Motivators for enrollment and completion of pregnancy outcomes research: A comparison of African-American and Caucasian women's perspectives
Public Deposited- Last Modified
- January 29, 2020
- Creator
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Beamon, Carmen J.
- Affiliation: Gillings School of Global Public Health, Public Health Leadership Program
- Abstract
- Women and minority populations, specifically African-Americans, continue to be under represented in medical research. The exclusion of women and minorities from clinical trials raises questions about whether treatment outcomes are generalizable to these populations and about equity in the provision of health care. Despite the recognition of the need to include women and minorities in medical research, many factors limit their participation. This study explored the motivators for participation, retention and satisfaction of reproductive-aged women who participated in the Right from the Start Study (RFTS), an ongoing, prospective study of early pregnancy risk factors for spontaneous abortion and preterm birth. The goal was to improve our understanding of factors important to participation in pregnancy-outcomes research, and to determine if these factors varied between African-American and white women. Three focus groups, two with African-American women and one with white women, were conducted to learn about the women's opinions on participation in pregnancy outcomes research. The majority of the women in all focus groups indicated that facilitative aspects of the study, such as free ultrasounds and pregnancy tests were the most important reason for participating in the RFTS study. However, factors influencing retention and satisfaction with research differed between the racial groups. Interest in the research topic, familial altruism and personal relevance were the major themes expressed by the African-American women; whereas, Caucasian women were motivated by commitment, convenience and reimbursement. By using the themes that emerged from these focus groups in combination with the literature on participation and retention in medical research, the design of future research trials involving reproductive-aged women can be improved to reflect better understanding of the factors affecting enrollment, retention and satisfaction with research. We speculate that all studies involving reproductive-aged women, and especially African-American women, should focus on improving and emphasizing individual benefits of participation. Research designed to study reproductive-aged women should include components that are purposeful to the participant, such as tests that the participant values, and should employ staff who are friendly and compassionate. If the barriers known to impede participation are lessened while factors that improve satisfaction and enrollment are enhanced, the participation and retention of women in future trials can be ensured.
- Date of publication
- May 2006
- DOI
- Resource type
- Rights statement
- In Copyright
- Note
- Paper type: Research or research design
- Track: HC&P
- Advisor
- Corbie-Smith, Giselle
- Degree
- Master of Public Health
- Degree granting institution
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- Graduation year
- 2006
- Language
- Deposit record
- 564d1737-ca9b-4211-9c3e-c1926665c3df
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