Public Health Scotland, Glasgow, UK.
Glasgow Caledonian University, Glasgow, UK.
BMC Med Res Methodol. 2024 Nov 1;24(1):265. doi: 10.1186/s12874-024-02380-6.
Rapid timescales for the design and delivery of research were common during the COVID-19 pandemic. The recruitment and retention of healthcare workers (HCWs) as participants in research studies are notoriously challenging, but this was exacerbated during the pandemic by the unprecedented demand placed on the workforce. The SARS-CoV-2 Immunity and Reinfection Evaluation (SIREN study) is a prospective multicentre cohort study following HCWs in the UK. This paper discusses the strategies and challenges associated with recruitment and retention of HCW participants in Scotland.
There were 44,546 HCWs recruited to the SIREN study, of whom 6,285 were recruited by research teams at ten different research sites in Scotland between October 2020 and March 2021. Information on target and actual sample size, availability of resource, recruitment rate, and recruitment and engagement strategies by site was collated from SIREN study documentation and discussions with local key SIREN site staff. Individual-level data from 6,153 HCW participants with ongoing consent for all data usage were also collated, including socio-demographic data and information on withdrawal (in first year) and opt-in to a study extension after one year. Factors associated with these outcomes were explored in logistic regression analyses.
Different recruitment strategies were used in each site according to local agreements, protocol and staff capacity, with the recruitment period ranging from 13 to 160 days. The locally-agreed recruitment target was met in four sites. The proportion of participants who withdrew in the first year ranged from 3.1 to 24.8% by site, while subsequent opt-in to a 12-month study extension ranged from 28.6 to 74.8%. The sites with the highest proportions of withdrawals were the same four sites with lowest proportions of opt-in. On an individual level, there was a lower level of retention among younger participants, and those from lower socio-economic backgrounds and minority ethnic groups.
Site-specific factors including research-readiness likely had a significant influence on recruitment and retention, more so than the specific recruitment or retention strategies employed. Independent of site factors, individual-level variables influenced recruitment and retention, suggesting targeted strategies may be needed to promote research engagement among particular socio-demographic groups.
在 COVID-19 大流行期间，研究的设计和交付时间通常非常紧迫。招募和保留医疗保健工作者（HCWs）作为研究参与者是一项极具挑战性的工作，但在大流行期间，由于对劳动力的需求空前增加，这一挑战更加严峻。SARS-CoV-2 免疫和再感染评估（SIREN 研究）是一项在英国对 HCWs 进行的前瞻性多中心队列研究。本文讨论了在苏格兰招募和保留 HCW 参与者的策略和挑战。
有 44546 名 HCWs 被招募到 SIREN 研究中，其中 6285 名是在 2020 年 10 月至 2021 年 3 月期间由苏格兰 10 个不同研究地点的研究团队招募的。从 SIREN 研究文件和与当地 SIREN 主要研究地点工作人员的讨论中收集了有关目标和实际样本量、资源可用性、招募率以及各地点的招募和参与策略的信息。还从 6153 名持续同意所有数据使用的 HCW 参与者的个人水平数据中进行了汇总，包括社会人口统计学数据以及关于第一年退出（第一年）和在一年后选择加入研究扩展的信息。使用逻辑回归分析探讨了这些结果的相关因素。
根据当地协议、方案和员工能力，每个地点使用不同的招募策略，招募期从 13 天到 160 天不等。有四个地点达到了当地商定的招募目标。第一年退出的参与者比例因地点而异，从 3.1%到 24.8%不等，而随后选择参加为期 12 个月的研究扩展的比例从 28.6%到 74.8%不等。退出比例最高的四个地点也是选择参加研究扩展比例最低的四个地点。在个人层面上，年轻参与者以及社会经济背景较低和少数族裔群体的保留率较低。
包括研究准备情况在内的特定地点因素可能对招募和保留有重大影响，其影响大于所采用的具体招募或保留策略。独立于地点因素，个体水平变量影响招募和保留，这表明需要针对特定社会人口统计学群体制定有针对性的策略来促进研究参与。
