title: Preventing and Lessening Exacerbations of Asthma in School-aged children Associated with a New Term (PLEASANT): Recruiting Primary Care Research Sites-the PLEASANT experience.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Recruitment of general practices and their patients into research studies is frequently reported as a challenge. The Preventing and Lessening Exacerbations of Asthma in School-aged children Associated with a New Term (PLEASANT) trial recruited 142 general practices, across England and Wales and delivered the study intervention to time and target.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To describe the process of recruitment used within the cluster randomised PLEASANT trial and present results on factors that influenced recruitment.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data were collected on the number of and types of contact used to gain expression of interest and subsequent randomisation into the PLEASANT trial. Practice size and previous research experience were also collected.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean number of contacts required to gain expression of interest were m=3.01 (s.d. 1.6) and total number of contacts from initial invitation to randomisation m=6.8 (s.d. 3.5). Previous randomised controlled trial involvement (hazard ratio (HR)=1.81 (confidence interval (CI) 95%, 1.55-2.11) P<0.001) and number of studies a practice had previously engaged in (odds ratio (OR) 1.91 (CI 95%, (1.52-2.42)) P<0.001), significantly influenced whether a practice would participate in PLEASANT. Practice size was not a significant deciding factor (OR=1.04 (95% CI 0.99-1.08) P=0.137).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Recruitment to time and target can be achieved in general practice. The amount of resource required for site recruitment should not, however, be underestimated and multiple strategies for contacting practices should be considered. General practitioners with more research experience are more likely to participate in studies.
authors.affiliation: School of Health and Related Research, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK.
authors.forename: Michelle J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Horspool
authors.affiliation: School of Health and Related Research, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK.
authors.forename: Steven A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Julious
authors.affiliation: School of Health and Related Research, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK.
authors.forename: Cara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mooney
authors.affiliation: Clinical Practice Research Datalink, The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, London, UK.
authors.forename: Robin
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: May
authors.affiliation: School of Health and Related Research, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK.
authors.forename: Ben
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Sully
authors.affiliation: Department of General Practice, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland.
authors.forename: W Henry
authors.initials: WH
authors.lastname: Smithson
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000554:Ambulatory Care Facilities; D001249:Asthma / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000517:prevention & control*; D002648:Child; D018450:Disease Progression; D004739:England; D058005:General Practitioners; D006801:Humans; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D016015:Logistic Models; D055118:Medication Adherence; D016017:Odds Ratio; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D018579:Patient Selection; D011320:Primary Health Care; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D013997:Time Factors; D006113:United Kingdom; D014852:Wales