CTMS: Maximizing Your Global Clinical Trials

In an effort to reduce costs and improve quality of research, clinical trials are increasingly being offshored. According to clinicaltrials.gov the proportion of studies conducted in North America has been steadily decreasing. Moving portions of studies to geographic areas outside of the US can benefit the study in several ways:

• Larger and more diverse pool of patients

• Faster protocol approval

• Reduction in study timelines

• Improved marketing penetration

• Lower costs per patient recruited

However, there are several concerns that become important when trials are run internationally.

• Increased operating costs

• Loss of oversight

• Complicated logistics

The right CTMS can help maximize the benefits of offshoring trials while minimizing the negative aspects. The system provides transparency into recruitment and finances in real-time anywhere in the world. Milestones can also to be set and tracked remotely, and all communications can be organized, directly within the CTMS. Ideally, investigative staff in one part of the world can automatically share all relevant information with stakeholders in another, including networks, CROs and sponsors.

Organizations engaging in global clinical trials can benefit from the enhanced levels of real-time communication that comes from using a collaborative CTMS. Site and enterprise level CTMS features can work together to seamlessly share information anywhere in real time with the right people and organizations. This will help improve oversight, simplify logistics, and lower operating costs; enabling staff to focus on conducting the study. Sponsors and CROs can observe progress in real-time rather than waiting for queries to be returned. These products work seamlessly with other Clinical solutions to help researchers realize the benefits of their global trials.

Originally posted on the Bio-Optronics blog.