Research
The rules came first.
Studies are being designed. None has begun. Before the first one, these rules were written down, and they bind every study in the work, now and later.
They were written while the first study was still on the drafting table, because rules made after the data are not rules. They are not relaxed for any result, partner or deadline.
I am biased and I am recognizing it, right now. Yes, I do want the outcomes to land a certain way, of course I do. The standards, these high standards which must be set must be recorded as rules and adhered to at all times.
David Wade Pope, 26 October 2026
The sixteen rules
1
The founder’s hopes for the outcome are disclosed in writing, in the protocol, before enrollment.
2
The founder has no access to study data, interim or final, and sees results only when they are public.
3
The founder takes no part in choosing any device, software or vendor the study uses.
4
The study is led by an independent principal investigator and sponsor, with an independent data and safety monitoring board and an independent statistician.
5
Outcomes are set at the level the evidence supports, never beyond it.
6
The protocol and the statistical analysis plan are registered and locked before any unblinded data is seen.
7
No outcome is added, dropped, reordered or redefined after data exist. Any change before that point is dated, explained and published.
8
Every result is published, a null or negative result included, in full and on time.
9
Consent to care is never bundled with consent to research. Research participation is never a condition of service.
10
The rooms of recovery are sanctuary: no recruitment through them, and no list.
11
Faith, prayer and fellowship are never randomized or prescribed by a study. They may be recorded, with consent, and reported only as association.
12
Every participant receives a plain-language summary of what was found.
13
If a treatment helps, participants keep access to it after the study.
14
Exclusions are as narrow as safety allows, so the people most in need are not screened out.
15
People with lived experience hold a real voice in the design, conduct and reporting.
16
Good Clinical Practice (ICH E6) is followed at all times. Where a rule here and a regulation differ, the stricter one governs.
Nothing described here is yet in operation.