Is it safe to volunteer for clinical research?

My son is currently admitted to Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), Boston being treated for manic episode. He suffers from biporal disorder (BPD). He is supposed to attend his MBA classes at JWU, Rhodes Island from Sept 5 and was living in Boston with some friends. I am in Nepal strggling to support my family and can not afford to support this son in his studies and medical bills. He does not have a medical insurance also. Uncer such circumstances, he being a typical case of a BPD patient can offer himself as volunteer for research in the field of BPD, and get his medical bills waived, because as I learned from their web site MGH is ranked no.1 in US in the field of psychiatry. I need some expert advice on how safe is it to offer yourself as ginea pig for clinical research?

Is it safe to volunteer for clinical research?
Usually it's OK, but it can be dangerous. I'd be careful with it.





I think Massachusetts has a pretty good health insurance system, for people without money. The hospital should have a social worker who would know about that, and could help him sign up for it . If he's not a citizen, I'm not sure if he can get it, but it might still be worth looking into.





I'd check into other low-cost ways of getting care, too, before going the research route. Can he get it through his school? Or through a clinic? Sometimes doctors get free samples they can give out, or drug companies have programs where they give poor people free drugs.





Good luck- it's hard having to deal with something from so far away, and without money. Can you e-mail his hospital and ask to talk with a social worker? Or one of your son's doctors, caseworkers or therapists?
Reply:If volunteering for clinical and drug research wasn't safe, the FDA wouldn't allow it.








One thing to consider is whether or not your son has any medical coverage through his college.











Good Luck.
Reply:Unless they're actively SEEKING participants for a particular study, you can't just go "offering" yourself to people for a thing like that.
Reply:If thr research is though a hospital then it sould be safe they might not treat him though when they do a reseach study some peploe are a control group and get not treatment or get fake treatment they will explan this to you but in most cases they cant tell you if you where chosen to get treamnet or not as it would thourgh of the study they need to inform you of every thing they can before you agree to participate but like I said they can not tell you if you where getting real tretment untill after the study becuse if would really thorgh it off altough some studys everyone getts treatment but one group gets standard treatment and one group gets new treatment legaly they have to give you as much infrmation and anser as many quetions as they can as long as if does not through off there results and after the study they will fill you in compleatly
Reply:As others have said, a study would need to be in place. Clinical research is done to determine whether or not a particular treatment is safe. Research involving drugs and other chemical treatments has a high risk, otherwise the drug would go straight to market.





I was a forced guinea pig as a child while in state custody.