Strategies to Reduce Barriers to Recruitment and Participation

PURPOSE: To identify barriers encountered and solutions employed to improve research recruitment and retention of rural subjects for participation in the Promoting Heart Health in Rural Women (PHH) study. METHODS: This article provides an examination of experiences encountered by nurse researchers in recruiting rural women from two locations to a randomized, controlled trial. Problem solving through broadening recruitment areas and inclusion criteria, community liaison assistance, identification of rural-specific strategies in the literature, and perseverance helped to overcome barriers to subject recruitment and retention in this rural Phase-II nurse-run intervention study. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Research studies need to be conducted in order to build a body of evidence for nursing interventions to reduce cardiovascular disease risk factors in rural women. A study is strengthened by a robust sample that provides power to statistical analysis. Without discussion of real-world experiences and appropriate and effective recruitment and retention strategies in nursing research, there is little chance of conducting research with appropriate power to build evidence-based practice.