WIREDGOV

‘Help Diabeates’, a groundbreaking new campaign to encourage people with diabetes to give permission to be approached about taking part in clinical research studies, has been launched yesterday. The campaign, which is being support by Diabetes UK, is from the Diabetes Research Network (DRN).

Refreshing approach to recruitment

Professor David Matthews, Co-Director of the DRN and Professor of Diabetes Medicine at The Oxford Centre for Diabetes said, "This is a refreshing approach to recruit patients to a ‘consent for approach’ database. It means that diabetes patients are agreeing to be contacted in the future if a study becomes available which might suit them. It also means that clinical trials can be set up much faster, which is ideal for diabetes research."

The campaign is taking place over the next 18 months in three areas of England: the North West, the South West, and the North East area of London.

Research approved by NIHR

The research that patients could take part in is approved by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), and aims to improve the treatment diabetes patients receive now and in the future.

People can express their interest in research by texting ‘research’ and their name to 81400, or through the Help Diabeates website. People are then contacted by an NHS call centre to discuss how they might be able to help with diabetes in the future. At this point individuals can decide if they want to be included on the ‘consent for approach’ database.

The call centre is staffed by experienced NHS personnel with a background in helping people care for their diabetes.

The Help Diabeates campaign is managed by the Diabetes Research Network, part of the National Institute for Heath Research (NIHR). The campaign is being promoted through radio advertisements, Facebook, Twitter (@helpdiabeates), public relations activity and working with diabetes charities to help spread the word.