	Global clinical trial performance and efficiency are hampered by high turnover and noncompliance among principal investigators and wide variation in investigative site experience, according to a recently completed assessment by the Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development.

	
	While the number of investigators globally now stands at nearly 40,000, a record, half of them were new to the job in 2013, the most recent year for which data are available, according to Tufts CSDD. In addition, although the highest turnover rates are observed among the least active investigators, turnover rates have been getting progressively worse among more active investigators. The report found the growth in the number of unique principal investigators is beginning to decelerate: the most recent four-year annual growth rate was 3.3% compared with the prior four-year period of 4.1% and an average of 5.6% over the last 15 years.

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Global clinical trial performance and efficiency are hampered by high turnover and noncompliance among principal investigators and wide variation in investigative site experience.