The Carolina Data Warehouse for Health (CDW-H) at NC TraCS, UNC Health Epic Research Team, and UNC Health Patient Communications have partnered to give UNC research teams a way to recruit patients by contacting them through My UNC Chart (MyChart).

With this method, researchers can identify patients who are likely eligible based on electronic medical record data and reach out through UNC Health's secure, electronic patient portal.

There is a fee assessed for all MyChart recruitment requests. Cost depends on project complexity. CDW-H rates will apply. For current rates, visit the NC TraCS rates page. For specific questions related to rates, please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Is MyChart right for my study?

Study teams should carefully consider whether MyChart recruitment is appropriate for their study design and study population. MyChart recruitment may be a good fit if:

• You are seeking patients who can be identified via discrete data points within the electronic medical record system. (In most cases, MyChart is not a good option for recruitment of healthy volunteers.)
• You are looking to target specific patient populations to meet your enrollment goals.
• You have the funds to pay for identifying patients and for building out the necessary MyChart functionality.
• You have sufficient time to complete the required steps, including IRB, UNC Health Epic Research, and CDW regulatory approvals.

MyChart Recruitment Options

There are two options for implementing MyChart recruitment: Foundation and Message. An NC TraCS CDW analyst can walk you through each option and assist with the implementation process. Learn more about the data available in the CDW.

Here are your options in more detail:

• Foundation: Use MyChart to invite a patient to a study by chart reviewing and selecting individual patients from a provided CDW cohort loaded into Epic. When a patient is identified, details about the study appear in their MyChart alongside other studies the patient is or has been involved in. The patient indicates interest using an "I'm Interested" button; an Epic In-Basket message is then sent to users on your study team. These actions are tracked and reportable via Epic. Invites can be retracted if needed. You can also utilize the Epic functionality of Foundation but have a CDW analyst send all the invites, if your CDW cohort is narrowed enough and chart review is not needed.
• Message: Use MyChart to inform potentially eligible patients in bulk about participating in a study. Study details are delivered to the patient's MyChart Inbox as a standard message. Links may be included for patients to follow, but no other in-message action is available. An NC TraCS CDW analyst sends the bulk messages. Reporting metrics are available as a custom report from the CDW.

Getting Started

Follow these steps to implement MyChart recruitment for your study:

1. Request a consultation with an NC TraCS CDW analyst to review your options.
2. Submit a data request to the Carolina Data Warehouse for Health to generate your list of potentially eligible patients.
3. Write or finalize your patient recruitment message, ensuring it meets MyChart messaging guidelines (docx) using the MyChart Recruitment Service Template (docx).
4. If you would like the message created for you or need assistance with messaging, please submit a request to the Recruitment & Retention Program.
5. Indicate MyChart recruitment in your IRB application and receive IRB approval before proceeding.
6. Final Epic review and activation: the NC TraCS CDW Regulatory and UNC Health Patient Communications Team completes a final review of your request, including your messaging, and turns on the necessary features in Epic for your study.

Related Resources

• MyChart Recruitment Service: Messaging Guide for Researchers
• Carolina Data Warehouse for Health
• NC TraCS Rates

For questions about an active MyChart recruitment request/project, please work with your assigned CDW analyst/project manager.

CDW-H Service Line Guide for Researchers

Clinical Data Sharing FAQ

Recruiting with CDW-H (SharePoint)