Thursday, January 27, 2005

DCRI Joins Clinical Research Information Center
By Julie McKeel

DCRI has joined the Center for Information and Study on Clinical Research Participation (CISCRP) as a supporting member. Founded in 2003, CISCRP is a nonprofit organization dedicated to educating and informing the public, patients, medical/research communities, the media, and policy makers about clinical research participation and the role that each party plays in the process. As part of its mission, CISCRP seeks to promote trust and understanding of the clinical research organizations and facilitate more effective collaboration among all parties involved and interested in clinical research.

According to CISCRP president Roni Thaler, trust in the clinical research enterprise has dramatically fallen over the decade. “A 2003 Harris Interactive poll demonstrated that public trust in information provided by clinical research professionals dramatically decreased from 75% in 1996 to just 24% in 2003,” said Thaler. “All are in agreement that the best way to build greater trust is through greater information sharing, education, dialogue and awareness among the public, patients, media, medical and research communities.”

To rebuild the public’s trust in clinical research, the Center’s activities over the past year have focused on efforts to educate and reach out to the local and national communities by developing public service announcements for television, radio, cable, and print. Staff members have written articles for national and local newspapers, health magazines and Web sites, and the organization has hosted community outreach events coordinated with local research centers.

In addition, CISCRP has extended their outreach and educational efforts to the professional sector by distributing information to physicians, health care providers and payers; establishing opportunities to educate medical school students and health professionals about the clinical research process and participation; and developing scholarly articles in peer-reviewed medical journals

An important aspect of CISCRP’s mission is to find ways to educate and share information with the media and policy makers. In 2004, the Center sought to develop and maintain an electronic library of data and facts on clinical research participation, host information-sharing forums among various stakeholder groups, present information at government- and policy-oriented conferences and symposia, and develop public relations aids for research professionals.

CISCRP’s staff and board of advisors include members from the clinical research, healthcare, and advocacy communities. DCRI Director Dr. Rob Califf is a member of CISCRP’s board of advisors, and in this role, he works with the other members to advise the staff and provide direction in planning new initiatives.

“As we continue to work to improve the quality of clinical research in this country, the public trust is a critical issue. We need to create conditions in which people can have confidence that when they volunteer for research, they know they will be treated well, and when results are presented, those results can be believed,” said Califf.

The Center is funded by individual donors, government and research institutions, foundations and corporations. For more information, please visit CISCRP’s website at http://www.ciscrp.org.