In this video interview, Nick Frenzer, general manager of site solutions at Veeva Systems, discusses why eSource has been difficult to implement at scale, how FHIR-based technology is changing that, and what Veeva eSource means for sites, sponsors, and the broader clinical trial ecosystem.
In a recent video interview with Applied Clinical Trials, Nick Frenzer, general manager of site solutions at Veeva Systems, discussed why eSource has remained challenging to implement at scale across the industry despite years of promise, and how a new approach rooted in FHIR-based standards and a site-first philosophy could finally change that. He opened by identifying the core problem: EDC-to-EHR integration has historically produced costly, one-off connections built for individual studies or individual EHR systems, creating waste and burden for sites rather than relieving it. The premise of eSource has always been sound, with direct data capture at the site and electronic delivery to sponsors eliminating errors and reducing source data verification, but deploying and scaling it in that fragmented manner has made it largely unattainable.
Frenzer argued that truly scalable eSource requires rethinking not just the technology but the roles and relationships between sites, sponsors, and hospital IT staff. Veeva eSource is built within Site Vault, Veeva's site-owned platform, and leverages FHIR-based API standards to enable precise, automated transfer of audit-ready data elements from EHR systems into EDC. That approach reduces what previously required hundreds of hours of IT integration work to fewer than ten hours in total, a fundamental shift in what it takes to make a connection.
He emphasized that because 80% of global trials already run on Veeva technology, the company is uniquely positioned to see and connect the full picture across sites, sponsors, and CROs, and that EHR integration is a full-time organizational focus rather than a side project. For sponsors, the benefits include reduced SDV burden, complete audit traceability within a contained ecosystem, and elimination of duplicative data entry. For sites, it means freeing up staff time to spend where it matters most, which is with patients. Frenzer closed by framing the broader ambition: shaving even a month from the time required to deliver medicines to patients makes the entire effort worthwhile.
