JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Due to the pandemic, traditional recruitment methods were suspended and many clinical trials had to be postponed. Facebook utilised as a tool to enhance recruitment has been previously explored for survey and qualitative studies however there has been less exploration in Facebook recruitment for a randomised controlled trial. Our experience bypassed the obstacles caused by COVID-19 to recruit for a randomised controlled trial.

Objective:

To discuss the effectiveness of utilising Facebook groups and pages on participant recruitment during the COVID-19 pandemic for a randomised control trial on the effectiveness of a remote parenting programme, 1-2-3 Magic, in families who have children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in the UK.

Methods:

5 Facebook posts were posted from 7 January to 4 March 2022 in 4 ADHD UK support groups and pages run by ADDISS, which consists of around 16,000 individuals. To participate in the trial, parents/carers had to have a child with diagnosed ADHD aged 12 years or below, be residing in the UK, have access to stable internet and a device with the Zoom app. Parents were required to have never attended 1-2-3 Magic training previously. Microsoft forms was used for parents to register their interest. The trial aimed to recruit 84 parents.

Results:

478 individuals registered their interest via Microsoft forms within a period of 2 months. After checking eligibility, baseline meetings were set up for 135 respondents. Out of the 135, the first 84 participants to attend a baseline meeting and return a completed consent form were recruited. We then recruited an additional 16 participants leading to a total sample of 100 participants. There was no cost spent for posting on Facebook groups and minimal manpower was required. This recruitment method produced positive results and was advantageous in gathering eligible participants in a short space of time and reaching individuals from geographical locations all over the UK which would have been tedious to achieve through traditional recruitment methods.

Conclusions:

Our experience demonstrated that digital flyers posted in the targeted Facebook groups was a cost-effective and quick method for recruiting for randomised control trials during the COVID-19 pandemic when lockdown restrictions were in place. The main implication of this experience is that regardless of whether there is a global pandemic or not, this method can be utilised in future trials recruitment, either to complement traditional methods or even as a sole method. Clinical Trial: International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number (ISRCTN) 15281572; https://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN15281572