Group Recruitment to Improve Clinical Study Enrollment and Retention

Obtaining informed consent is an essential step in enrolling patients in clinical research studies. Traditionally, informed consent is obtained individually, person by person. Despite this time-consuming, personalized process, studies of informed consent consistently report low levels of comprehension. A modified process, “group recruitment,” offers the potential to improve comprehension, reduce the time required by study personnel, and also increase study participant engagement and retention. The benefits of group recruitment derive from three features: First, because information is presented to a group, it is feasible to present more information than can, as a practical matter, be presented individually. Second, during the group process, individuals share questions and concerns, helping patients feel more confident of a decision to participate. Third, patients bond with the group, so they feel more engaged in the study and are more likely to continue to the end.