This year will probably make the history books with the global pandemic affecting how people work, socialise and how the healthcare system coped. Would you take part in groundbreaking research?
The NHS attested “vaccines are the most effective way to prevent infectious diseases”.
The national health body added that “research into vaccines is the only way to find out which vaccines will work”.
This requires people to take part in trials to test the effectiveness of vaccines.
Would you join the COVID-19 vaccine research registry? What happens if you enrol?
It’s pot luck whether or not you’d be offered a vaccine during the trial.
One requirement is that you’ll need to visit the hospital, or other research sites, a few times over six to 12 months.
At these visits, you’ll usually be told about the research study and you’ll be able to ask any questions you may have.
In addition, it’s likely you’ll have blood tests. Between visits, you’ll be asked to tell the research team about any symptoms you’re experiencing.
You may be asked to take a throat and nose swab every week at home, or to keep a diary.
If you sign up to be contacted about vaccine studies, only researchers approved by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) will be able to get in touch.
At present, there are only two national coronavirus vaccine studies approved by the NIHR.
These vaccine studies are run by the University of Oxford and Imperial College London.
Rest assured that there will be strict rules on safety and confidentiality that will need to be adhered to.
The NIHR proclaimed “vaccines save thousands of lives every year… it has the potential to help us beat COVID-19”.
The organisation is unsure whether different vaccines would be needed for different groups of people, so it plans on running a few different vaccine trials.
People who live in the UK, aged 18 or over, can sign up to let researchers know you’re interested in volunteering to take part.
“By collecting details about people who are interested in taking part in vaccine studies, this will help us to carry out studies and find a vaccine faster,” explained the NIHR.
Signing up doesn’t guarantee you’ll take part in a study. If you match the criteria based on the information given, you’ll get an informative email telling you about the study.
With that knowledge, you are then able to decide if you’d still like to take part.
Following on from your agreement, the researcher will need to collect more data about your health to see if you’re suitable for the study.
This information could be collected online or over the phone (or both).
Bear in mind that the vaccines are designed so that they do not cause infection.
For more information on being part of a trial, visit Be Part of Research; to sign up click here.
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