Social Media Increasing Patient Recruitment?

Is social media the holy grail to our clinical study recruitment woes? According to a recent Mayo Clinic pilot study, social media not only increased the number of volunteers in clinical trials but also obtained demographically diverse patient groups in a faster and less expensive way than traditional recruitment strategies. This particular pilot study was started by Sharonne Hayes, M.D., who wanted to research survivors of spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD). One survivor inspired the study by approaching Dr. Hayes about new information related to SCAD. Dr. Hayes worked with this individual to access potential participants through an online support community called WomenHeart: The National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease. The study showed that 18 participants signed up in less than one week which was 6 more than needed. However, some doubt that social media was the reason for the favorable results; pointing to a “perfect storm” that allowed the social media to be successful. The perfect storm is considered a mix of these six factors: research focusing on a rare disease, a concentrated and organized patient population, patient-initiated research and ownership for success, favorable demographics for patient recruitment via social media, widespread positive brand awareness, and lack of geographic constraints. To read more about the Mayo Clinic pilot study, click here. To read more about the argument against the study, click here. While this one study is intriguing, more research is clearly needed to help establish the best use of and useful best practices for all parties involved in recruitment – the site, sponsor, and recruitment specialists.