Consumer Focus Group Materials

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Open Payments Healthcare Consumer FG Recruitment Guide
Form Approved
OMB No. XX 
Exp. Date X/X/202X
Open Payments 
Recruitment Guide



Recruitment Overview


18-23 
(“Out of HS”)
24-40 
(“Childbearing”)
41-64 
(“Adults”)
65+ 
(“Older Adults”)
Any age
Not actively seeking new provider

1 HS, some college< group

2 College grad+ group
1 HS, some college< group 

2 College grad+ groups

1 HS, some college< group
1 College grad+ group

Seeking new provider
1 HS, some college< group 

2 College grad+ groups

1 HS, some college< group

2 College grad+ group
1 College grad+ group
1 HS, some college< group

Caregivers



1 HS, some college< group

3 College grad+ groups

    • Participants should be recruited for 1 of 20 focus groups.
    • A total of 8 participants should be recruited for each group to account for attrition (goal: 6 attending). 
    • Our major segments are people: 
    • Not actively seeking new provider
    • Seeking new provider
    • Caregivers: central to health care decisions for a child or another adult, such as helping find doctors, attending appointments, helping decide on course of treatment
    • Ages: 18-23 (“out of high school”); 24-40 (“childbearing”); 41-64 (“adults”); 65+ (“older adults”)
    • Education: High school, some college, or less; College graduate or more
    • All participants must:
    • Be able to join a Zoom meeting online 
    • Not work as a health care provider or have an immediate family member who works as a health care provider
    • Never have worked for a pharmaceutical, medical device, or group purchasing organization
    • Be at least somewhat likely to use the Internet to learn more about a health care provider 
    • Be willing to speak in a small group
    • Groups should include a mix of participants who are of different:
    • Genders
    • Race/ethnicities
    • Self-reported urbanicity of community (urban, suburban, rural)
    • Geographic regions
    • Caregivers: parents and other types of caregivers
    • Only one participant per household can be included in the study.
___________________________________________________________________________

Recruitment Script/Questions

Hello, we are holding interviews on behalf of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services or CMS to gather information that will help CMS improve one of its programs. You don’t have to use Medicare or Medicaid or currently deal with CMS in any way to join. The groups will take place over Zoom and will last about an hour and a half. Everything will be kept confidential and anonymous. It’s a great opportunity to share your thoughts and help improve our federal health programs. We are offering $100 to say “thank you” for participating in the discussion. May I ask you a few questions to see if you are eligible to join one of the focus groups? This will take less than 5 minutes. [IF RESPONDENT INDICATES THAT THIS IS NOT A GOOD TIME, SCHEDULE A CALL BACK TIME.] 

Core Eligibility Questions
    1. Can you join a group online on Zoom? This requires having access to a computer or tablet with high-speed internet.
[Recruiter: If candidate is not familiar with Zoom, you can use this description: Zoom is a way to join a video discussion. All you have to do is click on a link that we will email to you. You will have to have speakers and a camera on the computer or tablet you use.]
    • Yes
    • No [End: Thank you for your time. We are only able to recruit people who can join a Zoom call.]

    2. Is anyone else in your household already participating in this study?
    • Yes [End after question 5 (age): Unfortunately, you don’t qualify for the study. We appreciate your time. Have a good day.]
    • No 
    • Don’t know [End after question 5 (age): Unfortunately, you don’t qualify for the study. We appreciate your time. Have a good day.]

    3. Do you or an immediate family member work as a health care provider? Immediate family members include a spouse, partner or significant other, mother, father, sister, or brother.
    • Yes [End after question 5 (age): Unfortunately, you don’t qualify for the study. We appreciate your time. Have a good day.]
        ◦ No 

    4. Have you ever worked for a pharmaceutical company, medical device manufacturer, or group purchasing organization? 
        ◦ Yes [End after question 5 (age): Unfortunately, you don’t qualify for the study. We appreciate your time. Have a good day.]
        ◦ No 

    5. In which of the following categories does your age fall? [READ]
        ◦ Under 18 years of age [End: Thank you for your time. We are only able to recruit people who are 18 or older.]
        ◦ 18-23 years of age
        ◦ 24-40 years of age
        ◦ 41-64 years of age
        ◦ 65+ years of age

    6. Some of the focus groups will be with people who are considered caregivers. Are you central to health care decisions for another adult or a child, such as helping find doctors, attending appointments, and helping decide on the course of treatment?
    • Yes [Caregiver]. What is your relationship with that person? ______________________ [Recruit a mix of parents and other types of caregivers.]
    • No [Other groups]

