How Remote Monitoring Enhances Trial Efficiency and Patient Safety

In a recent video interview with Applied Clinical Trials, Luke Wilson, senior director, biotech, pharma services, Thermo Fisher Scientific, discussed the role of data visibility in clinical trials, emphasizing the need for actionable data to meet aggressive timelines and budgets. Remote monitoring is crucial for quick decision-making and patient safety, reducing site burdens and leveraging advanced technology. Integrated systems help study sponsors meet evolving regulatory expectations by removing data silos and streamlining inspection processes. Barriers to real-time trial oversight include data silos and the need for integrated systems. Best practices for decentralized trials include unified data management, clear SOPs, and governance pathways to ensure operational alignment and regulatory compliance.

ACT: How can clinical operations teams leverage remote monitoring to make faster, more informed decisions without compromising data quality or patient safety?

Wilson: It's really important with clinical trials at the moment that we have the opportunity to act quickly on data. Again, patient safety is critical. If we think about certain sites that we have to closely monitor the performance and the safety of the patient, it’s really important that we can leverage remote monitoring, so there's that live connection with sites. If we think about improving the patient outcome and the patient experience, this is front of mind, but also secondary to that, where I think it's really important that we think about the clinical trial sites as well, and reducing the burden as much as possible. That coupled with some of the latest and greatest technology, where there are certain devices and platforms that we can leverage, I think this seems to be an expanding area of the market and an expanding opportunity to optimize clinical trials.