Help us to ensure fair access to safe antibiotics.
If so, your experience can help us understand how and why people make these choices—and how to improve access to safe and effective antibiotics for everyone.
The SHAARE Study (Safe and Humane Access to Antibiotics through Research and Engagement) is a community-centered research project led by the Departments of Anthropology, Chemistry, and the School of Medicine at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Our goal is to better understand how people in North Carolina self-treat with antibiotics intended for aquarium fish, including products like Fish Mox, Fish Doxy, Fish Aid, MetroPlex, and others. By listening to your experiences, we aim to advocate for fair, equitable access to antibiotics that people can trust.
This is not a health enforcement or surveillance study. We are not here to judge or report anyone—we’re here to listen and learn from your real-life experience.
We are currently conducting interviews and focus groups with North Carolina residents who have used antibiotics intended for aquarium fish in the past five years.
You may be eligible to participate if...
• You live in North Carolina
• You’ve personally used aquarium fish antibiotics (like Fish Mox, Fish Aid, MetroPlex, etc.) within the past 5 years
• You are willing to take part in an in-person interview (2 hours), at a time and place that works for you and the research team
Yes. All participants will receive a $40 gift card as a thank-you for their time and contribution.
Your participation is confidential. Personal information will not be published or shared. Any data we use in reports or presentations will be anonymized.
This study has been reviewed by the UNC-Chapel Hill Human Subjects Board (IRB #25-1532). Funding has been provided by the UNC College of Arts and Sciences Seed Grant Program.
We’d love to hear from you.
Contact the SHAARE research team at SHAARE@unc.edu to ask questions or see if you are eligible to participate.
For questions or concerns about your rights as a research subject, please contact the Institutional Review Board at 919-966-3113 or by email to IRB_subjects@unc.edu.