Some people join health studies because they want to help other people or contribute to society. Others join because they want to play a role in discovering new knowledge, or because they feel a particular study might benefit them personally.
The friendly staff in our research clinic ensure that all volunteers fully understand and consent to any study before joining. Once you join a study, the staff carefully protect your confidentiality. They also strive to make your clinic visits pleasant as well as thorough. Read more >>
CHR Studies Now Recruiting
Joining a study is voluntary, free, and does not affect your health care or coverage. Members often receive gift cards as thanks for their participation. Current study openings and contact information are listed here.
Helping people with COPD
The Long-Term Oxygen Treatment Trial (LOTT) study is recruiting people with COPD who are not using oxygen in order to study the effect of supplemental oxygen on health. The study is recruiting people who are at least 40 years old, have COPD with shortness of breath, have Medicare Part A & Part B, and meet a few other guidelines. We would like to invite you to a group informational session here at CHR where we will talk about the study in detail and answer any questions you might have. If you want to learn more about this study, please call 503-335-6613 or 1-866-450-4940 (toll free).
Preventing flu in pregnant women
The Pregnancy and Influenza Project (PIP) will follow a group of pregnant women to see if they develop the flu or acute respiratory illness. The study will help researchers understand if the H1N1and seasonal flu shots help prevent the flu in pregnant women and if they help prevent mothers from passing the flu on to their babies. The study will also help us determine whether or not chronic medical conditions affect how sick a pregnant woman becomes if she contracts the flu, and how delivery and the baby’s health might be impacted. For more information, please call 503-335-6656 or 1-877-842-9580. This study is funded by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).
Providing the most advanced treatments for cancer
Kaiser Permanente members who have been diagnosed with cancer are eligible to participate in important cancer clinical trials. Ask your doctor if you may be eligible for one of our clinical trials or call the Oncology Recruitment Office at 503-331-6537.
A study for expectant moms
Would you like to improve your health and your baby’s health at the same time? If so, we would like to talk to you about Healthy Moms, a study that will be testing a new program designed to help significantly overweight women control weight gain during pregnancy. Everyone who joins the Healthy Moms study will meet with a health counselor to develop a nutrition plan. Healthy diets can help you control weight gain and keep your baby healthy. Half of the participants will also be asked to attend weekly weight management classes at the Center for Health Research until they deliver their baby. All study participants will be asked to return for follow-up measurements while they are pregnant and in the year following the birth of their baby.
The Healthy Moms study is available only to Kaiser Permanente Northwest members. If you would like to learn more about this study, please call us at 503-335-2493 or our toll free number is 866-331-8046. More information about the study is available at www.kpchr.org/healthymoms/public. This study is funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.
Helping women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer
At Kaiser Permanente, we are always looking for ways to help our patients, especially new breast cancer patients. Such patients have many questions and are looking for an easy way to get trustworthy information about breast cancer, treatment options, and what to ask their doctors. They are also interested in support resources and want to learn from the experiences of other women.
To meet this need, we have developed a new WISE website (Women’s Information and Support Evaluation) for women who have recently been diagnosed with breast cancer. The WISE-CHESS study will begin recruitment of new breast cancer patients (women only) in late October. For information, call Oncology Research at 503-331-6513.
Helping people breathe easier
The IBV Valve Trial is studying a non-surgical way to help people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or emphysema breathe easier. If you are younger than 75, do not smoke, and are short of breath walking on flat ground, call Kathy Arnold, study coordinator, at 503-331-6017 to learn more.
Helping people on special medications lose weight
The STRIDE project may be of interest to people who are overweight and taking antipsychotic medication. STRIDE is a group program with personalized support to help people lose weight and learn about healthy lifestyle choices. Volunteers must be Kaiser Permanente members or Cascadia Behavioral Health clients, at least 18 years old, overweight, taking an antipsychotic medication, and willing to be assigned by chance to the STRIDE weight loss program or to no treatment. To learn more, please call the study coordinator at 503-528-3962 or 1-866-206-2976 (toll free).
Helping women regain sexual interest
Is your sex life less satisfying than you would like? Following menopause, many women suffer from decreased sexual desire, a condition called hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD). We are recruiting women with HSDD for a pharmaceutical trial of testosterone gel, rubbed on the upper arm daily, that may increase libido. For the first part of the BLOOM study, we are recruiting women 30 to 65 who have gone through menopause and who are taking estrogen or would be willing to take estrogen for at least 11 months. If interested, please call the study coordinator at 503-528-3946.