Journal of Clinical and Translational Science (Apr 2024)
527 Best Practices for Conducting Exit Interviews for Clinical Research Staff at Academic Medical Centers
Abstract
OBJECTIVES/GOALS: Identify causes for clinical research professional turnover Define data collection methods for exit interviews Provide institutions with resources to collect and analyze exit interviews Employ strategies to maximize the impact of exit interviews on retention METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: The Clinical Research Professional Taskforce (CRPT) exit interview Subgroup has met monthly since January 2023. Action items were agreed to and minutes were kept and reviewed at subsequent virtual working meetings. All members were given opportunity to speak and contribute. After a landscape analysis, conducted via survey, five institutions agreed to provide examples of their exit interview questions. Members spoke at length about goals, methods, collection techniques, institutional involvement, lessons learned and practical applications that could become best practices. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: The Subgroup aggregated all questions into categories and developed sample questions incorporating all data without using any word for word. In order to allow for quantitative assessment and standardized reporting the Subgroup formulated questions to be responded to utilizing a Likert scale with free text fields for select questions where further information is needed. The Subgroup developed best practices describing decision-making metrics, understanding reasons for turnover and reporting data back to leadership. Practical aspects such as method and time of survey collection, anonymity, and training staff are also included. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE: We are hopeful that sample questions and best practices will be helpful and widely utilized. Understanding the causes and impacts of CRP turnover are critical to meeting the current needs of clinical research. Further work is being done to calculate the cost of turnover to make the business case.