Opportunities and Limitations in Online Patient Recruitment for Clinical Trials
|
If you are the presenter of this abstract (or if you cite this abstract in a talk or on a poster), please show the QR code in your slide or poster (QR code contains this URL). |
Abstract
About 85% of the population in North America and Western Europe use the Internet and social media sites on a regular basis, and most of them have been going online for years to search, shop, play, and communicate. This critical mass of users and their online maturity provides an unprecedented opportunity to interactively reach millions of individuals faster and more cost-effectively than ever before.
After decades of virtually no innovation in this space, the pharmaceutical industry seems to have finally set its eyes on this channel as the ideal and definitive solution to the endemic problem of patient recruitment. From Big Pharma to niche biotech firms, regulators, investigators, charities, and patient groups – every stakeholder in medical research seems to be jumping aboard the online train.
But is the Internet the answer to the problem?
TrialReach is a patient-friendly clinical trial search engine that went live in early 2009. Since then, we’ve been working on real-life studies in different therapeutic areas, phases, languages and countries from both sides of the Atlantic, helping patients and trial sponsors find and connect with one another.
Our unique position in the sector gives us a privileged viewpoint to understand what works, what doesn’t, what should change, and why.
Conclusion
The Internet and social media provide a unique opportunity to change patient recruitment for the better. However, while the technology and user adoption are already here, there are many other important obstacles that must be cleared before the improvement is significant and widespread.
After decades of virtually no innovation in this space, the pharmaceutical industry seems to have finally set its eyes on this channel as the ideal and definitive solution to the endemic problem of patient recruitment. From Big Pharma to niche biotech firms, regulators, investigators, charities, and patient groups – every stakeholder in medical research seems to be jumping aboard the online train.
But is the Internet the answer to the problem?
TrialReach is a patient-friendly clinical trial search engine that went live in early 2009. Since then, we’ve been working on real-life studies in different therapeutic areas, phases, languages and countries from both sides of the Atlantic, helping patients and trial sponsors find and connect with one another.
Our unique position in the sector gives us a privileged viewpoint to understand what works, what doesn’t, what should change, and why.
Conclusion
The Internet and social media provide a unique opportunity to change patient recruitment for the better. However, while the technology and user adoption are already here, there are many other important obstacles that must be cleared before the improvement is significant and widespread.
Medicine 2.0® is happy to support and promote other conferences and workshops in this area. Contact us to produce, disseminate and promote your conference or workshop under this label and in this event series. In addition, we are always looking for hosts of future World Congresses. Medicine 2.0® is a registered trademark of JMIR Publications Inc., the leading academic ehealth publisher.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.