Landscape of Participant-Centric Initiatives for Medical Research in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Japan: Scoping Review (Preprint)

Abstract

BACKGROUND Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has made remarkable progress in recent years, and is being increasingly applied to medical research. This technology has the potential to facilitate the active involvement of research participants. Digital platforms that enable participants to involve in the research process are called participant-centric initiatives (PCIs). Several PCIs have been reported in the literature, but no scoping reviews have been carried out. Moreover, detailed methods and features to aid a clear definition of PCIs have not been sufficiently elucidated to date. OBJECTIVE The objective of this scoping review is to describe the recent trends in and features of PCIs across the United States, the United Kingdom, and Japan. METHODS We applied a methodology suggested by Levac et al. to conduct this scoping review. We searched electronic databases (MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, CINAHL, and IchushiWeb), sources of grey literature, Internet search engines (Google and Bing), and hand searched through key journals and reference lists of the relevant articles. Medical research using ICT was eligible for inclusion, if there was a description of the active involvement of the participants. RESULTS Ultimately, 21 PCIs were identified, that have implemented practical methods and modes of various communication activities, such as patient forums and use of social media in the field of medical research. Various methods of decision making that enable participants to become involved in setting the agenda were also evident. CONCLUSIONS This scoping review is the first study to analyze the detailed features of PCIs and how they are being implemented. By clarifying the modes and methods of various forms of communication and decision making with patients, this review contributes to a better understanding of patient-centric involvement, which can be facilitated by PCIs.