Thank you for choosing to participate in a Pfizer clinical trial. We appreciate your strength and commitment because, without people like you, life-changing breakthroughs would not be possible. Now, we want to offer some information as you begin your clinical trial.
Because all clinical trials are different, how best to prepare for yours will depend on your study. Below are some things to consider and suggestions to keep in mind.
Tips for a smooth start to your clinical trial
Here are some things to consider now that you have signed the informed consent document, completed screening, and been enrolled in your clinical trial.
If you have any questions about your clinical trial, contact the study team at the location where you’re enrolled. The informed consent document for your study also provides detailed information about the study, including contact information for the study team.
Keep in mind your rights as a clinical trial participant. These are also explained in the informed consent document.
Put important study information and instructions you’ve been provided, including your informed consent document, in a place where you can easily access them during the study. You can look back at this information about study activities and other aspects of the study.
Explore how people in your life can support you as you participate in the clinical trial.
Consider setting up notification reminders (such as on your personal mobile device) to help you remember important study activities.
Clinical trials: A team effort
As you enrolled in your clinical trial, you met the clinical study team at the location where you are participating, including the principal investigator and study coordinator. This team will be your primary point of contact during your clinical trial. Watch the video below to learn about the different people who help make clinical trials happen.
Participants
People like you who participate in clinical trials and make clinical research possible.
Principal Investigator
The healthcare professional who conducts the clinical trial at the location where you are enrolled. The principal investigator (study doctor) is responsible and accountable for the conduct of the clinical trial at that location.
Sponsor
The person or organization that initiates a clinical trial and is responsible for the way it is conducted. The sponsor interacts with regulatory agencies such as the FDA. The sponsor may be an individual or a pharmaceutical company, such as Pfizer. It could also be a government agency, academic institution, or private organization.
Study Coordinator
A key clinical study team member who is typically your main point of contact throughout the clinical trial.
Frequently asked questions
The study coordinator or another member of the study team at the location where you’re participating is typically your main point of contact throughout the clinical trial. This member can answer many questions about the day-to-day details of the study. Depending on your question, he or she may refer you to other members of the study team, such as the principal investigator, at the location where you’re participating.
You should contact the study doctor as soon as the side effect happens. Follow any instructions that he or she provides. The study doctor may determine that you need additional procedures or medicines to help manage the side effects. Additional details of what you should do if you experience a side effect may be explained in the informed consent document for your study.
All side effects should be reported to the study doctor, even if you believe the side effect is mild or that it wasn’t caused by the study medicine. Contact information for the study doctor, including a 24-hour emergency contact number, can be found on study materials you received. These materials include the informed consent document and a medical emergency contact card.
Seek medical assistance immediately. All participants in Pfizer clinical trials are provided with a medical emergency contact card. You should provide this card to the healthcare professionals caring for you in the emergency. The healthcare professionals can call the phone number on the card to learn about the clinical trial and the study medicine that you are receiving. Additional details of what you should do in an emergency may be explained in the informed consent document for your study.
The available support depends on your specific study and the location where you’re enrolled. The details are explained in the informed consent document. Examples of support that may be available include transportation to study visits or digital tools to help participants capture study-related activities. The study team is also available to answer any questions you may have.
You are always free to leave a clinical trial at any time and for any reason. If you decide to leave the study, please tell the study doctor so that you can end your participation in the safest way. The study doctor will explain how to return the study medicine and what other steps may occur.
Your decision to stop being in the study will not affect your regular medical care or any benefits to which you are entitled. The informed consent document for your study may provide more details on what happens if your participation in the study ends.
Our commitment to clinical trial participants
To put participant rights, safety, and well-being first — always
To incorporate as much patient input as possible into the design of our clinical trials
To ensure that diverse communities have the opportunity to participate in our clinical trials
To reimburse participants for clinical trial-related expenses such as transportation
To make clinical trial results available to participants
