Clinical trials are only as strong as their participants. Yet, most recruitment strategies tend to fail the very people they rely on to make them work. The traditional approach is outdated, with one-size-fits-all outreach, minimal engagement, and high dropout rates that continue to delay progress and drive up costs.
The stakes are high. While some sponsors and CROs hesitate to invest upfront in improving patient recruitment outcomes, the cost of inaction is undeniable: recruitment hurdles contribute to $40 billion in annual losses¹, while patients wait 10–15 years² for treatments that could improve or even save their lives. It’s time to move from a lead-generation mindset to a patient-centric, outcome-driven model.
Here are 7 actionable solutions you can implement today to prioritize patients and improve clinical trial outcomes.
1. Listen first: Capture patient voice before protocol design
Use patient surveys and advisory panels before finalizing your protocol.
Why it matters:
- Improve study design and relevance by designing studies that reflect real-world needs
- Develop protocols that encourage participation by addressing patient concerns and motivations upfront
- Increase patient compliance and retention by optimizing study procedures and removing unnecessary burdens to be more convenient and beneficial for participants.
2. Simulate recruitment before you launch
Run a recruitment simulation to test feasibility before the study starts.
Why it matters:
- Identify barriers early to prevent enrollment delays
- Minimize delays by avoiding costly amendments and protocol changes
- Anticipate safety concerns and adverse events to improve patient safety and trial experience
3. Expand your reach to include rare and diverse populations
Tailor outreach to underserved communities and rare disease patients.
Why it matters:
- Meet and exceed FDA and global diversity expectations while improving trial outcomes with more representative data
- Accelerate the pace of rare disease trials
- Ensure treatments are safe and effective for all populations
4. Assign every patient a companion
Pair patients with a dedicated, multilingual Patient Companion from referral to study close.
Why it matters:
- Improve patient engagement and retention by fostering trust through personalized, culturally sensitive support
- Reduce patient confusion, anxiety, and dropout rates by providing a dedicated advocate
- Enhance adherence, compliance and data quality by ensuring patients fully understand study requirements throughout the life of the trial
5. Unify your recruitment data in one platform
Track referrals, timelines, and performance across all sources, studies and sites.
Why it matters:
- Gain real-time recruitment visibility to drive faster, data-driven decisions
- Streamline interoperability and eliminate tech silos that slow decision-making so you can focus on patient care
- Quickly identify site-level issues and dropoffs
6. Support sites with hands-on resources
Provide dedicated staff who operate as an extension of the site team.
Why it matters:
- Accelerate study start-up and execution
- Ease operational burdens so sites can focus on patient care
- Enhance scalability and site performance
7. Pre-qualify with medical records and confirmed diagnosis
Include verified diagnosis and records with patient referrals.
Why it matters:
- Prevent unnecessary site visits for ineligible participants
- Reduce protocol deviations and screen failures by ensuring ineligible patients don’t progress through the study
- Lighten site workload and protect patient trust
