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In an earlier article called “What is Health Research?”, we shared some brief general information about what health research is and what it looks like. Now, let’s cover the types of research studies that Evidation Studies (formerly Achievement Studies) focuses on.
What types of Studies can people participate in?
There are several ways you can participate in research with Evidation Studies, including:
Single Surveys
Yes! It is as simple as it sounds. We often ask our participants to answer just a single survey. In addition, we might ask you to share your recent activity data (from your activity tracker - like a Fitbit, Garmin, Apple Watch, etc). This information already exists in your activity tracker, so it’s quick and easy to share, if you choose to do so. Remember - your activity data belongs to you! We do not use it for research purposes unless you say we can!
Observational Studies
We do many observational studies, and they can range in effort and length from one week all the way to several years long. We often ask you to answer surveys about your health and health experience at regular times (such as once per day or once per month). We may also ask you to share your activity tracker data with us, or complete a lab test in the comfort of your own home (like a quick and easy swab of your nose or cheek).
Below, you can learn more about some of the highlights of our research!
We live and breathe ‘Decentralized’ research
The majority of our research is decentralized, which means people can participate in studies from where they are, locally. People who typically would not be able to participate in health research at big hospitals and universities can have the chance to join an online study from the comfort of their home.
This allows Evidation Studies to invite a diverse group of people to participate, regardless of their geographic location.
We do, occasionally, ask participants to travel to a local laboratory or care provider - but this is clearly explained before anyone chooses to participate. We make sure that any requests like these are as quick and easy to complete as possible.
What does ‘PGHD’ or ‘Person-Generated Health Data’ have to do with it?
Evidation Studies uses what is called ‘Person-Generated Health Data’ (PGHD). PGHD is information from a person, like responses from surveys, activity and sleep data from wearables, and more!
PGHD can:
- help researchers better understand health on an individual level.
- contain clues to help find patterns within groups of people that live with a similar disease.
- capture information beyond what we remember to tell our healthcare providers at our regular visits.
- help researchers explain “How does this disease impact your everyday life?” and “How can we detect and treat this illness more effectively?”
We look at all sorts of PGHD to understand what a person’s health experience is like outside the doctor’s office. This includes expertise in looking at data from common wearables like a watch or activity tracker or from more unique sources like air quality sensors.
We are proud of the research we conduct and look forward to the incredible ways our work contributes to health science going forward.
Want to know more about any of our Evidation Studies and how to get involved? Reach out to us at study@evidation.com and one of our friendly team members can help you get started.
If you want additional general information on health research, we recommend checking out the following public resources:
