BACKGROUND
The implementation of digital technologies in clinical research represents an opportunity to facilitate the collection of health data and empower research participants. The acceptance of health technologies is usually evaluated in patients or healthcare practitioners, but not in clinical research participants.
OBJECTIVE
We aimed to evaluate clinical research participants’ equipment, usage and appeal for digital health and digital dietary assessment tools.
METHODS
A 27-item questionnaire was provided to the 11.695 members of a nutrition clinical research participant database from the Nantes area (France), to assess (1) participants’ social and demography parameters, (2) equipment and usage of health apps and devices, (3) expectations in research setting and (4) opinion about the future of clinical research. Each item was described using frequency and percentage overall and by age classes. To address observed frequencies and age-related differences, a global proportion comparison was performed using chi-square or Fisher-exact tests. Results of pairwise proportion comparisons were adjusted to account for multiple comparisons according to the Bonferroni-Holm method.
RESULTS
A total of 1529 respondents (81.0% women, 19.0% men) completed the survey, of which 95.1% reported owning a smartphone and 78.1% declared using at least one health app. Main uses of health apps included physical activity tracking (54.7%, age-related group difference, p<0.001) and food quality assessment (45.7%, unrelated to age groups). Overall, 20.4% of respondents declared owning a connected wristband or watch. Most (93.8%) participants expected the use of connected devices for research purposes. However, protection of personal data (37.5%), reliability (35.5%) and skilled use of such devices (28.5%) were perceived as the main barriers. Most participants (93.3%) would agree to track their food intake using a mobile app and 80.5% would complete it for at least a week while taking part in a clinical study. Only 13.2% would devote more than 10 minutes per meal to such record. A majority (60.4%) of respondents would accept to share their social media posts in an anonymous way and most (82.2%) of them would accept to interact with a chatbot for research purposes.
CONCLUSIONS
Our cross-sectional study suggests that clinical study participants are enthusiastic about all forms of digital health technologies and participant-centered studies but remain concerned about the use of personal data. Repeated assessments are suggested to evaluate the research participant’s interest in technologies following the increase in use and demand for innovative health services during the pandemic of COVID-19.
CLINICALTRIAL
Not applicable (not a trial)