5 Common Challenges in Clinical Research and How Software Solutions Can Solve Them

Clinical Research is critical for medical advancement and bringing new medicine to the marketplace. However, clinical researchers often face many challenges – Patient Recruitment. Retention. Data Management. Regulatory Compliance. And many others.

With the Availability of Software Solutions, clinical researchers can easily tackle all the challenges. Specialized Clinical Trial Management Systems offers robust tools for patient scheduling, study monitoring, and data capture.

Clinical research teams can improve operational efficiencies, reduce mistakes, and accelerate study timelines by utilizing CTMS. This blog post shares the 5 challenges clinical researchers face and how software solutions can solve them.

What is Clinical Research?

Clinical research involves testing new medical ideas to find better ways to treat illness. The clinical research process typically includes – Scientists recruiting volunteers, giving them new treatments, analyzing the results, and deciding whether the treatment works and is safe.

CR is the key to medical advancement in today’s healthcare industry. Clinical Research enables the development of new treatments, medications, and interventions that can improve patient outcomes.

Related: Easily Speed Up Clinical Trial Management with OpenEMR in 2023

5 Common Challenges in Clinical Trials

Clinical Research often has many challenges – Volunteers Recruitment, Compliance with Regulations, Managing Multiple Software, Data Management, and more.

#1 Challenges in Recruiting Volunteers and Retention

One of the biggest challenges clinical trials face is recruiting and retention volunteers. Checking eligibility criteria, geographical limitations, and patient apprehensions can all be difficult. Researchers often need help finding the right volunteers who meet the eligibility criteria for their study. This becomes more of a hurdle, particularly for rare medical conditions.

Additionally, ensuring volunteer retention throughout the study can be challenging. This may occur due to several factors such as time commitment, travel requirements, and potential side effects associated with the interventions being tested.

Solution

• Leveraging clinical trial software can help identify and match eligible participants.
• The software can validate the right volunteers based on the ongoing trial for specific criteria.
• Additionally, mobile apps and patient portals can facilitate communication, reminders, and engagement with participants.
• This will rapidly improve retention rates.

#2 Challenges with Regulatory Compliance

Another complex challenge in clinical research is regulatory compliance. The regulations and guidelines are designed to ensure conducting safe trials Navigating regulatory compliance can be daunting tasks that require extensive documentation. Record-keeping. Protocol adherence.

Non-compliance can lead the clinical trial to costly delays, study termination, or also legal consequences.

Solution

• Leveraging clinical trial management software can smoothen up the documentation process. Automate record-keeping and ensure compliance guidelines.
• Electronic data capture (EDC) systems with built-in tools will have data validation rules and audit trails that can support regulatory compliance.

#3 Challenge with Data Management

In clinical research, data management and data integrity is paramount. The accuracy and reliability of data are essential for decision-making. 

However, clinical trials involve managing larger volumes of data from multiple sources, which can be challenging. Moreover, human errors, inconsistent data capture, and lack of standardization can compromise data quality. 

Solution

• Electronic data capture (EDC) with built-in data validation rules, edit checks, and automated query management can improve data quality.
• Data integration and interoperability solutions can facilitate seamless data exchange between different systems and data sources.

#4 Challenge with Funding and Resource Allocation

Clinical research is a resource-extensive endeavor. It often requires financial investment and access to specialized personnel and facilities. Securing sufficient funding can be challenging, especially in an earlier stage. There can be competition for limited financing sources, such as subsidies from the government and private investments.

Solution

• Utilizing clinical trial management software to identify potential funding opportunities more easily.
• Project management and resource allocation tools can optimize the utilization of personnel and equipment across multiple studies.
• Cloud computing can provide scalable and cost-effective access, reducing the infrastructure cost.

#5 Challenge with Stakeholder Engagement

Clinical trials involve an array of stakeholders. Common stakeholders in clinical trials include researchers, sponsors, regulatory bodies, healthcare providers, and patient communities. Effective communication among the stakeholders is crucial for successful trial execution. 

Solution

• Clinical trial management software can facilitate real-time information sharing and documentation exchange among stakeholders.
• Patient engagement platforms like patient portals enable two-way communication which promotes transparency within patient communities.
• Virtual meetings and conferencing enable remote participation, reducing travel costs.

By leveraging these solutions, clinical trials can: 

• Simplify process
• Improve data quality
• Ensuring regulatory compliance
• Optimize resource allocation
• Effective collaboration among stakeholders

These technologies have the potential to speed up the clinical research process, ultimately leading to faster delivery of safe treatments to patients.

Related: Can large clinics use OpenEMR? [Top 8 challenges & shotgun solutions]

CapMinds Customized Solution for Clinical Trial Management

Leveraging Clinical Trial Management software can be daunting. But with the help of CapMind’s customized solution, providers can easily adapt the technology, and improve workflow efficiency. 

CapMinds is a leading health tech service provider offering various solutions like OpenEMR customization, various health tech solutions, Modern UX/UI, customization, interoperability, HL7 FHIR, and others. Our customizable solution will customize your clinical trial management system to make sure it resonates with your practice. 

“Utilize CapMinds Healthtech solution for your practice for better clinical trial management”