Engage a doctor in your social media trial recruitment efforts. Information credibility remains one of the biggest obstacles for potential volunteers, and it may be the key to closing the chasm between social media users who say they would participate in trials and the ones who actually do.
Those are among the findings of a recent survey by Blue Chip Patient Recruitment.
The survey finds that 80% of respondents say they prefer to receive clinical trial information online from a physician. Only 19% were satisfied with trial information that they found on Facebook; just 14% for a Twitter profile.
Meanwhile, 81% of those surveyed said they were interested in participating in clinical trials; of this group, only 16% have done so.
The survey data augment the views of experts presented in a panel discussion at the recent DIA show. Getting the fundamentals right is one key to success, according to Joseph Kim of Shire's clinical trial optimization group. "YouTube is the number two search engine in the world. We just need to be more savvy about using it. In the end it's about being patient-centric," he said.
In a study of investigator sites, Liz Moench of Medici Global found that 80% of respondents are unfamiliar with social media, even as early adopters are using it as an effective recruitment tool.
- see the story
- here's the item
- there's more here on page 6 (PDF)