Patient recruitment & retention are some of the most challenging aspects of conducting a clinical trial. Luckily, we have a broad selection of patient recruitment & retention webinars in this category with insights on how to find the best participants for your study and make sure they want to stay in the trial.

However, there are many strategies by which trial managers can improve recruitment efforts to make sure the right participants are enrolled in the study.

For example, those conducting clinical research are increasingly partnering with patient advocacy organizations which often maintain a registry of potential trial participants. By recruiting from a pool of patients already engaged in their own health, the enrollment process for a trial may go more smoothly.

The idea of patient-centric trials is also changing the way biomedical research is conducted and making it more patient-friendly. Trialists are limiting the number of invasive procedures required during studies, minimizing in-person study visits and even offering supports like transportation to and from sites to help reduce the burden on patients participating in the trial.

The selection of appropriate exclusion criteria also has an enormous impact on the success of enrollment and patient recruitment & retention efforts. While these criteria play an important role in protecting patient safety and ensuring data integrity, efforts must be made to ensure they aren’t unnecessarily restrictive.

There has also been renewed effort into improving patient diversity in clinical research to ensure study results are more generalizable. This has an effect on the resulting patient population that will be able to benefit from new treatments in development.

Of course, even after enrollment targets are met, study investigators face the challenge of keeping those participants engaged with the trial. Patient retention may be improved when volunteers are made to feel like an integral part of the research process and are kept informed as much as possible about outcomes.

Scroll down to find our collection of patient recruitment & retention webinars.