Descriptive Study on Motivation and Barriers to Participation in Clinical Trials in Malaysia

Clinical trials are the preeminent method for assessing the safety and efficacy of novel medical interventions, thereby facilitating the advancement of evidence-based healthcare. However, recruiting subjects is not an easy task. Hence, this study aimed to identify the motivations and barriers to participation in clinical trials. A survey was used for data collection and analysis and a questionnaire was developed to derive effective outcomes based on a literature review. A survey was conducted on 351 participants whereby 204 (58.1%) revealed a willingness to engage in clinical trials, while 147 (41.9%) refused to participate. 199 participants (56.7%) claimed awareness of clinical trials. 37.0% participants admitted that internet provided them the information on clinical trials. This finding is not surprising since majority of the participants are composed of younger population aged between 18 to 24 years (47.6%) and 25 to 34 years (25.3%). Nevertheless, awareness did not translate into willingness to participate where only 93 out of 167 participants aged 18-24 years were willing to participate. This study showed that participants are primarily motivated by personal benefit when volunteering by considering to further information about the condition as the most important motivation to participate. Meanwhile the most significant barrier to participation was fear of risks or complications involved in clinical trials, with 205 participants (58.4%). This study also revealed that the health state of the participants would affect their willingness to participate with 257 participants (73.0%). These findings could help to provide strategies for the successful enrollment of subjects in clinical trials.