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With scientific advances during the COVID-19 pandemic and expansion of artificial intelligence (AI) in research, there has been a simultaneous increase in misinformation about data collection, privacy, and sharing in clinical trials. This increase has been com-pounded by general mistrust in the clinical research industry partly because of problematic practices, such as data manipulation, withholding of safety information, and inaccurate or even non-existent results reporting. All these issues contribute to the public, patients, caregivers, and even healthcare professionals being inadequately informed about clinical research and related data usage. Through transparency, clarity, and honesty, trust can be rebuilt. Recognising the clinical research landscape has changed over the last decade and that currently available information is not developed or formatted in ways that can be easily understood, we describe creating widely accessible videos and infographics to support data literacy, utilising the most recent tools and technology for content development and dissemination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clear communication with the public and with potential clinical trial participants and their caregivers is foundational to the ethical tenets of respect, justice, and beneficence. However, health literacy, even of highly edu - cated individuals, often declines when pre - sented with complex content in unfamiliar contexts and in times of stress, all of which are characteristic of the types of situations people find themselves in when considering and participating in a research study. Here we describe an initiative to pilot the development of a cross-organisational plain language clinical research glossary to promote clarity, consistency, and transparency. The goal is to develop a common resource that can be used across clinical research stakeholder groups to increase understanding of clinical research and empower sound individual decision making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Competing Interests: Conflict-of-Interest Disclosures: Laurie Myers is an employee and stock holder of Merck Sharp & Dohme Corporation, a subsidiary of Merck & Co. Christopher Trudeau reports grants and personal fees from UAMS Translational Research Institute. Trudeau also has various independent consulting relationships with IRBs from Tufts University and the University of North Texas Health Science Center. Trudeau also does consulting work with CISCRP (the Center for Information and Study on Clinical Research Participation). Finally, Trudeau is a special government consultant for the FDA’s Risk Communication Advisory Committee.