How to ensure your ad gets ethically approved

At Clinrol, we’re obviously huge advocates of digital marketing for patient recruitment in clinical trials. The reach, targeting and cost efficiency are just some of the reasons why digital marketing can be so effective in helping you hit your enrolment targets. However, when intending to utilise digital marketing for your clinical trial, one must consider the ethics behind the advertisements for use and whether these are compliant to your Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC) in question. What follows is a list of some of the areas you must take into consideration when launching a digital marketing campaign for your clinical trial.

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1. Content & Medium

The first area is a no-brainer: the content of your ad will need to be scrutinised by the reviewing HREC. The images you plan to use in promoting your clinical trial and the copy that compliments it will be examined to ensure that they are not coercive to potential participants. Facial expressions, depicted settings and actions in your imagery as well as the language used may be communicating messaging that your local regulatory body does not allow. While images shouldn't point to benefits from the study, you’re better off selecting those that convey one’s experience of life with their condition, or that depict a positive experience interacting with medical professionals. Another aspect under scrutiny by most HRECs would be the website text for a landing page listing your trial, scripts for liaisons who speak to participants about your trial and more. Adhering to these guidelines doesn't mean your outreach must be dry and ineffective, but it should be clear and honest. By following these tips, you can give yourself not only the best shot at approval but also the chance to truly connect with participants.

2. Participant Selection

The reviewing HREC will also want details on the pathway from ad impression to participant selection i.e. the steps taken from when a participant views your ad for the first time to them being enrolled into the trial. Typically, an HREC will request that the participant be duly informed every step of the way, with the option to withdraw from signing up at any stage. For example, at Clinrol, individuals who click on our ads are forwarded to a landing page that provides further details about the trial in question including the criteria for enrolment and where the study procedures are being conducted. It also includes a sign-up button which, if participants wish to proceed, they can click to be taken to a pre-screening questionnaire where they will be asked some trial-specific questions about their condition to assess their eligibility for the study. Following their completion of the questionnaire, Clinrol will determine if a participant has passed pre-screening and if so, their details will be forward to the study centre who will contact the participant directly to arrange a screening visit for the study. The reviewing HREC will be able to track a participant’s journey through your advertisement and as we discussed during the first point above, this means you need to be as clear and honest as possible. As such, throughout Clinrol’s process, participants are kept informed about where their information is going, which brings us to the next area.

3. Privacy & Confidentiality

When participants sign up to your clinical trial, what information do you collect from them? Typically, you would request a participant’s name, gender, contact number and email address combined with their answers to some study-specific questions. And once this information is obtained, is it retained or forwarded to a third party? HRECs will often request clarification on these details. If contracting a third party to handle patient recruitment, you will need to ascertain how user information is stored and protected. At Clinrol, user information is stored in secure formats. Apart from our staff and the specific third party clinical research companies our participants’ information is passed onto, personal details are only accessible and may only be changed by someone who has access to their email account.

You see, many ethical and regulatory bodies consider advertising clinical trials to patients to form part of the process of informed consent. Remember, transparency is key. And if you’re looking for help with meeting your patient recruitment targets for your clinical trials, reach out to the Clinrol team at info@clinrol.com.au.

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