You might choose to become a medical research participant for any number of reasons. Perhaps you have a known health condition and would like to receive attentive care from a knowledgeable clinical trial staff and possibly have access to new, ground-breaking treatments that are otherwise unavailable. Or, even if you’re healthy, you might want to volunteer to be a research participant as a way to contribute to the advancement of medicine and help others, both now and in the future. If any of this interests you, you’ll be pleased to know that our experienced team at St. Francis Medical Institute conducts clinical trials that offer promising options for patients in the Tampa and Clearwater, FL, areas.
Clinical trials are at the very heart of many medical advances, and these important studies are going on right now in Tampa and Clearwater, Florida. Volunteers are vital to the success of these programs, the main goal of which is to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of new treatments. As a research participant at St. Francis, you might be able to try recently developed treatment options and help our physicians discover better ways to prevent, detect, treat, and understand various conditions and diseases.
Following extensive laboratory research, clinical trials are usually conducted over four phases of human testing. Each phase is considered a separate trial and serves a distinct purpose:
- Phase I – In order to evaluate the safety and monitor any side effects of an experimental treatment, it is initially tested on a small research participant group (approximately 20-80 people).
- Phase II – To further study the safety and effectiveness of the treatment, it is administered to a larger research participant group (approximately 100-300 people).
- Phase III – To confirm its effectiveness, compare its performance with that of other treatments, and gather information on safe usage, the treatment is administered to an even larger research participant group (more than 1,000 people).
- Phase IV – After the treatment receives FDA approval and is made available to the public, its benefits and risks are continually tracked.
To offer each research participant safe and effective options to potentially improve his or her health, the highly skilled research team at St. Francis conducts only Phase III and Phase IV clinical trials. As a family-owned and spiritually oriented practice, St. Francis takes tremendous pride in providing patients with effective, customized care aimed at improving overall health and well-being.
Contact us today if you’d like to learn more about opportunities to volunteer as a research participant for clinical trials in the Tampa, FL, area.