Effects of the COVID‐19 pandemic on recruitment for the working women walking program

Abstract The global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) affected many aspects of randomized controlled trials, including recruiting and screening participants. The purpose of this paper is to (a) describe adjustments to recruitment and screening due to COVID‐19, (b) compare the proportional recruitment outcomes (not completed, ineligible, and eligible) at three screening stages (telephone, health assessment, and physical activity assessment) pre‐ and post‐COVID‐19 onset, and (c) compare baseline demographic characteristics pre‐ and post‐COVID‐19 onset in the Working Women Walking program. The design is a cross‐sectional descriptive analysis of recruitment and screening data from a 52‐week sequential multiple assignment randomized trial (SMART). Participants were women 18–70 years employed at a large urban medical center. Recruitment strategies shifted from in‐person and electronic to electronic only post‐COVID‐19 onset. In‐person eligibility screening for health and physical activity assessments continued post‐COVID‐19 onset with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention precautions. Of those who expressed interest in the study pre‐ and post‐COVID‐19 onset (n = 485 & n = 269 respectively), 40% (n = 194) met all eligibility criteria pre‐COVID‐19 onset, and 45.7% (n = 123) post‐COVID‐19 onset. Although there were differences in the proportions of participants who completed or were eligible for some of the screening stages, the final eligibility rates did not differ significantly pre‐COVID‐19 versus post‐COVID‐19 onset. Examination of differences in participant demographics between pre‐ and post‐COVID‐19 onset revealed a significant decrease in the percentage of Black women recruited into the study from pre‐ to post‐COVID‐19 onset. Studies recruiting participants into physical activity studies should explore the impact of historical factors on recruitment.