Recruitment Challenges and Strategies in a Technology-Based Intervention for Dementia Caregivers: Descriptive Study
Abstract BackgroundResearchers have encountered challenges in recruiting unpaid caregivers of people living with Alzheimer disease and related dementias for intervention studies. However, little is known about the reasons for nonparticipation in in-home smart health interventi...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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JMIR Publications
2025-01-01
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| Series: | JMIR Formative Research |
| Online Access: | https://formative.jmir.org/2025/1/e59291 |
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| author | Eunjung Ko Ye Gao Peng Wang Lahiru Wijayasingha Kathy D Wright Kristina C Gordon Hongning Wang John A Stankovic Karen M Rose |
| author_facet | Eunjung Ko Ye Gao Peng Wang Lahiru Wijayasingha Kathy D Wright Kristina C Gordon Hongning Wang John A Stankovic Karen M Rose |
| author_sort | Eunjung Ko |
| collection | DOAJ |
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Abstract
BackgroundResearchers have encountered challenges in recruiting unpaid caregivers of people living with Alzheimer disease and related dementias for intervention studies. However, little is known about the reasons for nonparticipation in in-home smart health interventions in community-based settings.
ObjectiveThis study aimed to (1) assess recruitment rates in a smart health technology intervention for caregivers of people living with Alzheimer disease and related dementias and reasons for nonparticipation among them and (2) discuss lessons learned from recruitment challenges and strategies to improve recruitment.
MethodsThe smart health intervention was a 4-month, single-arm trial designed to evaluate an in-home, technology-based intervention that monitors stressful moments for caregiving dyads through acoustic signals and to provide the caregivers with real-time stress management strategies. The recruitment involved two main methods: on-site engagement by a recruiter from a memory clinic and social media advertising. Caregivers were screened for eligibility by phone between January 2021 and September 2023. The recruitment rates, reasons for nonparticipation, and participant demographics were analyzed using descriptive statistics.
ResultsOf 201 caregivers contacted, 11 were enrolled in this study. Eighty-two caregivers did not return the screening call, and others did not participate due to privacy concerns (n=30), lack of interest (n=29), and burdensome study procedures (n=26). Our recruitment strategies included addressing privacy concerns, visualizing collected data through a dashboard, boosting social media presence, increasing the recruitment budget, updating advertisements, and preparing and deploying additional study devices.
ConclusionsThis study highlighted barriers to participation in the smart health intervention. Despite several recruitment strategies, enrollment rates remained below expectations. These findings underscore the need for future research to explore alternative methods for increasing the recruitment of informal dementia caregivers in technology-based intervention studies. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-b68c00113c0a4e25b1fbda615171bf10 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2561-326X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | JMIR Publications |
| record_format | Article |
| series | JMIR Formative Research |
| spelling | doaj-art-b68c00113c0a4e25b1fbda615171bf102025-01-27T02:42:42ZengJMIR PublicationsJMIR Formative Research2561-326X2025-01-019e59291e5929110.2196/59291Recruitment Challenges and Strategies in a Technology-Based Intervention for Dementia Caregivers: Descriptive StudyEunjung Kohttp://orcid.org/0000-0002-1898-0639Ye Gaohttp://orcid.org/0000-0003-3979-8710Peng Wanghttp://orcid.org/0000-0002-5699-3676Lahiru Wijayasinghahttp://orcid.org/0009-0005-1889-3374Kathy D Wrighthttp://orcid.org/0000-0001-7346-1981Kristina C Gordonhttp://orcid.org/0000-0002-1543-2098Hongning Wanghttp://orcid.org/0000-0002-6524-9195John A Stankovichttp://orcid.org/0000-0001-7307-9395Karen M Rosehttp://orcid.org/0000-0001-7382-3671 Abstract BackgroundResearchers have encountered challenges in recruiting unpaid caregivers of people living with Alzheimer disease and related dementias for intervention studies. However, little is known about the reasons for nonparticipation in in-home smart health interventions in community-based settings. ObjectiveThis study aimed to (1) assess recruitment rates in a smart health technology intervention for caregivers of people living with Alzheimer disease and related dementias and reasons for nonparticipation among them and (2) discuss lessons learned from recruitment challenges and strategies to improve recruitment. MethodsThe smart health intervention was a 4-month, single-arm trial designed to evaluate an in-home, technology-based intervention that monitors stressful moments for caregiving dyads through acoustic signals and to provide the caregivers with real-time stress management strategies. The recruitment involved two main methods: on-site engagement by a recruiter from a memory clinic and social media advertising. Caregivers were screened for eligibility by phone between January 2021 and September 2023. The recruitment rates, reasons for nonparticipation, and participant demographics were analyzed using descriptive statistics. ResultsOf 201 caregivers contacted, 11 were enrolled in this study. Eighty-two caregivers did not return the screening call, and others did not participate due to privacy concerns (n=30), lack of interest (n=29), and burdensome study procedures (n=26). Our recruitment strategies included addressing privacy concerns, visualizing collected data through a dashboard, boosting social media presence, increasing the recruitment budget, updating advertisements, and preparing and deploying additional study devices. ConclusionsThis study highlighted barriers to participation in the smart health intervention. Despite several recruitment strategies, enrollment rates remained below expectations. These findings underscore the need for future research to explore alternative methods for increasing the recruitment of informal dementia caregivers in technology-based intervention studies.https://formative.jmir.org/2025/1/e59291 |
| spellingShingle | Eunjung Ko Ye Gao Peng Wang Lahiru Wijayasingha Kathy D Wright Kristina C Gordon Hongning Wang John A Stankovic Karen M Rose Recruitment Challenges and Strategies in a Technology-Based Intervention for Dementia Caregivers: Descriptive Study JMIR Formative Research |
| title | Recruitment Challenges and Strategies in a Technology-Based Intervention for Dementia Caregivers: Descriptive Study |
| title_full | Recruitment Challenges and Strategies in a Technology-Based Intervention for Dementia Caregivers: Descriptive Study |
| title_fullStr | Recruitment Challenges and Strategies in a Technology-Based Intervention for Dementia Caregivers: Descriptive Study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Recruitment Challenges and Strategies in a Technology-Based Intervention for Dementia Caregivers: Descriptive Study |
| title_short | Recruitment Challenges and Strategies in a Technology-Based Intervention for Dementia Caregivers: Descriptive Study |
| title_sort | recruitment challenges and strategies in a technology based intervention for dementia caregivers descriptive study |
| url | https://formative.jmir.org/2025/1/e59291 |
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