Informational Brochures for Research Participants in English and 16 Other Languages
More than 25 plain-language informational brochures have been developed to enable and improve communication between clinical research staff and research participants. The brochures cover topics in health research, research participation, and common research procedures. In addition to English, most brochures are available in all of the following languages:
- Albanian
- Arabic
- Cape Verdean
- Chinese–Traditional
- French
- Greek
- Haitian Creole
- Italian
- Japanese
- Khmer
- Korean
- Polish
- Portuguese
- Russian
- Spanish
- Vietnamese
According to an accompanying user guide, “Each brochure is written in plain language for lay audiences (including those that may have limited experience with or knowledge of research) and highlight the role of research participants in research....The brochures are not designed to be used as a recruitment tool, thus they do not need Institutional Review Board approval for each use, just a ‘blanket’ approval that the brochures may be shared.” A sample request for approval letter can be found in the guide’s appendix.
The brochures were developed by the New England Research Subject Advocacy Group (NE RSA), a voluntary consortium of health professionals and a partnership between the NIH Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA) from Harvard University, Boston University, Tufts University, University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth University, and Yale University. The process by which the NE RSA developed the resources is described in the research article "Development of a Plain-language Library of Educational Resources for Research Participants."
The booklets are free to adapt. Institutions should contact the NE RSA to request access to the native files, so they can include their logos and/or contact information.