title: A personal reflection: what you need to know before getting involved in a clinical trial.
abstract: This brief article explains what you should know before agreeing to become a subject or participant in a clinical trial. Many people are asked every year to become involved in a clinical trial or research study. Of course, in almost all studies, you will be asked to sign an informed consent form after the study has been described to you in a satisfactory manner. However, some people do not truly understand the study and do not know exactly what they just agreed to do. What you need to know before agreeing to participate in research study is presented in this article.
authors.affiliation: Dimensions of Critical Care Nursing and Bellarmine University, Louisville, Kentucky, USA. vmiracle@aol.com
authors.forename: Vickie A
authors.initials: VA
authors.lastname: Miracle
mesh_terms: D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D003657:Decision Making; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent; D024802:Nurse's Role; D018579:Patient Selection; D035842:Research Subjects