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Relationship building in pediatric research recruitment: Insights from qualitative interviews with research staff

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 October 2022

Stephanie A. Kraft*
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USATreuman Katz Center for Pediatric Bioethics, Seattle Children’s Research Institute, Seattle, WA, USA
Kathryn M. Porter
Affiliation:
Treuman Katz Center for Pediatric Bioethics, Seattle Children’s Research Institute, Seattle, WA, USA
Tara R. Sullivan
Affiliation:
Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
Emily E. Anderson
Affiliation:
Neiswanger Institute for Bioethics, Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine, Maywood, IL, USA
Nanibaa’ A. Garrison
Affiliation:
Institute for Society and Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USAInstitute for Precision Health, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USADivision of General Internal Medicine and Health Services Research, Department of Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Laura Baker
Affiliation:
Research Integration Hub, Seattle Children’s Research Institute, Seattle, WA, USA
Jodi M. Smith
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USAResearch Integration Hub, Seattle Children’s Research Institute, Seattle, WA, USA
Elliott M. Weiss
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USATreuman Katz Center for Pediatric Bioethics, Seattle Children’s Research Institute, Seattle, WA, USA
*
Address for correspondence: S. Kraft, JD, Treuman Katz Center for Pediatric Bioethics, Seattle Children’s Research Institute, 1900 Ninth Ave., M/S JMB-6, Seattle, WA 98101, USA. Email: stephanie.kraft@seattlechildrens.org
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Abstract

Introduction:

Clinical research staff play a critical role in recruiting families for pediatric research, but their views are not well described. We aimed to describe how pediatric research staff build trusting research relationships with patients and their families.

Methods:

We interviewed research staff at one pediatric research institution and its affiliated academic medical center between November 2020 and February 2021. Staff were eligible if they conducted participant recruitment, consent, and/or enrollment for clinical research. We developed our semi-structured interview guide based on a framework for trusting researcher-community partnerships.

Results:

We interviewed 28 research staff, with a median age of 28 years (range 22–50) and a median of 5 years of experience (range 1–29). Interviewees identified factors relevant to relationship building across three levels: the individual staff member, the relational interaction with the family, and the institutional or other structural backdrop. Individual factors included how staff developed recruitment skills, their perceived roles, and their personal motivations. Relational factors spanned four stages of recruitment: before the approach, forming an initial connection with a family, building the connection, and following up. Structural factors were related to access and diversity, clinical interactions, and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Conclusions:

Research staff discussed tensions and supports with various actors, challenges with the integration of research and clinical care, the importance of voluntariness for building trust, and multiple contributors to inequities in research. These findings reveal the importance of ensuring research staff have a voice in institutional policies and are supported to advocate for patients and families.

Information

Type
Research Article
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution and reproduction, provided the original article is properly cited.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of The Association for Clinical and Translational Science
Figure 0

Table 1.Interviewee demographics (n = 28)

Figure 1

Table 2.Individual factors affecting relationship building: codes and exemplar quotes

Figure 2

Table 3.Relational factors affecting relationship building: codes and exemplar quotes

Figure 3

Table 4.Structural factors affecting relationship building: codes and exemplar quotes

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