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Purpose

This project aims to evaluate different approaches to increase COVID-19 vaccine uptake among at-risk patients at Penn Medicine in an equitable and systematic manner through a centralized outreach program. The investigators will evaluate different text-based scheduling and messaging approaches informed by behavioral science to increase uptake among eligible patients, including the use of clinician endorsement, opt-out framing, and scarcity.

Condition

Eligibility

Eligible Ages
Over 16 Years
Eligible Sex
All
Accepts Healthy Volunteers
No

Inclusion Criteria

  • patients of Penn Medicine aged 18+ who reside in Philadelphia and who have had at least 1 visit in the past 5 years with a Penn Medicine primary care provider (PCP)

Exclusion Criteria

  • Patients who have completed any dose of the vaccine at Penn Medicine, are currently scheduled to receive the vaccine, have externally documented vaccination records, or have previously received text-message based vaccine outreach.

Study Design

Phase
N/A
Study Type
Interventional
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention Model
Factorial Assignment
Primary Purpose
Health Services Research
Masking
Double (Participant, Investigator)

Arm Groups

ArmDescriptionAssigned Intervention
Active Comparator
1: Usual Care 		Patients will receive a phone call to schedule their appointment from an Access Center representative. Access Center representatives will make up to 3 attempts to schedule an appointment with the patient. Patients randomized to this arm will not receive any text messaging.
  • Behavioral: Phone Call
    The access center will call these patients to schedule their vaccine appointment. These patients will not receive text messaging.
Experimental
2A: Call Back + Standard Msg 		The message describes that the patient is eligible for the COVID vaccine. Will include a prompt to agree to scheduling. The access center will call these patients back to schedule, calling up to 3 times.
  • Behavioral: Opt-In (Call-Back)
    Messaging will include a prompt to agree to scheduling. If patient agrees, the access center will call these patients back to schedule, calling up to 3 times.
  • Behavioral: Standard Message
    The message describes that the patient is eligible for the COVID vaccine.
Experimental
2B: Call Back + Clinician Endorsement 		The message will describe an endorsement from the provider to get the vaccination. Will include a prompt to agree to scheduling. The access center will call these patients back to schedule, calling up to 3 times.
  • Behavioral: Opt-In (Call-Back)
    Messaging will include a prompt to agree to scheduling. If patient agrees, the access center will call these patients back to schedule, calling up to 3 times.
  • Behavioral: Clinician Endorsement
    The message will describe an endorsement from the provider to get the vaccination.
Experimental
2C: Call Back + Scarcity 		The message will highlight the limited availability and the elevated priority for the patient to receive the vaccine at Penn Medicine. Will include a prompt to agree to scheduling. The access center will call these patients back to schedule, calling up to 3 times.
  • Behavioral: Opt-In (Call-Back)
    Messaging will include a prompt to agree to scheduling. If patient agrees, the access center will call these patients back to schedule, calling up to 3 times.
  • Behavioral: Scarcity
    The message will highlight the limited availability and the elevated priority for the patient to receive the vaccine at Penn Medicine.
Experimental
2D: Call Back + Opt-Out Framing 		The message will highlight that a vaccine is reserved for the patient, implying that they need to opt-outWill include a prompt to agree to scheduling. The access center will call these patients back to schedule, calling up to 3 times.
  • Behavioral: Opt-In (Call-Back)
    Messaging will include a prompt to agree to scheduling. If patient agrees, the access center will call these patients back to schedule, calling up to 3 times.
  • Behavioral: Opt-Out Framing
    This will highlight that a vaccine is reserved for the patient, implying that they need to opt-out.
Experimental
3A: In-Bound Call + Standard Msg 		The message describes that the patient is eligible for the COVID vaccine. Will include a prompt to agree to scheduling, which will be followed by a prompt to call the Penn Medicine Vaccine Scheduling Hotline to schedule their vaccine appointment.
  • Behavioral: Opt-in (In-Bound)
    Messaging will include a prompt to agree to scheduling followed by a prompt to call the Penn Medicine Vaccine Scheduling Hotline to schedule their vaccine appointment.
  • Behavioral: Standard Message
    The message describes that the patient is eligible for the COVID vaccine.
Experimental
3B: In-Bound Call + Clinician Endorsement 		The message will describe an endorsement from the provider to get the vaccination. Will include a prompt to agree to scheduling, which will be followed by a prompt to call the Penn Medicine Vaccine Scheduling Hotline to schedule their vaccine appointment.
  • Behavioral: Opt-in (In-Bound)
    Messaging will include a prompt to agree to scheduling followed by a prompt to call the Penn Medicine Vaccine Scheduling Hotline to schedule their vaccine appointment.
  • Behavioral: Clinician Endorsement
    The message will describe an endorsement from the provider to get the vaccination.
Experimental
3C: In-Bound Call + Scarcity 		The message will highlight the limited availability and the elevated priority for the patient to receive the vaccine at Penn Medicine. Will include a prompt to agree to scheduling, which will be followed by a prompt to call the Penn Medicine Vaccine Scheduling Hotline to schedule their vaccine appointment.
  • Behavioral: Opt-in (In-Bound)
    Messaging will include a prompt to agree to scheduling followed by a prompt to call the Penn Medicine Vaccine Scheduling Hotline to schedule their vaccine appointment.
  • Behavioral: Scarcity
    The message will highlight the limited availability and the elevated priority for the patient to receive the vaccine at Penn Medicine.
Experimental
3D: In-Bound Call + Opt-Out Framing 		The message will highlight that a vaccine is reserved for the patient, implying that they need to opt-out. Will include a prompt to agree to scheduling, which will be followed by a prompt to call the Penn Medicine Vaccine Scheduling Hotline to schedule their vaccine appointment.
  • Behavioral: Opt-in (In-Bound)
    Messaging will include a prompt to agree to scheduling followed by a prompt to call the Penn Medicine Vaccine Scheduling Hotline to schedule their vaccine appointment.
  • Behavioral: Opt-Out Framing
    This will highlight that a vaccine is reserved for the patient, implying that they need to opt-out.

Recruiting Locations

More Details

NCT ID
NCT04834726
Status
Completed
Sponsor
University of Pennsylvania

Detailed Description

This project will evaluate a centralized approach to increasing COVID through direct outreach to eligible patients via text messaging. This pragmatic randomized controlled trial has the following aims: Aim 1: To conduct systematic large scale text message outreach for vaccine delivery among a defined group of Penn Medicine in a way that advances equity. Aim 2: To offer different scheduling workflows through text messaging that might increase uptake and reduce disparities. Aim 3: To compare the equity and efficiency of different messages informed by behavioral science, including PCP endorsement, opt-out framing, and scarcity.

Notice

Study information shown on this site is derived from ClinicalTrials.gov (a public registry operated by the National Institutes of Health). The listing of studies provided is not certain to be all studies for which you might be eligible. Furthermore, study eligibility requirements can be difficult to understand and may change over time, so it is wise to speak with your medical care provider and individual research study teams when making decisions related to participation.