A Cross-Sectional Survey to Assess Awareness and Perception to Clinical Research: Unbox Research

A BSTRACT Background: The boom in clinical research/clinical trials (CR/CT) has generated valuable knowledge in the field of medical science. India has been a promising CT sector, but witnesses’ only modest involvement from participants. The lack of awareness is possibly one of the factors that has led to stagnated growth of this sector. Objective: To assess the awareness and perception of participants to CR/CT and their willingness to participate. Methods: A cross-sectional online survey with a questionnaire comprising 25 questions. The survey was implemented at secondary and higher secondary schools, colleges/institutes as well as patient advocacy group. Results: A total of 852 participants participated in the online survey having median age 21 (Interquartile range: 20–28) years. More than 85% of participants were aware of CR/CT. The source of information was majorly contributed by hospitals (44.2%), social media (40.2%), and print media (40.2%). The perception about CT was reported as possibility of new treatment (63.4%) and more useful than traditional treatment (52.5%). More than half of the participants were willing to participate in CR involving questionnaire surveys (39.2%), research done together with administration of standard medical care (3.7%), and single blood draw/visit (34.7%). The survey reflected an unwillingness to participate in CR/CT due to concerns about safety (59.7%) and fear (50.8%). Conclusion: This survey showed that there has been increasing awareness and willingness to participate in CR/CT. However, to increase the participation, there is a need to address the concerns of safety and fear.