There are many reasons to participate in clinical research trials!
From working in clinical research I have heard of and seen first hand the different reasons people have for volunteering.
You should take some time to decide what your motivation is and whether it makes sense for your current and future lifestyle.
Before you decide on participating in clinical research, you should determine what your main motivations for participating are. Clinical research can be very rewarding but as you can imagine it is not for everyone.
Participating in clinical research can come with a big time commitment, restrictions to your lifestyle and can even have effects on your health. I suggest you read our article on what to consider before participating in clinical research to make sure you have the right approach.
Clinical research trials allow researchers, scientists and health care providers to develop new medications and treatments for different conditions. Being a part of this can be very rewarding whether you are participating as a volunteer or working as a part of a research team.
Being a participant in a clinical research trial is an altruistic feat as you will be trialing new medications that have not yet been approved by the FDA. Even though in most cases you will be compensated for your time, you have to consider whether participating is right for you. Besides having monetary benefits, you will be helping to advance and improve healthcare, while at the same time possibly improving your own health.
Reasons Why You Might Want to Participate in Clinical Research
Helping to Advance and Improve Healthcare
One of the best reasons to participate in clinical research is knowing that you are making a difference in developing new treatments, medications or devices that will help the lives of others.
By volunteering in clinical trials you will be asked to take experimental medications that have not been FDA approved. Your help with this will allow the researchers and medical professionals to collect data that is needed to gain FDA approval.
If you are motivated by being able to help others through trialing new medications, you will feel that participating in clinical trials is highly rewarding.
Without clinical trial participants we would not have the medications we take for granted today.
We would also not be able to have as many improvements and advances to our current healthcare. There are patients who are dependent on life changing medications that could not have been developed without having enough people volunteering to trial it.
There are also many medications that are being improved and new devices that can benefit the lives of many patients! Not only will you help people who need these medications but also devices and technology that can help improve the lives of many people.
Getting paid to participate in clinical trials
For some, the incentive of being paid for their participation is enough motivation. Even though clinical trials can come with financial compensation, it should not be the only reason to participate. Participating in clinical research can be very rewarding and offer many benefits, however it can also come with risks.
Before participating in any clinical trial the research staff will go over the requirements, known side effects and anything else you may have questions on. However, it is important to realize that participating is a big commitment and even though you will be paid for your participation, you need to fully understand what you are signing up for.
You need to evaluate the specific trial you are looking into, to ensure it is worth it for you. If you are only looking at the money this might cause you to overlook safety, and other concerns. Once you have evaluated the risks, benefits and how rewarding this can be, the money is an added bonus.
In clinical research trials, you will usually be compensated for your time as well as for consenting to participate. This amount of compensation can depend on the amount of time required as well as how involved the clinic visits are.
Improving Your Own Health
For some participants, clinical trials might seem like the best or more optimal solution to their health ailments. There are patients who have tried all of the medications available for their diagnosis without any improvement.
Oftentimes their physician will recommend they trial a new medication that is not yet approved. This way, the benefit of participating is receiving treatment for a condition that is not well managed with approved medications.
Some clinical trials will have you perform lab work, imaging and other studies to test how the study medication is doing in your body. A benefit to this is the ability to have the results of these studies which can be very expensive if you had to pay for them on your own. However, all of the exams and procedures are paid for by the pharmaceutical company. This way you can keep an eye on your health without having to pay for expensive health exams.
Hope for a cure
There are many health conditions for which a cure does not yet exist. There are terminal illnesses as well as degenerative illnesses that do not have a way to be treated. The symptoms might be able to be treated however the actual condition is not.
For these patients, clinical trials give them hope that the treatment will work and provide a cure or treatment for themselves and others.
Wouldn’t it be great if there was a cure for cancer, or Alzheimer’s disease? These conditions are being worked on with the help of patients who are suffering from these diseases. With their help scientists are hopeful that a cure will be developed.
Curiosity and interest in clinical trials
You might have an interest in how a clinical research trial is run and how a new medication is developed. If that is the case, participating in clinical trials will grant you a first row experience. You will be interacting with physicians and other research staff during your participation.
The information that you provide the study staff will be crucial in the development process of the medication. If you have a genuine curiosity for healthcare and science, you will enjoy participating in clinical research!
Hopefully this article has helped you identify why you should participate in clinical trials. Of course, as stated before, clinical trials involve experimental treatments and medications that have the potential of causing side effects. You should not take the decision to participate lightly.
Participating in clinical research trials offers many benefits depending on your lifestyle and interests. You might be inclined to participate due to altruistic reasons, personal health benefits, or simply out of curiosity.
If you have participated in clinical trials in the past, please drop us a comment below and share with us your motivation for participating!