The HERO-HCQ Study

STUDY BASICS

Are you a healthcare worker who has direct exposure to patients with COVID-19? If so, you may be able to participate in a research study to help find out if taking hydroxychloroquine can prevent COVID-19 infection in healthcare workers who are at a high risk for contracting the virus. Participation includes 2 in-person visits over 2 months.

STUDY PURPOSE

Healthcare workers who have direct contact with COVID-19 patients are at an increased risk of becoming infected with the virus themselves. The purpose of this research study is to find out if a drug called hydroxychloroquine (also known as Plaquenil X®) is safe and effective for the prevention of COVID-19 infection in healthcare workers who are at high risk for contracting the virus. Hydroxychloroquine is FDA-approved to treat malaria and certain inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis and lupus but is not approved for use in COVID-19.

COULD THIS STUDY BE RIGHT FOR YOU?

• Ages 18 and up
• Healthcare worker with direct exposure to patients with COVID-19

WHAT PARTICIPANTS CAN EXPECT

Interested participants will first be asked to join the Healthcare Worker Exposure Response & Outcomes (HERO) Registry, which is a national effort to collect information from healthcare workers in order to better understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

If eligible for the HERO-HCQ Study, participation will last about two months. During the initial visit, participants will be randomly assigned (like the flip of a coin) to take either hydroxychloroquine or a placebo for 30 days. A placebo does not have medicine in it but looks like the hydroxychloroquine pill. Participants will also be asked to answer questions, complete surveys, have a blood draw, and have a nasopharyngeal swab for COVID-19 testing. These procedures will be repeated at a second visit about one month later.

Participants will not be compensated but will be given the results of their nasal swab COVID-19 test after the study is over. Parking validation provided.