Participant Impact Report
In collaboration with
In
the
Participants’
Words
Patient Insights from Psychedelic Clinical Trials
Participant Impact Report
In collaboration with
Patient Insights from Psychedelic Clinical Trials
About this report
This report seeks to share insights collated from four patients with experiences of participating in psychedelic clinical trials with the wider psychedelic research industry. The report aims to amplify the participant perspective and highlight potential options that could improve the experience for future participants.
Authors
Ian Roullier, Leonie Schneider, Katharine Lazenby, Michael Bourne, Caroline Lilley, Fiona Dunbar, Mathieu Seynaeve, Sophia Lobo
Introduction
It is estimated that 10% of the global burden of disease is made up of mental, neurological and substance use disorders1. For many of the individuals living with these conditions, current pharmacological treatments can have negative side effects, and inadequate treatment outcomes2.
However, psychedelic science has been revitalised in the past two decades and early positive signals from modern psychedelic studies have led to a burgeoning R&D space that seeks to research the therapeutic applications of psychedelic compounds to deliver clinically meaningful results for patients in need. As psychedelic R&D continues to work with participants and patient populations, understanding their unique trial experiences is a valuable resource to the research community.
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About
The Psychedelic Participant Advocacy Network (PsyPAN) is a not-for-profit organisation that advocates for, and seeks to improve, the wellbeing of psychedelic clinical trial participants by building a community of ‘experts-by-experience’ to shape best practices across all levels of the global psychedelic sector. PsyPAN provides opportunities for its members to feed into clinical trials to ensure that the patient's voice is heard and improve the likelihood that trials and treatments have the most beneficial and positive impact on patients.
Beckley Psytech Ltd. (BPL) is dedicated to improving the lives of people suffering from neuropsychiatric disorders. As an innovative, mission-driven, clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, we aim to transform psychedelics into effective and rapid-acting medicines that are supported by rigorous scientific investigations and subject to high-quality clinical trials. We also believe in seeking to understand and add value to all of our stakeholders.
With ‘patient focus’ as a core company value, BPL is committed to seeking participant-informed insights throughout its R&D process. To this end, BPL and The Psychedelic Participant Advocacy Network (PsyPAN) formed a Patient Council in 2023.
The Patient Council comprised 4 patient experts with personal experience of participating in psychedelic clinical trials, and 3 members of BPL’s team with expertise in patient support and developing psychedelic clinical trials. All of the participants had received an active dose of a psychedelic study drug in a UK clinical trial setting.
Approach
Three Patient Council workshops were convened to gather insights into the participants’ clinical trial experience. In addition, the patient experts contributed key insights based on the collective experiences of the 70+ PsyPAN members. The three workshops reflected on four key areas:
Each workshop was recorded and transcribed to facilitate analysis of participant-generated insights that would help BPL team members identify potential actions that would be supportive of future participants' needs. The final workshop aimed to validate the identified insights and discuss potential support options. The BPL team then developed a report based on these insights and, as a final step, the report was reviewed by all the participants and amended according to their feedback.
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