1Dr Lythgoe, M; 2Wighton, K; 3Neal, D; 4Dr Hood, G; 5Dr Abraham, S, 1 NIHR/Wellcome Trust Imperial CRF Clinical Fellow; 2Communications Manager North West London, NIHR Clinical Research Network; Patient and Public Involvement Manager; NIHR/Wellcome Trust Imperial CRF;4Workforce Development and PPIE Lead for NIHR NW London CRN (Imperial Healthcare NHS Trust) 5Consultant Rheumatologist and Senior Research Physician Imperial CRF

INTRODUCTION Achieving patient and professional participation in arthritis trials has been a

persistent obstacle to innovation and evidence-based practice [1,2]

It is likely that patients with arthritis are willing to engage in clinical research but are unaware of the research opportunities or relevant clinical trials

To Increase awareness and reduce stigma associated with early clinical trials, arthritis patients were invited to attend a research engagement and involvement day in collaboration with arthritis charities.

METHODS To gauge impact of the educational event, participants were asked to complete a pre-

course and post-course questionnaire The questionnaire asked participants to rank on a scale of 0 (unlikely) to 10 (very

likely) around topics of arthritis research including: Current engagement, research awareness, willingness to participate

Participants were also asked about current ‘unmet needs’ in arthritis research

RESULTS

TIMETABLE OF SESSIONS

REFERENCES[1] Blanch, D. et al. Predictors of refusal during a multi-step recruitment process for a randomized controlled trial of arthritis education. Patient Educ Couns 73, 280–5 (2008)[2]Bower, P. et al. Interventions to improve recruitment and retention in clinical trials: a survey and workshop to assess current practice and future priorities. Trials 15, 399 (2014)

Questionnaire score:10 = Very likely to engage in arthritis research

0 = Unwilling to engage in arthritis research

Intervention showed a significant increase in patient/healthcare professionals willingness to engage in arthritis research

Intervention showed a significant increase in awareness of arthritis research

Questionnaire score:10 = Very aware of current arthritis research

0 = Unaware of arthritis research

CONCLUSION The NIHR overarching vision is to see ‘more patients and health professionals

participating in health research’

Engaging patients/health professionals in arthritis research days may be an opportunity to improve health research participation and innovation

Research engagement and involvement days may be useful in other disease areas where patient recruitment is problematic

Session DescriptionWhat is Clinical Research? Overview of clinical research and its importance

Arthritis Research – A Patient Perspective A patient experience of arthritis research Opportunity for questions and discussion

What is a Clinical Trial? Describing the basics of a clinical trial. Followed by a practical demonstration of a clinical

trial (using chocolate!)

Current Research Areas in Arthritis Research Current areas (existing and planned) of arthritis research

Workshop: Unmet needs in Arthritis Research

Small group working (led by disease specialists) to identify unmet needs in arthritis research.

Larger group discussion of ideas

Keeping in touch with Arthritis Research Ways to keep in touch and stayed involved with arthritis research