St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton is an academic, patient-centered research hospital, with over 200 principal investigators and over 600 research staff and students. We conduct clinical, translational, evaluative, and fundamental research to improve treatment, diagnostics, and care.

Access Research is a process that allows researchers to request basic patient contact information in order to reach out to patients who may be eligible for participation in a research study. Similar systems have been put in place by other hospitals in Ontario, including CAMH, Holland-Bloorview, and Baycrest, with overwhelming success.

Thanks to the implementation of an electronic medical record system – Dovetale – St. Joe’s is able to deliver a similar system for research contact called Access Research. 

Access Research allows our researchers to contact patients who are eligible to participate in research studies.

Inclusion in the program is not the same as informed consent for research participation – it merely allows the patient to be contacted to ask if they are interested in being part of a research study. Every patient has the right to withdraw from participation in this program.

Access Research empowers patients with the knowledge of research participation opportunities in groundbreaking studies at St. Joe’s. The program increases equitable access to research and offers patients a way to support local research that can have a global impact.

Access Research represents the future of equitable and efficient study recruitment at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton.