Digital patient portal interface transforming into a clinical trial recruitment landscape.

Unlock the Power of Digital Health: How Electronic Records are Revolutionizing Patient Recruitment

Mira Elwood in Health & Wellness August 2025 • 4 min read.

"Discover how electronic health records and patient portals are transforming clinical trials, improving efficiency, and reaching diverse populations."

In today's rapidly evolving healthcare landscape, electronic health records (EHRs) are emerging as a powerful tool for transforming clinical research. Pragmatic clinical trials, which aim to evaluate the effectiveness of interventions in real-world settings, are increasingly leveraging EHRs to streamline patient recruitment, improve efficiency, and reach more diverse populations. This article explores how EHRs and patient portals are revolutionizing the way we approach clinical trials, offering a glimpse into the future of digital health.

Traditionally, patient recruitment for clinical trials has been a time-consuming and resource-intensive process, often relying on manual methods like in-clinic recruitment, letters, and phone calls. However, these approaches can be limited in their reach, leading to skewed demographics and slower enrollment rates. With the widespread adoption of EHRs, researchers now have access to a wealth of patient data that can be used to identify potential study participants more efficiently.

This article delves into a case study that highlights the successes and lessons learned from using EHRs and patient portals to recruit participants for ADAPTABLE (Aspirin Dosing: A Patient-centric Trial Assessing Benefits and Long-Term Effectiveness), a large-scale pragmatic trial. By examining the strategies employed, the challenges encountered, and the outcomes achieved, we can gain valuable insights into how digital health can be harnessed to improve clinical research and patient outcomes.

The Rise of EHR-Driven Recruitment: Efficiency and Inclusivity

Digital patient portal interface transforming into a clinical trial recruitment landscape.

Electronic health records (EHRs) offer a treasure trove of patient data, making it easier to identify individuals who meet specific study criteria. This targeted approach saves time and resources compared to traditional recruitment methods. EHR-driven recruitment has the potential to reach a wider and more diverse patient population, ensuring that clinical trials are more representative of the real-world population.

The ADAPTABLE study utilized four primary recruitment methods, two of which comprised an EHR-driven electronic recruitment workflow:

In-Clinic Recruitment: Research coordinators approached patients during their clinic visits.
Letters: Traditional recruitment letters were sent via U.S. mail.
Direct Email: Patients without My UNC Chart accounts but with known email addresses received email invitations.
Patient Portal Messages: Patients with active My UNC Chart accounts received messages directly through the portal.

The study's results highlighted the effectiveness of electronic recruitment, with 87.8% of UNC enrollees (509 out of 580) recruited via electronic methods. The electronic recruitment workflow sent messages to 12,254 recipients, resulting in 13.5% visiting the study website and 4.2% enrolling. Letters were sent to 427 recipients; 5.6% visited the study website, and 3.3% enrolled. Coordinators recruited 339 participants in clinic; 23.6% visited the study website, and 16.8% enrolled.

The Future of Recruitment: Leveraging the Digital Age

As EHRs and patient portals continue to evolve, their potential for transforming clinical research is immense. By embracing digital tools and strategies, we can create more efficient, inclusive, and impactful clinical trials that ultimately improve patient care. Electronic recruitment for ADAPTABLE proved successful, incorporating the workflow particularly into a pragmatic trial.

About this Article -

This article was crafted using a human-AI hybrid and collaborative approach. AI assisted our team with initial drafting, research insights, identifying key questions, and image generation. Our human editors guided topic selection, defined the angle, structured the content, ensured factual accuracy and relevance, refined the tone, and conducted thorough editing to deliver helpful, high-quality information.See our About page for more information.

This article is based on research published under:

DOI-LINK: 10.1093/jamia/ocy138, Alternate LINK

Title: Recruiting For A Pragmatic Trial Using The Electronic Health Record And Patient Portal: Successes And Lessons Learned

Subject: Health Informatics

Journal: Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association

Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)

Authors: Emily Pfaff, Adam Lee, Robert Bradford, Jinhee Pae, Clarence Potter, Paul Blue, Patricia Knoepp, Kristie Thompson, Christianne L Roumie, David Crenshaw, Remy Servis, Darren A Dewalt

Published: 2018-11-16

Everything You Need To Know

How are Electronic Health Records (EHRs) changing patient recruitment in clinical trials?

Electronic Health Records (EHRs) are revolutionizing patient recruitment by providing researchers with a wealth of patient data. This allows for a targeted approach to identify potential study participants more efficiently. Instead of relying on time-consuming and resource-intensive methods like in-clinic recruitment and letters, EHRs enable researchers to reach a wider and more diverse patient population, leading to more representative clinical trials. This shift towards EHR-driven recruitment is a key aspect of the evolution of digital health in clinical research, as demonstrated by studies like ADAPTABLE.

What are the primary methods used for patient recruitment in the ADAPTABLE study, and how successful were they?

The ADAPTABLE study employed four primary recruitment methods: In-Clinic Recruitment, Letters, Direct Email, and Patient Portal Messages. The study's results highlighted the effectiveness of electronic recruitment. The electronic recruitment workflow, utilizing Patient Portal Messages and Direct Email, proved highly successful, with a significant percentage of participants enrolled through these digital channels. Letters had a lower conversion rate compared to electronic methods and In-Clinic Recruitment. These findings emphasize the efficiency and reach of EHR-driven methods in pragmatic clinical trials.

What are the benefits of using Patient Portals and EHRs in clinical trials, and why is it important?

Patient Portals and Electronic Health Records (EHRs) offer numerous benefits in clinical trials. EHRs allow for efficient identification of potential study participants based on specific criteria, saving time and resources. Patient Portals, such as My UNC Chart in the ADAPTABLE study, provide a direct communication channel to reach and engage patients. The use of digital tools leads to more inclusive trials by reaching a wider and more diverse patient population. This ensures that clinical trials are more representative of the real-world population, which is crucial for generalizability and improving patient care. By embracing these digital tools, clinical trials can become more efficient, inclusive, and impactful.

What is the role of pragmatic clinical trials in leveraging Electronic Health Records (EHRs) and Patient Portals?

Pragmatic clinical trials are particularly well-suited to leverage Electronic Health Records (EHRs) and Patient Portals because they aim to evaluate interventions in real-world settings. EHRs provide access to real-world patient data, allowing researchers to identify and recruit participants who reflect the diversity of the general population. Patient Portals, like My UNC Chart, offer a direct communication channel to engage patients, share information, and facilitate participation. The ADAPTABLE study serves as a prime example of how pragmatic trials can utilize EHRs and Patient Portals to streamline recruitment, overcome traditional barriers, and generate real-world evidence to improve patient outcomes.

How does the use of electronic recruitment methods, such as those used in the ADAPTABLE study, contribute to the future of digital health?

The success of electronic recruitment methods, exemplified by the ADAPTABLE study, significantly shapes the future of digital health in clinical research. By demonstrating the effectiveness of leveraging Electronic Health Records (EHRs) and Patient Portals, the study underscores the potential for more efficient, inclusive, and impactful clinical trials. As EHRs and Patient Portals continue to evolve, their integration into clinical research will become even more seamless. This evolution promises to streamline recruitment processes, improve patient engagement, and ultimately lead to better patient care and outcomes. The future of digital health hinges on embracing digital tools and strategies to transform the way clinical trials are conducted.