Participant in Research Experience Survey

The Participant in Research Experience Survey (PRES) is a confidential evaluation of our research and delivery.

The PRES is for people, including healthy volunteers, who are currently on a Clinical Research Network Portfolio study (including commercial studies) and are at a point in the study where they feel they can give their views. They don’t need to wait until the end of their study to complete the survey.

It is a High Level Objective (HLO), which means it is one of the primary performance indicators that the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) uses to evaluate the impact of the Clinical Research Network.

Feedback from research participants can help your team understand both what you are doing well, and where there are opportunities to make changes to improve the experience of participants taking part in research. As PRES responses include the site and study name, we are able to share the feedback we receive with you. In previous years we have also been able to feed back participants’ comments to Chief Investigators, which can influence current and future study design.

Past results have been highly positive, with the vast majority of respondents reporting a good experience of taking part in research. Of the 1,126 people surveyed in 2020/21, 96% said they would consider taking part in research again, highlighting that it is an overwhelmingly positive experience for participants in the region. These results can be affirming and motivating for research staff, especially the free text responses where research participants are able to share what they particularly valued about taking part. Read the full report from the 2020/21 PRES Survey.

There are a number of ways the PRES can be delivered:

1. Paper PRES - we can send you copies of the paper PRES, along with return free post envelopes. These can be handed to participants who attend in-person research appointments or they can be posted to any participants who have remote appointments.

2. Online PRES - we also have an online version that can be sent to study participants via email at an appropriate point during their research journey.

There are other marketing materials available, including:

• A4 posters

• Business cards

• Poster for TV screens

• Labels with site and study details

Surveys that can’t be linked to a specific study or site won’t count towards the CRN target. Please make sure to complete the ‘for staff use’ box in advance at the bottom of each paper survey. For the online survey, this information can be shared on a business card or in an email.

If you would like to get involved in distributing PRES to your participants, please contact our Communications Team.

PRES may not be suitable for some studies or participants. Studies may be exempt for the following reasons:

• If there are concerns over the capacity of the participant to take part in PRES

• If the study is a bi-product of a procedure (tissue sampling), or involves the collection of a one-off sample

• In situations where it is not appropriate to approach a participant e.g. trauma or grief

• If the sole participant group to be recruited are health care workers (HCWs) or medical professionals

• Where there is a one-off remote action from the participant, such as completion of a survey at a link, and no direct interaction of any format between participant and research team

• Routine data collection studies or research databases with no further participant-researcher interaction

There is more information about PRES on the CRN WE website, including an FAQ document.

If you have any other questions please contact our Communications Team.