Trials are important; very often they are also inefficient. Trial Forge (trialforge.org) aims to improve trial efficiency by identifying and then filling gaps in trial methods research. Coordination and collaboration are key: letting a thousand flowers bloom is all very well but it does mean that evidence to support trial decisions is patchy and accumulates very slowly. In addition to introducing Trial Forge, the talk will suggest ways in which you can contribute to it.

Professor Shaun Treweek is a health services researcher and is active in the field of efficient trial design, particularly pragmatic trial design, improved recruitment interventions for trials, the design and pre-trial testing of complex interventions and the effective presentation of research evidence. He is leading a new initiative called Trial Forge (www.trialforge.org) that aims to be more systematic about how we generate and use research evidence in making trial design, conduct, analysis and reporting decisions. He is, or has been, involved in a range of trials, including an EC FP7 trial of treatments for a rare neuromuscular condition, a trial of a lifestyle intervention for women after pregnancy, a lifestyle change trial run through football clubs and the Scottish Premier League, a trial of abdominal massage for MS patients and a lung cancer screening trial. Finally, he coordinated DECIDE, a 5-year, EC-funded project that aimed to improve the way guideline information is communicated to health professionals, patients and the public, policymakers and others.