ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: The aims of this study were to determine a sound recruitment strategy for multisite wound studies to address the rising prevalence and incidence of chronic wounds and to identify appropriate adult patient populations with wounds of interest and establish partnerships with their clinicians and clinical services as a model for a multisite wound care feasibility study.
DESIGN: A pilot multisite recruitment feasibility study.
SETTING: Three wound clinics located in a large, Midwestern metropolitan area.
PARTICIPANTS AND INTERVENTION: A convenience sample of 3 staff and 3 patients with lower-extremity wounds from each clinic was interviewed. Medical records of all patients with lower-extremity wounds seen during 1 week at each clinic were reviewed. Outcome measures included characteristics of patients being treated at the 3 wound care clinics (patient demographics and wound characteristics) and wound treatments used. Barriers and opportunities that could be addressed in recruitment and other research strategies were identified.
MAIN RESULTS: Barriers and facilitators for future research were identified and varied within and between clinics. Patients reported they were willing to participate in future research, although fewer were willing if the study was blinded. Patients received a variety of treatments within and across clinics. Medical record reviews provided further information about wound clinic patients, wound characteristics, and barriers and facilitators for future study.
CONCLUSIONS: Characteristics of wound clinic patients and their wounds were found to vary by site, suggesting tailored recruitment methods by site within multisite wound care studies may be most productive. This study suggests successful recruitment strategies for future wound care intervention research.