Running a remote nutritional intervention study with eDiaries, FFQs, and real-time compliance monitoring

Nutricia's research team was planning a multi-week dietary intervention study requiring participants to complete daily food frequency questionnaires and symptom diaries. With participants geographically dispersed and no budget for repeated clinic visits, the study needed to be fully remote from day one.

Previous studies had relied on paper diaries posted to participants, which resulted in poor compliance, illegible entries, and data that arrived weeks after collection. The team needed a digital solution that participants of varying technical ability could use confidently on their own devices.

Using Trialflare's ePRO module, the team built a structured eDiary and food frequency questionnaire that participants could complete daily on any smartphone, tablet, or computer — no app download required. Automated reminders were sent by SMS and email when submissions were due, with escalating alerts to the coordination team if entries were missed.

The coordinator dashboard gave real-time visibility of compliance across all participants. The research team could see at a glance who was on track, who needed a nudge, and review individual responses as they came in — all from a GDPR-compliant platform with data stored in EU data centres.

The study achieved a 95% participant completion rate across its eight-week duration — far exceeding the team's expectations based on previous paper-based studies. The research coordinator estimated the automated reminder system alone saved over 10 hours per week that would otherwise have been spent manually chasing participants.

Data was exportable in clean, analysis-ready formats at any point during the study, allowing the biostatistics team to begin preliminary analysis well ahead of the study close. Nutricia have since used Trialflare for two further nutritional studies.