Retaining Hispanics: Lessons from the Hispanic Community Health Study / Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL).

This study aimed to examine the retention of Hispanic/Latinos participating in the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL), a prospective cohort study of 16,415 adults living in four US cities between 2008-2011. We summarized retention strategies and examined contact, response, and participation rates over five years of annual follow-up interviews. We then evaluated motivations for participation and satisfaction with retention efforts among participants who completed a second in-person interview approximately 6.5 years after their baseline interview. Finally, we estimated logistic regressions on associations of demographic, health, and interview characteristics at visit-1 with participation, high motivation, and high satisfaction at visit-2. Across 5 years, the HCHS/SOL maintained contact, response, and participation rates over 80%. The most difficult Hispanic/Latino populations to retain included young, single, US-born males with less than a high school education. At visit-2, we found high rates of motivation and satisfaction. HCHS/SOL participants primarily sought to help their community and learn more about their health. High rates of retention of Hispanics/Latinos can be facilitated through the employment of bilingual/bicultural staff and the development of culturally-tailored retention materials. PMID: 31971236 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Source: Am J Epidemiol - Category: Epidemiology Authors: Tags: Am J Epidemiol Source Type: research