    7. Are you considering going to a new health care provider you have never seen before within the next 6 months, or are you in search of one for a person you are caring for? [READ]
    • Yes [Seeking new provider]
    • No [Not actively seeking new provider]
    • Maybe [For data collection only, group with “Yes,” Seeking new provider]


    8. How likely are you to use the internet to check out a health care provider? By “check out” I mean things like reading descriptions or reviews about the provider or looking at their medical education or background. 
    • Not likely [End after question 10 (comfort): Unfortunately, you don’t qualify for the study. We appreciate your time. Have a good day.] 
    • Somewhat likely
    • Very likely

    9. What is the highest level of education you have completed? The options are “high school or less,” “some college,” “college degree,” or “graduate degree.”
    • High school or less
    • Some college [For data collection, group with “HS, some college<”]
    • College degree 
    • Graduate degree [For data collection, group with “College grad+.”]

    10. On a scale of 1 to 6 where “1” is “Not Willing” and “6” is “Completely Willing,” how willing are you to express your opinion on a call with 4 or 5 other people who you don’t know?

NOT WILLING				COMPLETELY WILLING

1               2               3               4               5               6

MUST ANSWER 4, 5, OR 6
[End if answer 1, 2, OR 3: Thank you, but at this time we can only invite individuals who are very willing to express their opinions in a group.]


Questions to Achieve Mix of Characteristics 
[Use the following series of questions to recruit a mix of important characteristics. No hard quotas. For caregivers, also see Q6 to recruit mix of parents and other caregivers.]

    11. How would you describe your gender? 
    • Male 
    • Female
    • Other

    12. Which of the following categories best describes your race or ethnic background? Do you consider yourself? [READ]
[Ethnicity]
    • Hispanic or Latino
    • Not Hispanic or Latino
    • Don’t Know/Not Sure [DO NOT READ]
    • Refused [DO NOT READ]

[Race]
    • White/Caucasian
    • Black or African-American
    • American Indian or Alaska Native
    • Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
    • Asian
    • Some other race: ___________________
    • Don’t Know/Not Sure [DO NOT READ]
    • Refused [DO NOT READ]

    13.  Which of the following best describes the area where you live? [Read]
    • Urban
    • Suburban
    • Rural

Scheduling

    14. Could you participate in a 90-minute group on [exact date/time or a range—see chart]?
    • Yes
    • No [End: Thank you, you do qualify, so if your schedule clears up, please let me know.]

Group
Date/Time or Range
1: 
Not actively seeking
18-23
HS, some college<
EXAMPLE: 
Monday, March 15, 2022	
8:00-9:30pm EST
7:00-8:30pm CST
6:00-7:30pm MST
5:00-6:30pm PST
2: 
Not actively seeking
18-23
College grad+




3:
Not actively seeking
18-23
College grad+




4: 
Not actively seeking
24-40 
HS, some college< 





5: 
Not actively seeking
24-40 
College grad+



6: 
Not actively seeking
24-40 
College grad+



7: 
Not actively seeking
41-64 
HS, some college<



8: 
Not actively seeking
65+
College grad+



9: 
Seeking
18-23
HS, some college< 



10: 
Seeking
18-23
College grad+



11:
Seeking
18-23
College grad+


12:
Seeking
24-40 
HS, some college<


13:
Seeking
24-40 
College grad+



14:
Seeking
24-40 
College grad+


15:
Seeking
41-64 
College grad+


16:
Seeking
65+
HS, some college<


17:
Caregiver
HS, some college<


18:
Caregiver
College grad+


19:
Caregiver
College grad+


20:
Caregiver
College grad+



Contact Information
    15. What is your email address so we can send your invitation to the group with the Zoom link?

Email address: __________________________________________


    16. What is the best telephone number to reach you?

	Telephone #: ___________________________


Thanks for agreeing to participate! Please mark your calendar for [date/time]. We will send you an email with the Zoom link and a consent form to sign in advance. Just as a reminder, you will have to join from a computer or tablet with Internet access in quiet place where you can participate for an hour and a half. The screen on a smartphone won’t be big enough. When you go into Zoom, please enter only your first name so that is what appears on screen. If you cannot make the call for some reason, please contact me as soon as possible. My number is XX. Thanks again. We appreciate your input.