How to Prepare Yourself for Participate in a Clinical Trial

None of the scientific achievements in medicine today are without clinical trials. The pharmaceutical drugs that we have at the disposal of pharmacologists today, new clinical techniques and tools – all these things go through a long way of testing before they become real weapons against the diseases of mankind. And each of us can bring our contribution to this complex but so important process. 

Thanks to Halthaconnect Clinical Research, hundreds of people have become participants in clinical trials. This is an essential step in all major scientific discoveries in medicine and pharmacology, which can save many lives in the future. But before joining a clinical trial, it is important to review the steps you need to take to prepare for the process properly.

Get Complete and Valid Information on the Global Clinical Trial Concept

Full knowledge of all participants in the process is the key to the best possible results. Any potential member of a clinical trial should be well aware that it is not a standard treatment, but only part of a scientific research project that has already passed the laboratory stages and preparations and is now at the start of human trials. 

According to international standards, the Clinical Trial has 4 Phases:

• Phase I: testing on a group of 20-80 healthy people. Objective: to check safety and dosage volume, to identify side effects.
• Phase II: testing on a larger group of up to 300 people, including patients. The objective is to expand the safety data and to obtain the first results of the effectiveness of the product or treatment method.
• Phase III: a significant increase in the number of participants. Groups can range up to a few thousand people to maximize the data’s accuracy and validate efficacy. Successful completion of this phase means that the medication is approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and begins to be used for patients.
• Phase IV: Collecting additional data from patients who start taking the treatment to monitor for possible extra benefits. 

To help maximize audience knowledge of the concept of clinical trials, the FDA has published a full guide for clinical trial participants, which we recommend you review before making a decision.

Choose the Most Relevant Area for Clinical Trial Participation

It’s a common perception that beauty brands have occupied the pharma market and that clinical trials to treat truly deadly diseases are virtually nonexistent. But in reality, this is not the case at all. If exploring data from the World Health Organization, you’ll see a comprehensive overview of health research statistics for the last 20 years. According to official information, the spheres of clinical trials are quite diverse. But more of them are the most critical areas: malignant neoplasms, neuropsychiatric conditions, cardiovascular problems, and musculoskeletal diseases. 

From the full list of current research available in the Haltha databases, each user can find the medical research area that is suitable for them. And remember, it’s not just patients with any medical condition who can become a member. More than half of the involved people are healthy persons, who help scientists to see the differences and effectiveness of new treatments.

Check Readiness and Compliance with Research Requirements

When it comes to patient participation in research projects, most often they take this step because they are motivated by the search for a better, more innovative solution that can treat their disease more effectively and quickly. Sometimes it is the only chance for people with serious problems to get hope for recovery in cases where the available medicines do not have a positive effect. In these cases, treating doctors act as a middle ground between scientists and patients, taking responsibility for conducting all the preparation tests, identifying willingness to participate, and more effectively monitoring the effects of the medications being tested. 

In the example of a control group of healthy subjects, each of them must be properly informed about the purpose of the study, their responsibilities, and their privacy rights. An important factor will also be the skills of the person involved to analyze their sensations in depth, to identify differences, and to be able to fully observations of body reactions to the researchers. And keep in mind that clinical research is a fairly long-term process. Depending on which of the phases of the process mentioned above on which you enter, the period of involvement can range from a few months to 3-4 years. 

Ask for Full Information on the Benefits and Risks to Health.

Clinical Trials have both benefits and potential downsides. As you prepare to be a part, analyze the possible pros and cons of participation. Besides reviewing the information booklets, contracts, and documentation in detail, we recommend that all users make a list of the most important questions to ask during the interview with the research team. The adverse reactions that some of the drugs being tested may cause and the probability level of these reactions is an issues that should be looked at with special attention. It is worth clarifying medical support and forms of compensation in advance. 

It is also worth discussing the nuances of getting into the “Placebo” group for patients who have serious diseases with the main condition to get a new treatment that will justify all possible risks.

Most big and reliable companies, which have great experience in conducting large-scale scientific research, take care of any possible problems and offer significant bonuses to participants. This becomes a strong motivation for the majority of participants who act as “healthy” members of the test. Extra full legal protection is provided by the state and guaranteed by the FDA. 

Conclusion

As you have already found out, clinical trials are quite serious programs, involvement in which is important for the modern health care system. Medicine’s way of finding new drugs and methods that bring success in solving dangerous diseases is based not only on the knowledge of scientists and the talents of medical doctors. Healthy people and patients both make valuable input into the development of new and unique medicines, The existence of them is not possible without a high standard of efficacy confirmed by years of clinical trials. Being prepared for the potential challenges and benefits, knowing your rights, and being informed is the responsibility of everyone who wants to be part of these processes.