Engaging and retaining youth SSI recipients in a research demonstration program: Maryland PROMISE

BACKGROUND: Unbiased estimates of treatment effectiveness in longitudinal randomized clinical trials require meeting many design criteria, especially ensuring full exposure to intervention services. However, engaging participants into interventions, and retaining them at high rates, can be thwarted by everyday challenges faced by disadvantaged populations. We are unaware of studies evaluating effective strategies for engaging and retaining transition-age youth with disabilities in clinical trials of community-based transition programs. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this paper is to describe and qualitatively assess the effectiveness of strategies used by Maryland PROMISE staff for reengaging youth, who have disengaged from services, and are at high risk of study dropout. METHODS: Data collected from the project’s management information system, and from interviews with staff assigned solely to reengaging participants, was analyzed to describe effective strategies for reengaging youth in program services. RESULTS: Staff successful at reengaging hard-to-serve youth into program services are persistent, flexible, and trustworthy. They increased the overall engagement rate from about 50 to 80 percent by study endpoint. CONCLUSION: An intensive and proactive focus on engagement improves retention rates of youth participating in field-based randomized controlled trials of intervention programs. We suggest investigators conducting similar trials for hard-to-serve populations develop plans and allocating resources for engaging youth in program services.