Recruiting volunteers into clinical research remains a significant challenge for many clinical research study teams, thus the Michigan Institute for Clinical and Health Research (MICHR) at the University of Michigan developed UMClinicalStudies (www.UMClinicalStudies.org) - a web application that links the community to a single gateway for clinical research. UMClinicalStudies (formerly named “Engage”) is an integral piece of MICHR's efforts to increase clinical research participation in order to advance medical discoveries. Despite the initial success of the application, barriers to research participation remain, including the applications accessibility for potential research volunteers and study team members. In response, new initiatives were instigated to identify user needs, in order to broaden the ability to simultaneously assist researchers in recruitment activities, while also aiding potential volunteers in the exploration of and participation in clinical research opportunities. To do this, improvements to the interface and functionality were identified and implemented for both the public and the research audiences through extensive system analysis, and through the application of human computer interactivity processes, resulting in significant improvements in usability and ultimately research volunteerism, indicating that utilizing such technology is pivotal in reaching broader audiences for clinical trial participation.

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BACKGROUND:The global population of older cancer survivors is growing. However, the intersections of aging-related health risks across the cancer control continuum are poorly understood, limiting the integration of aging into cancer control research and practice. The objective of this study was to review the state of science and provide future directions to improve the quality of evidence in 6 priority research areas in cancer and aging. METHODS: The authors identified priority research areas in cancer and aging through an evidencebased Research Jam process involving 32 investigators and trainees from multiple disciplines and research centers in aging and cancer; then, they conducted a narrative review of the state of the science and future directions to improve the quality of evidence in these research areas. Priority research areas were defined as those in which gaps in scientific evidence or clinical practice limit the health and well-being of older adults with cancer. RESULTS: Six priority research areas were identified: cognitive and physical functional outcomes of older cancer survivors, sampling issues in studies of older cancer survivors, risk and resilience across the lifespan, caregiver support and well-being, quality of care for older patients with cancer, and health disparities. Evidence in these areas could be improved through the incorporation of bias reduction techniques into longitudinal studies of older cancer survivors, novel data linkage, and improved representation of older adults in cancer research. CONCLUSIONS: The priority research areas and methodologies identified here may be used to guide interdisciplinary research and improve the quality of evidence on cancer and aging.

IntroductionSpace matters. We read space like we read people’s faces. Space is an instrument of collaboration and innovation. At the University of Michigan’s Institute for Clinical and Health Research (MICHR), a team was created to creatively and economically enhance our operating space into a flexible workspace that supports privacy, innovation, creativity, and most important, a culture of collaboration.MethodsThe team used a human-centered design process to creatively engage the staff at large into analyzing our existing space, identifying latent needs, proposing solutions, generating feedback, and economically building the rethought process.ResultsThe redesigned workspace embraces the differences among MICHR’s teams while encouraging collaboration and teamwork and keeping costs at a minimum. It has resulted in a flexible space that includes co-located teams, spaces dedicated to different work goals, an open area for collaboration, quiet zones for focused work, and better wayfinding.ConclusionsThrough our Rethink Space project, we hope to have demonstrated that, by initiating the project internally and by engaging the users of the space themselves in an empathetic, visual, and human-centered way, a space redesign can be undertaken economically while also leading to improved levels of employee and team satisfaction.

IntroductionUMHealthResearch is the University of Michigan’s digital health research recruitment platform. It allows health researchers to connect efficiently with potentially eligible volunteers.MethodsIn 2013, the UMHealthResearch team strategically adapted a consumer behavior model, the buying funnel, to create the Digital Health Research Participation Funnel. The Digital Health Research Participation Funnel was then used to design a more active way for potential participants to volunteer for research studies through UMHealthResearch.ResultsIn the 5 years before the redesign (2007–2012), an average of 1844 new accounts were created every year, whereas in the completed years after the redesign (2013–2016) the annual average improved to 3906, an increase of 111%.ConclusionAlthough a randomized design was not possible in this instance, these preintervention and postintervention data suggest that the focus on user experience is an effective strategy for improving web-based research recruitment platforms.