Comic strips help children understand medical research: Targeting the informed consent procedure to children's needs

•A comic strip on research was made with children to improve research information.•The new material led to high levels of understanding and user satisfaction.•Children were excited to participate and that they ‘could be a part of science’.•The children offered valuable insights that we could not have achieved without them.

ObjectiveChildren involved in medical research often fail to comprehend essential research aspects. In order to improve information provision, a participatory approach was used to develop new information material explaining essential concepts of medical research.MethodsA draft of a comic strip was developed by a science communicator in collaboration with pediatricians. The draft was presented to children participating in a clinical trial and to two school classes. Children were consulted for further development in surveys and interviews. Subsequently, the material was revised and re-evaluated in four school classes with children of varying ages and educational levels.ResultsIn the first evaluation, children provided feedback on the storyline, wording and layout. Children thought the comic strip was ‘fun’ and ‘informative’. Understanding of 8 basic research aspects was on average 83% and all above 65%, illustrating that children understood and remembered key messages.ConclusionA comic strip was developed to support the informed consent process. Children were consulted and provided feedback. The resulting material was well understood and accepted.Practice implicationsInvolving children in the development of information material can substantially contribute to the quality of the material. Children were excited to participate and to ‘be a part of science’.