HMTS Expedited Review Form_508 compliant_TO15 MessageTesting

Health Message Testing System Expedited Review Form
1. Title of Study: (Please append screener and questionnaire)
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry Task Order 15: Message Testing
2. Study Population: (Discuss study population and explain how they will be
selected/recruited.)

We will conduct focus groups with 3 different populations:
1. State and local public health professionals. These participants will be recruited through
established networks at the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). This
includes
an established
contact list from previous task orders. Potential participants will be
Respondent
characteristics:
Number
of subjects:
contacted
via email
with a standard
(see Attachment
4: 4Email
Introduction:
18 (Thisrecruitment
includes 4 message
public health
professionals,
community
members, and 10 cons
Public Health Professionals, file name
Number of males: 9 (To the extent possible, we will recruit an even mix of male and female participants
ATSDR-Message-Testing_Attachment-4_Email-Introduction-Public-Health-Professionals.docx)
.
Number of females: 9 (To the extent possible, we will recruit an even mix of male and female participant
2. Community members. These participants are individuals that have been affected by a toxic
Agehazard
range:in18
years
and over and, as a result, have been in contact previously with
substance
their
community
ATSDR. Participants will be recruited through established networks at ATSDR including
Racial/ethnic composition:
contact lists from past task orders. Mixed
Potential participants will be contacted via email (see
Attachment
3: Email
Community
Members,
file name etc.)
Special
group Introduction:
status: (e.g., risk
group, health
care providers,
ATSDR-Message-Testing_Attachment-3_Email-Introduction-Community-Members.docx).
of group/s:
3. Consumers. Type
We will
use a recruitment
assist health
in recruiting
a mix ofcommunity
consumers, with at
State andfirm
localtopublic
professionals,
least half of those recruited citingmembers,
high school
the highest level of education completed (see
andas
consumers.
Attachment 2: Screener: Consumers,
file
Please
seename
Attachment 1: Background Information, file name
ATSDR-Message-Testing_Attachment-2_Screener-Consumers
.docx).
Geographic location/s: ATSDR-Message-Testing_Attachment-1_Background-Informat
State and local health professionals will participate remotely via
Please see Attachment 1: Background
Information,
file name
ion.docx,
forlocated
more information.
phone
and be
in different locations nationwide.
ATSDR-Message-Testing_Attachment-1_Background-Information .docx, for more information.
Community
willjustify
participate
remotely
via phone
3. Incentives: (State what incentive
will bemembers
offered and
proposed
incentives
to beand
usedbein
study.)
located in different locations nationwide.
will participate
in-person
at participate
a location in
the
Public health professionals willConsumers
not be be offered
cash gifts.
They will
voluntarily
via
Washington
D.C
metro
area.
phone during their own work hours.
Attachment
1: Background
Information,
file name
Affected community members Please
will besee
offered
a $40 cash
gift in appreciation
of their
ATSDR-Message-Testing_Attachment-1_Background-Informati
participation.
This(Please
amountcheck
is consistent
with the standard practice for qualitative data collection
4.
Study method:
one below)
on.docx,
forATSDR
more information.
efforts Central
and our location
experience
from previous
projects with this population. The focus
intercept
interview:
Telephone
interview:
(CATI
used:
yes
or
no) will require participants to make
groups for community members although done remotely
Individual
in-depth
interview
(cognitive
arrangements
to have
access
to a phone
line andinterview):
be free of distractions during the focus groups.
✔
Focus
group:
Additionally, this amount has been shown to lead to good recruitment and retention for the tasks
Online interview:
required to enable the successful completion of the project.
Other: (describe)
Consumers will be offered a, $40 cash gift in appreciation of their participation. This amount
has also been shown to be the minimum required incentive to offset the challenges for this
audience to travel to and participate in a focus group or interview outside of their regular work
hours in the Washington D.C. metro area. Incentive amounts lower than this make it difficult to
recruit this audience.

5. Purpose of the overall communication effort into which this health message/s will fit: (Please
provide 2-3 sentences below.)
To help ATSDR develop a consistent language for communicating with external audiences, a
series of messages was created to articulate simply and clearly information about the agency.
ATSDR has contracted with a communications firm to help evaluate these messages for
effectiveness through focus groups with representatives of 3 key ATSDR target audiences:
6.
Category
of time
sensitivity: (Please check one below)
• Public
health
professionals
Health members
emergency:
• Community
Time-limited
congressional/administrative mandate:
• Consumers
Press coverage correction:
Time-limited audience access:
Please see
Attachment
1: Background
Information,
name
Ineffective
existing
materials due
to historicalfile
event/social
trends: ✔
ATSDR-Message-Testing_Attachment-1_Background-Information.docx,
for more information.
Trend tracking:

7. Describe nature of time sensitivity: (Please provide 2-3 sentences below.)

Testing needs to be conducted quickly in order for there to be enough time to evaluate focus
group findings, refine messages, and develop a set of final recommendations. We anticipate
recruitment of affected community members in particular may take additional time and would
like to begin as soon as possible in order to stay on target with project deadlines.

8. Number of burden hours requested: 20

BURDEN HOURS
Category of Respondent

No. of
Respondents

Participation
Time

Burden

Refer to Attachment 9- ATSDR Task Order 15 Message Testing Testing Burden Hours
Totals
9. Are you using questions from the approved question bank? If yes, please list the item
number(s) used from the question bank and provide a brief rationale for adding these questions.

Yes: Yes: The following questions are being used from the approved question bank: Attachment 2: Screener: C
No:

*** Items Below to be completed by Office of Associate Director for Communication
(OADC)***
1. Number of burden hours remaining in current year’s allocation:
2. OADC confirmation of time-sensitivity:
Yes:
No:
_____________________________________
Project Officer Signature