Recruitment of African Americans With Type 2 Diabetes Who Care For Persons With Dementia: Lessons Learned.

Abstract

Historical notes of the Tuskeegee experiments and other facts of Black exploitation are well known to dissuade African Americans from participating in research studies. Being an African American researcher and utilizing the Black church for data collection were thought to be advantages that would ensure access to a willing and adequate sample to address clinically relevant research questions of what is the impact of caregiving on diabetes selfmanagement in older African American women? Lessons learned provide evidence and recommendations for new strategies in recruitment of older African American caregivers of persons with dementia (PWD). The purpose of this editorial is to describe recruitment challenges and revelations of possible deterrents to otherwise willing participants, during a study of older African American women self-managing their diabetes, while caring for a family member with dementia. We do not know how many African American caregivers of PWD exist across the nation. Why is this important? African Americans are twice as likely to acquire Alzheimer’s disease due to genetics and prevalence of comorbid conditions such as hypertension and diabetes (Alzheimer’s Association, 2015). The hypertension causes the circulation in the brain to be diminished, and this leads to plaques and tangles in the brain (Plassman,