How Can I Volunteer?

Volunteering to be in a clinical study is a way you can contribute to the development of new medical treatments. There are studies for people with particular health conditions, and there are studies for healthy volunteers. The first step is to find a study. Your health care provider may have information on studies. Or you can contact the Office of Clinical Trials, or other UW research areas. Currently enrolling studies

How Will My Safety and Confidentiality Be Protected?

All studies involving humans must be carefully reviewed by an Institutional Review Board (IRB). An IRB is a committee of local researchers and lay people who review human studies to make sure they meet ethical standards and comply with federal regulations. The ethical and legal codes that health care providers must follow in their clinical practice also apply to research. The purpose of IRB review is to make sure that the rights and welfare of research participants are protected.

During the study, information about you will be collected. Health information may also be collected from sources such as your medical record. Federal regulations, as well as the UW IRB, require researchers to do as much as possible to keep your information confidential. In clinical trials, personal information is usually “coded” so that sponsors of the research are not given information that identifies you.