To test whether allocating Continuous Professional Development (CPD) points increases the number of adolescents screened by clinicians to a clinical trial known as “ACE MID” (Assessing Cost Effectiveness of Implementing a Minimal Intervention Dentistry approach for adolescent public patients at high risk to dental caries).
Method:
Participant recruitment to ACE MID is a two stage process involving community dental clinicians (CDCs) and researchers. Clinicians working at 12 participating clinics are responsible for screening their patients’ suitability to join the study, using an electronic screening tool. Research staff then telephone suitable adolescents to undertake the consent process.
Each clinic is required to recruit 42 adolescents.
A confounding factor in recruiting participants to this study is that the first screening stage of the recruitment process is undertaken by a third party, the CDC.
To address this factor, research staff initially developed a training PowerPoint to be delivered by clinic managers, and attended team meetings at some clinics to deliver this training. On request, they also provided one- on-one instructions on how to use the electronic screening tool.
Despite these strategies, initial screening was variable and often slow amongst some CDCs.
A CPD on-line training initiative was launched to boost the number of adolescents screened. Each CDC who completes the online CPD and actively screens patients for their clinic receives four CPD points once 42 participants are recruited from that clinic.
Result:
The CPD initiative has increased the number of adolescents screened for the study.
Conclusion:
A multi-strategy approach is required to recruit suitable participants to any clinical trial. In this study, motivating time-poor clinicians, who face increasing demands with competing priorities, is the first challenge in participant recruitment. A CPD initiative is effective in motivating CDCs to screen participants for a clinical trial.