Info for the Public & Research Subjects

The staff at the University of Iowa's Human Subjects Office has developed this web page to provide you with additional sources of information about participating in a research study (also sometimes called a "clinical trial" or "clinical study" when patients are involved).  We hope that you will find the answers to many of your questions by following the links below. Please do not hesitate to contact the Human Subjects Office at 319-335-6564 if you have additional questions regarding the rights of research subjects. 

For more information on your Rights as a Research Subject click on the blue highlighted words.

Research Studies at th​e UI and the Iowa City VAMC

There are over 4,000 research studies in progress at the University of Iowa at any given time.  Many research studies involving human participants (often referred to as subjects) take place at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics (UIHC).  However, research studies are conducted in many other UI departments, including Psychology, Sociology, Anthropology, and many more.  Research studies are also conducted at the Iowa City Veteran's Administration Hospital.

The following links provide some resources for you to find out more about research being conducted at the University of Iowa:

Noon News - The University of Iowa Health Care (UIHC) newsletter sometimes advertises for volunteers for research studies.
Clinical Research and Trials at the UIHC
Clinical Trials.gov - This site is a service of the National Institutes of Health and has a search function.
VA Sponsored Clinical Trials – This site is located on the Office of Research and Development.

Researchers also often place advertisements in local newspapers or on public transportation. If you are a patient at UIHC or the Iowa city VAMC, one of your physicians might tell you about research studies for which you are eligible.

Research Participation Resources

The US Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP), under the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), focuses on the protection of the rights, welfare and wellbeing of human research participants.

The public outreach page of the OHRP website provides information and resources to help people make informed decisions about participating in a research study. The webpage includes:

OHRP periodically posts new videos or other content on their website. All resources are written in lay terms for the general public. They are all available in English and Spanish.