Participant Engagement Program (PEP)

One of the biggest challenges in clinical research is finding enough people to join studies. This is important for making valid conclusions. We provide tools and resources to help research teams find participants for their studies. Our goal is to make participants feel like partners in research.

How do we engage Stanford patients?

We act as an “honest broker," a neutral party, by sending out study invitations through:

• Epic (electronic health record) MyChart/MyHealth portal

• Direct emails (if healthy volunteers included)

• Postal mail/postcards

We only connect patients with the study team if they show interest by responding to us. This helps keep their information private and gives them more control over their choices. We find potential participants by using study criteria to sort through patient data in Epic automatically. This allows us to send out thousands of invitations at once, reaching people who would not otherwise have known about the study.

How do we engage potential participants outside of Stanford? 

• Stanford Research Registry (REDCap database of research volunteers)

• Social media 

• Participate in community tabling events

• How do I get started?

1. Review PEP overview slide deck 
2. Complete PEP intake form
3. Email us to meet: engageparticipants@stanford.edu