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To increase clinical trials and recruit patients during the COVID-19 pandemic, and it is necessary to implement digital technologies.
FREMONT, CA : For years, the virtual clinical trial has seemed to be the way of the future, so it's probably not surprising that an industry known for being fast to discuss but slow to respond has only just begun to incorporate siteless features into studies. Even wearables such as the first FitBit, a goldmine of personal health data, are still not a go-to device for collecting research data.
With Covid-19 giving a massive setback for the ongoing and prospective studies, the future of virtual clinical trials has quickly become a concerning issue. Virtual is currently the only method to finish ongoing research, start a new one, and avoid losing money and opportunities in many circumstances.
Here are some of the ways through which it is possible to perform clinical trials virtually.
Data collection
From smartphone apps to wearables and customized e-diaries, technology, gizmos, and gadgets are at the core of virtual clinical research. Clinical research is nothing without data, and the ease and speed with which data can be collected is made possible by the variety of technology available on the market accounts for a significant portion of the value of virtual trials.
Patient recruitment
The time it takes to discover, recruit, and enroll patients put a lot of strain on clinical research. Patient numbers account for about 30 percent of Phase III failures. Decentralized methods can considerably increase and speed up patient recruitment. Social media, the unexplored gold mine of patient engagement, provides global communication with potential subjects and targets them with various AI-driven technologies.
Direct-to-patient
Direct shipment of investigational medicinal products (IMPs) to patients is likely the most well-established feature of decentralized studies. Shipping can be done directly from the manufacturer or pharmacy or from the clinical trial venue, which is particularly helpful right now for trials that have been discontinued due to the Covid-19 pandemic.