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Underrepresentation of Hispanics and Other Minorities in Clinical Trials: Recruiters’ Perspectives

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Abstract

Clinical trials and research studies often fail to recruit participants from the minorities, hampering the generalizability of results. In order to mitigate this problem, the present study investigated how race/ethnicity affects the process of recruiting people from racial and ethnic minority groups, by conducting 11 focus groups with professional recruiters. Several themes emerged, such as how to adapt to potential participants’ language competency and literacy levels, the importance to engage in culturally appropriate verbal and non-verbal communication, and to establish a sense of homophily between recruiters and patients. In addition, recruiters pointed out possible solutions to accommodate socioeconomic concerns, to adapt to contextual factors—including immigration status—and ultimately to respond to potential participants’ mistrust of medical research. These findings are discussed, and future recommendations are provided.

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Notes

  1. In the following sections the term “patient” is used to describe those individuals already under medical treatment when approached to join a research study, whereas the term “participant” refers to those people not under medical treatment when invited to join a study. “Recruiter” refers to anyone who recruits for clinical trials or research studies, regardless of their professional title.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Communication, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA

    Aurora Occa & Susan E. Morgan

  2. Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA

    JoNell E. Potter

Authors
  1. Aurora Occa
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  2. Susan E. Morgan
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  3. JoNell E. Potter
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Aurora Occa.

Ethics declarations

Ethical Approval

All procedures performed in this study involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutes to which researchers belong and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Funding

This project was not supported by external funding or grants.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Informed Consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

Appendix 1. Guideline for the focus groups

Appendix 1. Guideline for the focus groups

  1. 1.

    [Opening] Give us the name you’d like us to use, and tell us how long you’ve been recruiting for clinical trials and the types of trials you recruit for.

  2. 2.

    A number of factors might make some clinical trials more difficult to recruit for than others. If we set aside clinical trials to test the efficacy of drugs, what are some key characteristics that make it harder for you to recruit for some trials? (10–15 min).

  3. 3.

    Just as some trials are more difficult to recruit for than others, some patients might be more difficult to recruit. What are some of the characteristics of patients (related to communication style or personality, etc.) that make them more or less difficult to recruit? (10–15 min).

  4. 4.

    When you talk to patients about clinical trials, what types of words or terminology do you avoid? How do you explain difficult concepts? (30–45 min).

  5. 5.

    Are there other things that you do to try to enhance the quality of your interactions with patients as you explain a clinical trial? Are there certain ways that you use non-verbal communication that you find helpful? (20–30 min).

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Occa, A., Morgan, S.E. & Potter, J.E. Underrepresentation of Hispanics and Other Minorities in Clinical Trials: Recruiters’ Perspectives. J. Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities 5, 322–332 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40615-017-0373-x

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