Never give up on data collection checklist

• Once a participant has agreed to join the trial it is the co-ordinating centre’s responsibility to collect the data and the collaborator’s to provide it
• Get to know the way the collaborating hospitals work
• Think laterally – is there anywhere else the data needed may be stored
• Develop effective relationships with collaborators and the associated disciplines eg, nurses, GPs - remember they are all important to the trial
• Send them regular reminders for data forms
• Acknowledge their part in the trial, for example by including them in newsletter mailshots, publication lists
• Use National Health Service Central Register (NHSCR) to collect death data or trace participants – consult the experts
• In international trials it may be necessary to contact similar registries in other countries
  

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This page was last updated 13th August 2003.