Large research institutions have recently championed the use of virtual clinical trials. That’s because, in a virtual clinical trial, patients can interact with researchers through a device, reducing the frequency of onsite visits. During clinical development consulting, you’ll notice that virtual clinical trials cut down on or eliminate in-person patient meetings. Because of this, patients can go about their normal routines without too many disruptions. To run a clinical trial, you have to find and choose a site, sign a contract with the site, handle the site, figure out how to get supplies on-site, and deal with trial regulatory issues. And that’s not counting the patient operations that power the study itself! Researchers can save millions of dollars per study by using virtual clinical trials to streamline patient data collection, reduce trial length, and increase patient retention.
In this article, we’ll look at four reasons why forward-thinking drug manufacturers will keep conducting virtual clinical trials even after a pandemic.
No limits based on location
Traditional clinical trials typically have a smaller pool of potential participants due to the site’s remoteness. Patients must be within reasonable commuting distance, which makes recruiting from rural and suburban areas challenging. Even though 85% of patients are ready to participate in clinical trials, approximately 70% reside more than two hours from the research site, making it difficult to get the required experimental therapies. As there is no physical location for virtual trials, sponsors are free to draft guidelines that accommodate participants worldwide.
Remote participant scheduling
After choosing suitable people, you can assist them in scheduling in-person or online appointments using the auto-attendant services. With an auto-attendant, your participants can access the study whenever they want and set up their schedules whenever they want. If your at home clinical trials are complicated enough that participants need to speak to a real person to make appointments, cloud-based VoIPs enable call forwarding. Using smart call routing, participants can connect to the team member who can best address their needs in terms of answering questions, doing final screenings, and directing them to the next step. This way, your team will be able to answer more calls in fewer minutes and resolve more issues on the first try.
Improved patient engagement and compliance
A contact center is useful for patients who have inquiries regarding their therapy beyond what they’ve found online. Contact centers can help patients with adherence calls, co-pay card programs, patient assistance programs, and lifestyle and behavior support. A contact center connects patients with real people so they can have a chat about their clinical trial experience. If a patient isn’t complying with trial instructions or needs further help, a contact center agent can utilize tailored, empathic messaging to re-focus their actions and enable meaningful participation. A 360-degree view of the participant can help your team comprehend a patient’s motivations for reaching out and help both sides rapidly achieve an acceptable solution in the participant’s best interest.
Answer patient questions and complaints
Besides providing supplementary information to participants as they navigate a clinical trial, online call center services can record and report on concerns about pharmaceutical trials. To build a primary account of the trial data, call center software logs not just the call but also the agents’ notes while they chat with participants. Later, pharmaceutical firms can listen to the recordings to identify any problems or opportunities for growth.
Virtual clinical trials allow research companies to enroll more people who otherwise wouldn’t be able to participate, such as those who live in rural locations or have mobility challenges. This also helps make a study more diverse by including groups that aren’t usually looked at.