Recruitment campaigns invited young adults aged 18–25 years who had smoked at least one cigarette in the past 30 days to complete an online survey. Recruitment methods were compared across recruitment numbers, costeffectiveness, and demographic and smoking characteristics of recruited participants. Results: In 6 months, 920 people gave online consent to determine eligibility to complete the survey, of which 336 (36.5%) were eligible, and 201 (59.8%) completed the survey. While Internet advertisements yielded the largest proportion of recruited participants and completed surveys overall, Craigslist and sampling strategies were more successful at targeting young adult smokers who went on to complete the survey and were more costeffective. Participants differed in demographic and substance use characteristics across the three recruitment mechanisms. Discussion: We identified success at reaching young adults who have smoked cigarettes recently through the Internet, though costs, participant eligibility, proportion of completed surveys, and respondent characteristics differed among the three methods. A multipronged approach to Internet recruitment is most likely to generate a broad diverse sample of young adult smokers. PMID:20530194