June 2, 2024

"Your experience matters!"

The INPUT project sheds light on the views and expectations of trial participants in Switzerland for the first time.

On behalf of the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH), the Department of Clinical Research is conducting a survey of people who are currently taking part in a clinical trial in Switzerland. The aim is to find out first-hand the reasons for their participation in the study and to understand how they experience it. The results of the "INPUT project" will be incorporated into the evaluation of the Human Research Act in order to propose improvements to the conditions in favor of study participants as part of a revision of the law.

Although of crucial importance, the views of study participants, especially those who are directly affected by the human research regulations, have not been systematically recorded to date. The INPUT project will change this. With the help of clinical research groups from all over Switzerland, people will be recruited for the survey by the study teams, handing out the invitation to the INPUT survey in the form of a flyer to the people participating in their clinical studies. Only with the support of the research groups on site can the experiences of the study participants be heard.

One of the research groups supporting the INPUT survey is the TARGET III study team led by Dr. Sarah Dräger and Prof. Michael Osthoff. When they were asked for their support, they immediately agreed. "The input of our patients is important to us so that future clinical studies can be better tailored to the needs of the study participants," says Sarah Dräger.

Optimized feasibility and results of clinical studies

The findings from the survey are not only used to evaluate the Human Research Act. The input from study participants can help to establish optimised research practice in the interests of all those involved, study participants and clinical researchers. First and foremost, by taking into account the needs and concerns of study participants, which could have far-reaching implications for recruitment and retention rates.

About the TARGET III study

Probability of Target Attainment With Standard Intermittent Bolus Administration of Cefazolin in Patients With Complicated Infections Caused by Staphylococcus Aureus (TARGET II)

Principal Investigators
Dr. med. Sarah Dräger, Prof. Dr. med. Michael Osthoff, University Hospital Basel

Study design
Randomized controlled interventional pilot study, Phase-II

Study center
University Hospital Basel

Number of patients 
36

Project duration
2024-2025