Recruitment for a guided self-help binge eating trial: potential lessons for implementing programs in everyday practice settings.
OBJECTIVE
To explore effects of various recruitment strategies on randomized clinical trial (RCT)-entry characteristics for patients with eating disorders within an everyday health-plan practice setting.


METHODS
Randomly selected women, aged 25-50, in a Pacific Northwest HMO were invited to complete a self-report binge-eating screener for two treatment trials. We publicized the trials within the health plan to allow self-referral. Here, we report differences on eating-disorder status by mode and nature of recruitment (online, mail, self-referred) and assessment (comprehensive versus abbreviated) and on possible differences in enrollee characteristics between those recruited by strategy (self-referred versus study-outreach efforts).


RESULTS
Few differences emerged among those recruited through outreach who responded by different modalities (internet versus mail), early-versus-late responders, and those enrolling under more comprehensive or abbreviated assessment. Self-referred were more likely to meet binge-eating thresholds and reported higher average BMI than those recruited by outreach and responding by mail; however, in most respects the groups were more similar than anticipated. Fewer than 1% of those initially contacted through outreach enrolled.


CONCLUSIONS
Aggressive outreach and screening is likely not feasible for broader dissemination in everyday practice settings and recruits individuals with more similar demographic and clinical characteristics to those recruited through more abbreviated and realistic screening procedures than anticipated.
DeBar
Lynn L
LL
Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, 3800 N. Interstate Ave., Portland, Oregon 97227, USA. lynn.debar@kpchr.org
Yarborough
Bobbi Jo
BJ
Striegel-Moore
Ruth H
RH
Rosselli
Francine
F
Perrin
Nancy
N
Wilson
G Terence
GT
Kraemer
Helena C
HC
Green
Rory
R
Lynch
Frances
F
D000328:Adult; D015992:Body Mass Index; D052018:Bulimia Nervosa / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008875:Middle Aged; D018579:Patient Selection; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians'; D015995:Prevalence; D016730:Program Development; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic / Q000379:methods*; D012657:Self-Help Groups; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires