We believe that a fundamental contributor to the challenges of patient engagement and retention faced by the sector is a faulty perspective. Traditionally, clinical trial experiences and recruitment processes have been designed around the investigators and the pharmaceutical teams behind them. This inside-out way of thinking neglects a central element of the equation: the patient.
That’s because when patients are linearly advanced through trials as experimental subjects, it’s easy to lose the human element that is so critical to success. To begin with, in most cases patients are not aware of potential clinical trials and their purpose. When they do attempt to participate, they’re often confused and frustrated by unclear eligibility criteria and trial procedures.
It's time to redesign the clinical trial experience by embracing a more patient-centered philosophy, one where patients are as informed, actively involved and invested in the process as investigators, sponsors and healthcare professionals (HCPs) are. Then, patient participation and retention would rise while dropout rates and costs would decrease.
Moving toward a participant-centric clinical development process could begin by surveying, investigating and understanding the needs and values of patients, investigators, sponsors and other stakeholders. The new process would successfully blend the interests of all of these major stakeholders.
While engaging stakeholders has been and continues to be the biggest barrier to optimizing clinical trials, a novel approach can be informed by similar successes in patient care and hospital treatment, as well as trends in consumer experiences beyond the healthcare realm.
How can we seize the moment and transform the participant experience?
