A Blueprint for High Survey Compliance
Overview
Leveraging the DataBiologics platform, Comprehensive Arthritis Management (Toronto, Canada) has prioritized the collection of Patient Reported Outcomes (PROs) in their clinical practice. Led by Dr. K Wayne Marshall, MD, PhD a renowned orthopedic surgeon and supported by Hannah Nazeri, RPN, the duo have implemented a successful workflow resulting in strong patient participation and robust data collection. Hannah shares that approach outlined here which sets a strong playbook for how other practices can leverage DataBiologics and develop a workflow for optimal success.
New Patient Enrollment Workflow
1. Pre-screening for Eligibility
- Each day, Hannah reviews the list of scheduled patients and identifies those who are most appropriate for enrollment, filtering out patients who may not be good candidates due to treatment type, language barriers, or other factors.
2. In-Office Introduction to DataBiologics
- Patients are introduced to the registry in-person on the day of the procedure.
- Hannah discusses DataBiologics during a calm period (e.g., while the PRP is spinning), ensuring the patient isn’t overwhelmed.
- Enrollment includes delivering a clear value statement: contributing to important knowledge on treatment effectiveness.
“Most people understand it’s altruistic. Most people want to contribute medically. They want to contribute to research. They understand that we can’t advance without it,” Hannah shares.
3. Seamless Enrollment During Treatment Setup
- When patients agree to participate, Hannah enrolls them into the platform while the procedure is being prepped, minimizing downtime and keeping the process efficient.
- Patient enrollment is the only step completed at this time, diagnosis and treatment information is updated later on. This ensures the most quick and efficient enrollment process before the procedure.
4. Baseline Survey Support
- Once enrolled, patients are handed an iPad in-office to complete their baseline survey.
- Hannah remains available to walk through the survey with them, ensuring extra support if any questions come up.
5. Physician Reinforcement
- Dr. Marshall’s involvement is a key pillar of the clinic’s success in achieving high patient compliance with DataBiologics surveys. After patients enroll and begin completing the baseline survey, Dr. Marshall personally acknowledges their participation during the clinical encounter. This moment, though brief, is deeply impactful. By expressing appreciation and affirming the significance of their contribution, he reinforces the message of the importance in advancing orthopedic understanding and improving treatment protocols.
- Hannah notes that this physician-level validation adds a second layer of credibility. It shows patients that their input matters not just to the clinic workflow, but to the provider leading their care. This dual reinforcement (from both clinical staff and provider) builds trust and enhances the sense of purpose behind participation.
Follow-Up Survey Workflow
1. Regular Monitoring of Survey Status
- DataBiologics automated messages helps ensure compliance, but in the case of unresponsive patients, that platform also makes it simple to view survey statuses via the patients tab.
- Hannah checks the survey status field daily to stay ahead of any expiring surveys.
2. Proactive Email Reminders
- 2–3 days before a survey expires, she sends a personalized email with a friendly reminder and a brief explanation of why the data is important:
“I hope this email finds you well. I just wanted to let you know that you have a survey expiring through DataBiologics on X date. We do hope you can complete this for us so we can continue to receive good quality data that will help us in our research and future applications for these injections. Thank you and have a great week.”
3. Final Outreach
- One day before survey expiration, Hannah follows up with a personal phone call to encourage completion, resending the survey link if needed, and answer any questions the patient may have.
Key Takeaways and Best Practices
✅ Designate a Point Person: Assigning a dedicated team member who is ready and willing to oversee enrollment and follow-up ensures accountability and consistency.
✅ Involve the Provider: Having the physician support the message builds patient trust and increases participation. Patients like to know why this matters to their healthcare provider and what their contributions can lead to.
✅ Educate Patients Early: Setting expectations up front—both verbally and with an educational handout—helps patients stay engaged throughout the follow-up period.
✅ Leverage Personal Touches: Personalized emails and phone calls close to survey deadlines, while optional, are extremely effective in increasing response rates.
✅ Monitor Proactively: Using the platform's survey tracking tools allows the clinic to stay ahead of any potential lapses in survey compliance.
Impact
Through this intentional and patient-centered approach, Comprehensive Arthritis Management has set a strong example for high patient engagement and consistent survey compliance, helping contribute to the broader goal of generating meaningful, real-world data in regenerative medicine. As a result of these efforts, the clinic has a robust and complete dataset that is being used for protocol evaluation, patient conversations, and retrospective research.