Express Gratitude

Opportunity

Clinical trial participants and their care partners often do not feel valued for their contribution to clinical trials, which may impact retention, participant satisfaction, and overall adherence. Receiving an act of appreciation (e.g., a thank you card / letter) during a clinical trial is directly related to overall satisfaction with the clinical trial.

Considerations to Help Action the Opportunity

• Include decisions around gratitude as part of the engagement strategy early in the clinical development planning process
• Understand which tools and templates are most appropriate to your study and patient population 
• Test gratitude tools with the patient population
• Define distribution methods and understand how use of decentralized trials / platforms may impact which format is used
• Identify opportunities to evaluate the value of the tactics and how they were received by participants / care partners (e.g., incorporating questions regarding gratitude into the SPFQ or similar patient feedback questionnaire)

Value and Potential Benefits

• Improves recruitment from word-of-mouth referrals by participants speaking positively about their experience in clinical trials 
• Improves engagement, adherence, and compliance by recognizing the time and effort participants contribute to the clinical trial 
• Increases participant’s satisfaction and perceived value of their clinical trial journey by recognizing the value of their experience
• Improves relationships with clinical research staff by recognizing the important relationship they develop with the patient and work needed to make the trial successful at their site
• Improves industry reputation and trust in clinical research