AES and Science 37 Collaborate to Provide Virtual Trial Access

Accelerated Enrollment Solutions (AES), a business of PPD, Inc., and Science 37 are collaborating to recruit and enroll clinical trial participants who live beyond the geographic location of traditional research sites. The companies also are working to rapidly deliver continuity solutions for clinical trials affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, including the use of telehealth to remotely screen patients and conduct study visits.  

The collaboration enables AES to provide its customers with increased patient access by reaching beyond its existing, physical site infrastructure of more than 180 research sites. These patients can instead participate in AES studies through Science 37’s Metasite, a hybrid clinical trial methodology that combines traditional site visits with remote trial capabilities, allowing patients located virtually anywhere to participate in a clinical trial. The collaboration also enables Science 37 to extend its investigator network by leveraging AES’ global research network. In total, the collaboration offers multiple combinations of traditional and virtual visits for conducting highly patient-centric trials around the world.

“We are pleased to provide our customers, through our collaboration with Science 37, one of the most advanced, trial-tested approaches to clinical research virtualization,” said Roger Smith, general manager of AES. “By offering the Science 37 Metasite in conjunction with our existing network, we give our customers a taste of the future, while more patients will have the opportunity to participate in trials that might otherwise be unavailable due to location restrictions.”

In addition to managing its global research sites, AES coordinates startup, patient enrollment and study conduct under a single contract via centralized and controlled processes. Concurrently, Science 37 oversees an extensive network of telemedicine investigators, in-home nurses and clinical research coordinators who are connected by a purpose-built, integrated platform to orchestrate virtual trials, also known as decentralized clinical trials. 

“Science 37 is already renowned for our ability to conduct fully decentralized trials in the United States,” said David Coman, chief executive officer of Science 37. “Now, by combining with the extensive global reach of AES, we are building on our promise to ‘make virtual the new reality’ nearly anywhere in the world.”

The companies also are mobilizing their capabilities to join the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. This includes helping current clinical trials maintain appropriate levels of patient enrollment and study conduct through telehealth and expediting hybrid physical/virtual solutions to rapidly recruit and enroll patients in COVID-19 vaccine trials.