Research Participant

Patients

Become a Research Participant

TriCore Research Institute (TRI) is the dedicated research division of TriCore. TRI’s work involves the organization’s scientific and academic expertise to deliver research results that can benefit and advance healthcare and medicine. Some of TRI’s clinical research studies involve whether a medical treatment or healthcare device is safe and effective for people. We have created a Research Participant Program that educates and enrolls people who are interested in participating in a study.

Become a Participant

What are clinical trials

Some of TRI’s clinical research studies involve whether a medical treatment or healthcare device is safe and effective for people. These research studies follow strict standards to help ensure the results are reliable and accurate. Before new drugs and therapies are available, organizations must receive approval from regulatory bodies like the Federal Drug Administration (FDA). Some studies require the collection of human samples – such as blood, saliva, urine, and stools – to validate a treatment or healthcare device.

The benefits of clinical research studies include:

New advancements to treat diseases and other conditions.
The proposed new treatments determine their efficacy and safety for people.
New ways to detect, diagnose, and reduce the risk of diseases.

Without research studies and clinical trials, there would be little advances in healthcare.

Why should I be a research participant?

Some of the reasons why you or a family member might want to participate include:

Contributing to Science

Your participation may help develop new and better methods of testing for clinical diseases and treatment of illnesses for future patients.

Personal Impact

Some participants find satisfaction in knowing they are contributing to the advancement of medicine and potentially helping others with similar health conditions.

Close Monitoring

Some patients during a research study may receive more frequent and thorough health checkups, as researchers closely monitor their progress throughout the trial.

Other factors to consider

Here are some other factors to help you decide if you want to participate:

You may or may not be compensated for participating in a clinical research study. However, there is no fee for participation, and the costs for any procedures and tests will be covered at no charge to you. When we contact you for potential participation, we will review compensation and other details of the clinical research study.
Even though you participate, you might not personally benefit from the study. In some instances, our sponsors do not allow us to share the results from the studies we conduct.
As a research participant, your privacy is our priority. Your information will be de-identified whenever possible and will only be accessed and disclosed to meet the requirements of the IRB, TRI’s study partners, and TRI’s regulatory bodies. Those who may receive your information are also subject to stringent confidentiality requirements.
Other minimal risks of collecting a sample from you might include:
- Bruising, pain, bleeding, fainting, blood clots, or infection at the site of the needle stick during a blood draw.
- Nasal discomfort, bleeding, inflammation, and a runny nose during or after collection of nasopharyngeal, nasal, and throat swabs for sputum.
- There are no known risks for collecting urine, stool, or saliva and oral fluids.

Participating in research studies is a personal decision, and it’s important for individuals to discuss it with their healthcare providers to understand the potential risks and benefits.

What trials are you currently doing?

We are not currently recruiting for a specific study.

We encourage you to complete the Consent to Contact form and we will contact you when potential studies become available.

I’m interested. What do I need to do?

Step 1: Do you live in New Mexico? At this time, we are only able to recruit residents who live in New Mexico.

Step 2: If you do live in New Mexico, please complete our Consent to Contact form, which allows us to contact you for potential participation in future clinical trials.

Become a Participant

FAQs

Here are some other frequently asked questions with answers:

What happens after I complete the form?

Who can participate in a research study?

What happens once I decide to participate in a study?

Once you meet the eligibility criteria and decide to participate, we will collect the samples from you at one of TriCore’s patient care centers. The type of samples, how many, and what your samples will be tested for, will be discussed with you before you decide to participate.

Your decision to participate in a clinical research study is voluntary. You may choose not to participate even though you are eligible, or you can withdraw from the trial for any reason. There will be no penalty or loss of benefits to which you are otherwise entitled to, and there will be no effect on your future medical care.

If I participate in a clinical trial, will my doctor and health insurance be involved?

Who can I contact if I have questions once I participate in the study?

Once you decide to participate, we will give you the research team’s contact information. If you have any questions, comments, concerns or think the research study has hurt you or made you sick, you can contact the research team.

Our clinical trials are overseen by an Institutional Review Board (IRB), a separate group of people from TRI, who perform independent review of the trials. The IRB applies research ethics by reviewing the methods proposed for research, to ensure people are not harmed. The IRB approves or rejects studies based on their reviews. Participants may contact the IRB with any study questions or concerns. The IRB contact information will be provided on the study informed consent form.

Laboratories often conduct correlation studies, assay development, new instrumentation/product or reagent validation. We are asking your permission to be contacted for research study participation.

If you choose to participate, you may be contacted to consent for sample collections of one or more of the following sample types:

Blood
Stool
Sputum or swab
Urine
Saliva/oral fluid
Other fluids

Prior to sample collection, informed consent and authorization to use and disclose protected health information will need to be reviewed and signed. Compensation may or may not be available for study participation.

By providing contact information, you are giving permission for a study team member to contact you via email and/or phone to discuss study participation details. TRI will not give or sell your information to third parties.