Consent2Share program
Through the Consent2Share Program UF Health patients are asked, at the point-of-care, whether they are willing to be contacted about future research studies in which they may be eligible to participate. To date, Consent2Share has enrolled over 66,000 patients.
Recruitment Support: Identifying patient study participants
Identifying potential research subjects is a key part of a successful research enterprise. We are the link to help our clients reach as many eligible participants as possible. The IDR team uses our Consent2Share program and our patient lists to support recruitment for clinical studies, connecting research teams to patients meeting unique study criteria.
In several UF Health Physicians outpatient clinical practices, patients are asked to participate in the Consent2Share patient recruitment program.
Consent2Share asks patients at the point of care whether they would be willing to be re-contacted in the future about participating in research studies. To date, over 65,000 UF Health patients have agreed to participate. Because of this, the IDR team can provide researchers with contact info for patients who meet their unique study criteria, and researchers can independently recruit patients via mail, phone, and email. In addition, the IDR team can provide regular patient lists to researchers looking to recruit patients in outpatient practices in coordination with the patients’ care teams. The IDR team has processes for securely sharing lists of eligible patients, such as those scheduled for an upcoming physician visit or those recently discharged. In some cases, these lists are deliverable on a daily basis. New sites for recruitment continue to be added to the program.
When patients agree to participate in the program, they are consenting to:
- A periodic review of their medical information to determine if they might qualify for a future research study. If they do, then,
- They agree to be contacted sometime in the future to be asked if they are interested in participating in a UF Health research study. However, when they are contacted at a future date, the patient can decide whether they wish to participate.
Get Help Recruiting Participants
Many research teams have struggled to meet enrollment targets, which can strain budgets, lengthen timelines, and weaken the scientific impact.
With IRB approval, the IDR team can securely provide research teams with names and contact information of UF Health patients who have agreed to be contacted about future research studies. Through this process, study teams, including teams not involved in the patients’ care, can contact patients directly via mail, e-mail, or phone, screen them for study eligibility, and consent them for study participation. Moreover, study teams can use the UF Health i2b2 tool to identify patients who are likely to meet study eligibility criteria and have agreed to be contacted.
Beyond Consent2Share, the IDR team may partner with research teams looking for data to support more efficient research recruitment at the point of care. For example, the IDR team can provide regular patient lists to researchers recruiting patients in outpatient practices in coordination with the patients’ care teams. The IDR team has processes for securely sharing lists of eligible patients, such as those scheduled for an upcoming physician visit or those recently discharged.
To learn more, connect with an IDR team member by emailing IRBDataRequest@ahc.ufl.edu or completing the IDR Request Form.