Recruitment of Chinese American Elders into Dementia Research: The UCSF ADRC Experience

Purpose: To describe the results of efforts to recruit Asian Americans into longitudinal research on cognitive decline in aging. Design and Methods: Recruitment strategies include clinics for assessment of cognitive impairment at the University of California, San Francisco campus and San Francisco's Chinatown, lectures to local health care providers and community members, participation in community events, and publications in mass media. Results: Over 200 Chinese patients were evaluated in our outreach clinic. Many were primarily Chinese speaking with low levels of education. One hundred and twenty-five participants enrolled, and annual follow-up has been 88%. Among enrollees, 36% were recruited from our clinical service; 30% via word of mouth; and the rest from community lectures and events, flyers, and mass media. Participants who enrolled were relatively highly educated, tended to be interested in learning about their cognitive abilities, and were supportive of the goals of research. Implications: Despite the significant cultural and linguistic barriers, Chinese Americans can be successfully recruited into longitudinal studies of aging and cognitive impairment. Clinical services are a critical component of such an effort, and low education and other factors that may be associated with it are clear barriers to research participation.