The role of the study clinicians at the UW AIDS Clinical Trials Unit is to evaluate and monitor patients participating in a research study. We do not provide primary care. However, the roles of researcher and primary care provider are interconnected in the co-management of patients on experimental studies. Good communication between our study team and a patient's primary health care provider is important to ensure optimal patient care.

If you would like more information about a particular study, or to see whether one of your patients is eligible for a study, please call us at (206)744-3184, or email us at actu@u.washington.edu. We would be happy to review the design, entry requirements or on-study evaluations with you. In many cases we can fax you information directly from the study protocol. Alternately, you can have your patient contact us directly at the same number.

In some studies, the patient is required to initiate a new antiretroviral regimen at study entry. The study clinician will provide any available screening information - such as genotyping - to you and will work closely with both you and your patient as the components of the regimen are decided upon.

It is our policy to ask all patients who are considering entering a study to discuss the study with their health care provider prior to enrolling.

Once a patient has entered a study, we will send copies of laboratory results to you, usually within 2-3 weeks of the study visit. If a markedly abnormal or unexpected lab value or physical finding is noted, we will contact you and/or your patient expediently.

We would appreciate hearing from you concerning any significant clinical events in your patient's care, such as abnormal lab values, new diagnoses, use of medications potentially contraindicated by the study protocol, or any other issue of concern to you.

We will contact you when your patient stops receiving study drug, or comes off of a study for any reason. On blinded studies, the study drug assignment will be sent to you and your patient after the study ends, once the information is available. We will also keep you apprised of any study results that the study team releases to our clinic.

We obviously believe in the importance of research in the management of HIV, and hope that you, too, support the need to have timely and accurate information available when determining the course of action to take with your patients. Our goal is to work together with you and with your patient to accomplish this. Please contact us with any feedback or suggestions you may have to help us reach this goal.