Today in lab I called for the DCF. We haven't had a calling list for the DCF that is this large yet, so I'm still working my way through it! I made about 42 calls and was able to schedule 4 participants. Aside from those 4, there were about 4 other parents that were really interested but either didn't have their schedule with them or wanted to discuss it with their spouse, so hopefully they'll call back and schedule too (otherwise I'll call them in a week or so and pester some more!)
Calling can be boring, but I really enjoy talking to the families. Some people are in a busy period in their lives, which is understandable. The one thing I don't really understand is why people sign up for something like IPP and then get really upset when we call. I've only had one parent ever yell at me - THAT was interesting - but a lot of them expect a lot more compensation. I realize that research outside of university settings often pays well, but a lot of that research is skin care products/medicine/etc... I'm not sure who would want to test those products on their children anyway! Regardless, a lot of the parents are really interested and willing to
help contribute to the ongoing research, which I think is so great. Talking with them makes me more excited to start testing in the next couple weeks and actually become part of the process.
