How a Social Marketing Approach Can Address Participation Disparities in Health and Clinical Research Study Opportunities and Contribute to Improved Clinical Outcomes

Theoretical Background and research questions/hypothesis:

Participation in clinical research studies remains a challenge for many community members who experience historical barriers to trial information, familiarity with research in general, and ready access to trials. With the emergence of new media to augment traditional media, opportunities for involvement were enhanced. However, reliance on social media tools by researchers to reach underrepresented communities without sufficient data and insight into the needs of those members has failed to deliver on promises of easy recruitment into trials and clinical recruitment remains an issue.

Methods and Results (informing the conceptual analysis):

One solution is to incorporate social marketing concepts into the protocol design and promotional plan. Social marketing, which delves into the benefits, barriers and exchange propositions of communities prior to and during the design of the research trial promotional campaign, can bridge this gap and thus better address the need for more inclusive participation of diverse populations.

The target audiences for clinical research are varied – easy to reach, hard to reach, and the hardly-ever reached. In each community, individual versus community needs must be addressed. A systematic approach to develop a basic survey of the population, efforts to involve the community in the planning stages, and continuous engagement are keys to obtaining valuable formative research data. Efforts to address reluctance to participate must address both historic and /or current issues.

Conclusions:

While it may seem obvious to those who work with community engagement how to develop this formative research, my experience with most clinical researchers is the opposite. As experts in their scientific and clinical fields, they often neglect to consider the needs of the communities in the design stage. The consequences of limited participation, the inadvertent barriers that are created by lack of insight, failure to consider health literacy and access to health information, differences in communication styles- these can all contribute to the poor trial outcomes in terms of slow enrollment or non-participation in trials.

Implications for research and/or practice:

By exploring the issues created by poor participation of diverse populations, researchers can feel more empowered to find solutions to their recruitment dilemmas. By using a systematic social marketing management approach to look at how to increase benefits and overcome barriers for the often unincluded populations, they can achieve better research trial efficiency and meaningful data. Their ultimate goal is to work towards improved clinical outcomes through better designed research protocol and promotional planning and campaigns.