Developing Clinical Trial Recruitment Materials

Introduction

Charity is one Alchemy’s core company values. We are fortunate enough to be able to lend a hand to those in need, not just through monetary donations, but through our skills and expertise. In 2024, we approached a very special charity, Tourettes Action, to offer pro bono medical writing services. Tourette’s Syndrome (TS) is a widely misunderstood condition and Tourettes Action do important work to raise awareness and support patients and families affected by it.

Challenge

Tourettes Action have lots of informative content on all aspects of TS on their website in the form of downloadable factsheets. However, several of these factsheets had not been updated in quite some time and were needing a refresh. Additionally, Tourettes Action wanted brand new factsheets detailing current treatment options.

Approach

Firstly, we met with Tourettes Action’s CEO and Communications Project Manager to discuss how we could use our professional expertise to help them in a meaningful way. Clear, unbiased information can make a big difference to patients when navigating a health condition and we felt that our skill set matched perfectly with the charity’s need to update their factsheets. We were provided with a list of factsheets that needed either developed or updated, covering topics such as symptoms, causes, interacting with medical professionals, and co-occurring conditions.

Once the scope of the project was defined, a Senior Medical Writer with a special interest in writing for patients was charged with coordinating the tasks and liaising with Tourettes Action. All members of the writing team at Alchemy were encouraged to use any gaps between their projects to help with creating the factsheets.

To ensure the project ran smoothly and the output was of high quality, we

Built a project tracker and set out individual task briefs.
Created a template and lexicon to help ensure consistency across the materials.
Used our research skills to seek out the most up-to-date and clinically relevant scientific literature on TS.
Ensured patient-friendly language was used throughout.
Provided clear instructions on layout, as well as design suggestions, to help make the final factsheets eye-catching and accessible.
Internally reviewed and fact checked all materials to ensure accuracy and readability.
Responded flexibly to new requests that arose from Tourettes Action.

Worked closely with the charity to make any requested amends, ensuring they were satisfied with the final drafts.

Result

Several new or updated factsheets have been published on Tourettes Actions’ website, making clear and up-to-date information freely available to those that need it. We have not only helped the charity to improve the quality of its patient-facing materials but have saved them time and valuable resources in undertaking this work for them, for which they have expressed their appreciation.

Our collaboration with the charity is ongoing as our writers continue to use their time between client projects to lend a hand. This project is providing our medical writers with a rewarding way to use their professional expertise for social good, making this a mutually beneficial arrangement.

Summary

Alchemy provided pro bono support to our charity partner, Tourettes Action, to refresh their website’s resources with the latest information from the scientific literature, translated into patient-friendly, accessible language. We are proud to see our work improving understanding of Tourette syndrome across the UK, making a direct difference to patients’ lives.

You can find out more about Tourette’s Action, or leave a donation to support their ongoing work, here: https://www.tourettes-action.org.uk/