What makes it hard to recruit GPs and patients to mental health & addiction trials in primary care?

What is it about?

Recruiting general practices and patients to cluster randomised trials in primary care settings is notoriously difficult, particularly when the focus is on mental health or substance use disorders. This conference abstract draws on the research team's direct experience recruiting for the PINTA trials in Ireland to describe the practical and methodological challenges encountered. Challenges covered include clarity of instruction to participating practices, the characteristics of patients in this setting, the influence of the patient-doctor relationship on recruitment, the effects of the intervention and study procedures on patients and clinic workflow, and what personal and professional benefits motivate GPs to participate. The abstract also considers how lessons from these recruitment experiences might inform peer learning and peer support among primary care researchers, and how they can be applied to improve recruitment into future trials in this area.

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Why is it important?

Poor recruitment is one of the most common reasons clinical trials fail to deliver on their scientific objectives, and primary care trials targeting mental health and substance use disorders face particular challenges because of the stigma associated with these conditions, the complexity of the patient population and the demands placed on GP time. Sharing recruitment experience transparently, including where things went wrong, contributes to a culture of methodological learning that benefits the broader field.