Strategies for in-person recruitment: lessons learned from a New Jersey primary care research network (NJPCRN) study.

OBJECTIVE: To describe and evaluate participant recruitment for a research study conducted in primary care offices.
METHODS: Nine recruiters administered a written survey to 1485 primary care patients (from 25 practices) during baseline and 1-year follow-up of a quality improvement study aimed at increasing colorectal cancer screening. Before recruitment, recruiters attended training sessions, during which they received tools and information designed to facilitate successful recruitment. Quantitative and qualitative recruitment data were analyzed to assess and describe recruitment efforts.
RESULTS: The overall practice-level recruitment rate was 72.7% (range, 56.3% to 91.4%). Practice characteristics did not affect the recruitment rate. Recruitment rate differed significantly between recruiters (P = .0007) as did nonparticipants' reasons for refusal (P < .0001). Anticipated barriers to recruitment (older age of sampled population, lack of incentives, and discomfort discussing colorectal cancer) did not occur. Two key strategies facilitated recruitment: ((1)) recruiter flexibility and ((2)) building rapport with participants.
CONCLUSION: Recruiters may be more effective if they are able to adapt to participants' needs and successfully build rapport with potential participants. The likelihood of recruitment success may be increased by anticipating potential recruitment barriers and providing training that minimizes the inherent variation that exists among recruiters.