Closing The Gap and Raising Patient Care Standards

We all know that clinical trials are a critical part of medical research and that they play a crucial role in the development of new treatments and therapies. However, recruiting patients to participate in clinical studies can be a challenging task. It has been reported that only 9% of the population in the United States, has been invited to participate in clinical research and less than half of those invited actually enroll (Source: HINTS briefs Number 48 (Health Information National Trends Survey). However, the task is not insurmountable; we will identify opportunities to reach potential participants; screen them for eligibility; ethically consent them; and enroll those who meet the study’s criteria.

In 2022 it was reported that almost 1.4 million participants were needed to meet the enrollment requirements across active Phase 3 studies, and less than half of those studies reported meeting the enrollment requirements in the last five years (Source: ClinicalTrials.gov; RSM US LLP). This is where technology solutions, patient concierge services and decentralized clinical trials (DCTs) are gaining traction, having the potential to make a huge impact within clinical research. In this blog, we will explore how technology platforms and concierge services can pre-screen patients for recruitment in clinical trials, as well as fill in the gaps for patient care, where those tasks fall outside of a traditional clinical study team’s role.

Patient Concierge Services for Pre-Screening Patients

Patient concierge services can help pre-screen patients for clinical trials by providing a personalized and comprehensive approach to patient recruitment. Here are some ways our team can help, specifically with pre-screening patients:

1. Personalized Communication: Our patient concierge services team members are trained on each specific study’s protocol and can communicate with patients in an empathetic manner in multiple languages, to explain the clinical trial process and answer any questions they may have. This can help build trust with patients and encourage them to enroll in the study, should they be eligible to do so.
2. Patient Navigations: Patient concierge services can guide patients through the clinical trial process by providing them with important information about the study, scheduling appointments, and coordinating transportation to and from a site or for in-home care.
3. Financial Assistance: Patient concierge services can provide financial assistance to patients who may face financial barriers to participating in a clinical trial. This can include covering the cost of transportation, lodging, and other expenses associated with participating in the study.
   
4. Follow-Up and Support: Patient concierge services can provide follow-up and support to patients throughout the clinical trial process. This can include regular check-ins to ensure patients are adhering to the study’s protocols and providing them with emotional support.

Technology Solutions Support a Personalized Touch

Delve Health’s technology platform, Clinical StudyPal, can also efficiently support your team’s efforts, adding to the cost-effectiveness of your overall solution to pre-screen patients for clinical trials. Here are some ways technology can help with pre-screening patients:

1. Our team works within our clients’ systems to access the provided recruitment leads for each specific study.
2. Our team acquires an understanding of a specific trials protocols through training and then identifies possible patients who have expressed an interest in participating; they then reach out to the patients to pre-screen them to see if they meet the qualification criteria.
3. Once a patient has been recruited into the study, Clinical StudyPal can be utilized to seamlessly eConsent patients from their home; provide patient support; medication reminders; appointment reminders and “nudges” via SMS messaging to remind them to comply with filling out eDiaries, etc., via automated workflows.
   

As you can see, concierge services provide patients with a more personalized experience via a one-on-one human connection, throughout their participation in your clinical trial. This relationship builds trust and therefore enables patients to feel well-informed, safe, and empowered to take charge of their own health by volunteering for a clinical trial. From recruitment to completion, our Patient Concierge Services team can assist patients 24/7, in multiple languages (i.e., currently English, Spanish, French and Arabic).

A technology solution, like Clinical StudyPal, can further enhance this experience by removing social determinants of health challenges (SDOH), such as geographical location and the time and expense to travel to a specific site versus participating virtually in a clinical trial. By working to remove the barriers SDOH create, our solution acknowledges the need and increases diversity in trials—reaching patients who would otherwise be overlooked.  At Delve Health we use our unique technology platform to further support patients via concierge services to help pre-screen for recruitment in clinical trials. These tools can identify potential patients who meet the study’s criteria, provide personalized communication and support and guide patients through the clinical trial process.

By leveraging technology solutions and patient concierge services, clinical trial recruiters can streamline the patient recruitment process, remove barriers, broaden access, and increase enrollment success.

Learn more about how Delve Health’s uniquely qualified team, supported by our customizable technology platform, streamlines the patient recruitment process and works as an extension of your clinical study staff—saving your team time and money.