Information for the Public & Potential Research Subjects
The staff at the University of Iowa's Human Subjects Office has developed this web page to provide you with additional sources of information about participating in a research study (also sometimes called a "clinical trial" or "clinical study" when patients are involved). We hope that you will find the answers to many of your questions by following the links below.
Questions about your rights as a participant in a research study
If you are thinking about being in a research study, remember that participating is completely voluntary. You can choose not to participate, or, if you decide to participate, you can choose to stop participating at any time. The following documents provide some additional information about your rights as a research subject:
- Research Volunteer Brochure - You may see this brochure at various locations around the UI campus and UIHC.
- NEW!! Veteran's Participation in Research - You may see this brochure at the Veteran's Administration Hospital in Iowa City.
- The Bill of Rights for Research Participants - This summarizes the rights you have as a research participant.
- NIH Resource Information - This is an extensive list of information about the special kind of research study called a clinical trial.
- Should I Enter a Clinical Trial? - This is published by an independent, nonprofit health services research agency called ECRI (formerly the Emergency Care Research Institute).
If you have any questions, concerns or complaints about being a research subject or if you would like to share your experiences of being a research subject, you can call the Human Subjects Office at (319) 335-6564 or send us an e-mail at irb@uiowa.edu.
Research Studies at the UI and the Iowa City VAMC
There are over 2,000 research studies in progress at the University of Iowa at any given time. Many research studies involving human participants (often referred to as subjects) take place at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics (UIHC). However, research studies are conducted in many other UI departments, including Psychology, Sociology, Anthropology, and many more. Research studies are also conducted at the Iowa City Veteran's Administration Hospital.
The following links provide some resources for you to find out more about research being conducted at the University of Iowa:
- Noon News - The University of Iowa Health Care (UIHC) newsletter sometimes advertises for volunteers for research studies.
- Research Studies at the UIHC
- Clinical Trials at the UIHC
- Holden Clinical Cancer Center studies
- Clinical Trials.gov - This site is a service of the National Institutes of Health and has a search function.
Researchers also often place advertisements in local newspapers. If you are a patient at UIHC or the Iowa city VAMC, one of your physicians might tell you about research studies for which you are eligible.