Advising AIDS Participate in Patients Who Clinical Trials

Many individuals infected with HIV are offered an opportunity to participate in clinical trials on investigational therapies. The duty to avoid creating unrealistic expectations for such patients is important, both as a matter of medical ethics and for purposes of maintaining credibility. This duty often conflicts with the need to offer HIV-infected patients hope and to support their psychological well-being. We offer some recommendations that evolved in the setting of a county hospital with a busy AIDS program.