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BBK Worldwide has coupled its reputation with the singular idea that placing patient and caregiver needs as the first priority for clinical research is a win-win for all involved. For more than twenty years, BBK has promoted the company tagline, “The Patients to Find the Cure.” Having moved our collected perspectives from the days where BBK was criticized for referring to “subjects” as “patients,” the current research environment reveres “patient centricity” as the industry mantra. So, what’s next? A new concern shrouds our efforts. The notion that technological solutions are at the root of patient-centric care, in fact, may defeat the very goal the industry wishes to accomplish.

Topics: Patient Centricity, clinical research

Can you tell us what led you to start Zaggo and create the ZaggoCare System?

In 2005 my 17 year old son Zachary was diagnosed with a DIPG, a rare inoperable, malignant brain tumor, carrying a survival rate of less than 2%. My world crumbled when we learned Zach had 4-6 weeks to live. We are grateful Zach survived for 27 months, dying at 19.

My experience as Zach’s caregiver made me realize how difficult it is to navigate the medical world. It didn’t take me long to discover that the adage “You don’t know what you don’t know” is an unfortunate part of most medical journeys.

Topics: Patient Engagement, Patient Centricity

Patient centricity has become an essential element of modern healthcare – in part thanks to the tenacity of patients and caregivers. They have advocated for a place at the table with sponsors and researchers in the drug development process, informing clinical and therapeutic research with much-needed patient voice and perspective.

Topics: Patient Centricity, clinical research, life sciences

At BBK Worldwide, we are committed to improving patient engagement through patient-centric technologies and best-practices. Alongside our clinical research partners, we work to boost clinical trial awareness and simplify the clinical trial experience for patients and sites. As the healthcare industry reaffirms its commitment to improving the pathways to improved clinical research, BBK will host Harnessing the Power of mHealth for New, Better Data and Improved Patient Engagement, a webinar to discuss what's needed to leverage the power of mHealth and related technologies to the benefit of the study and the study patient on Friday, October 28, 2016 at 12:00 p.m. ET.

Topics: mHealth, Webinars, Patient Centricity

About this time each year I blog about how much I hate cancer. This year, it’s a bit tougher as my father was diagnosed with advanced head and neck cancer in June. Once again I am reminded about the difference it makes to be knowledgeable about clinical trials when making treatment decisions. We ask more questions. We explore more options. We filter what we hear through experience. And, we know when the informed consent process isn’t being done well – or even in compliance with regulations.

Topics: clinical trials, clinical research, informed consent, Patient Centricity

Over the past 5 years, digital and mobile health technology has evolved to become an indispensable tool for many professionals across the healthcare industry, improving care delivery and expanding access to useful data streams. mHealth apps, wearables and telehealth all come to mind when we think of the industry’s latest innovations, and today, we’ll be discussing another kind of technology that brings an entirely unique dynamic to the healthcare landscape. Hoolux Medical is a company that specializes in medical applications for face detection technology. With a self-contained smart box that sits in a waiting room, Hoolux Medical looks to elevate patients’ health literacy levels by delivering engaging and informative content. We interviewed CEO Ian Gallagher to weigh in on the capabilities of his company's technology and what it means for patients and medical professionals.

Topics: Face Detection, Patient Centricity, health literacy

For those looking to put patients first, empathy and communication are critical first steps. As we seek to educate and empower patients we must first understand what they’re going through and what they need. If information sharing and education are your goals, then those educational materials must resonate with your target audience. As a doctor working in pediatrics, Dr. Kate Hersov recognized that children had very few resources when trying to understand their health and the health of others. In response to this need, she cofounded Medikidz, an organization dedicated to children’s medical education that is shaping the face of pediatric healthcare and patient centricity in equal measure. We were fortunate enough to speak with Dr. Hersov about Medikidz and its patient-centric philosophy and work.

Topics: Patient Centricity, Pediatrics, mHealth

Big Data was a Big Topic at this year’s DIA Annual Meeting, and continues to be an area of interest and investment across the life sciences and healthcare industries as organizations seek to further integrate new data streams and real-time analysis into clinical R&D. Data collection, management and analysis are at the crux of everything we do here at BBK, and our clients are keenly interested in how to manage and optimize Big Data. We interviewed Brian Overstreet, CEO of Advera Health Analytics, a leading healthcare informatics company, to get their take and to see how access to meaningful data is helping to push healthcare forward. 

Topics: big data, Patient Centricity, data management, data analysis

Four years ago, my colleague and management team member here at BBK Worldwide, Rob Laurens, wrote the blog post, “How a Poster Enrolled my Clinical Trial.” I re-read it recently and thought it would be fun to look back on this article to see how our ideas about patient engagement and enrollment may have changed over the last few years thanks to technology and the rise of mHealth.

Topics: Patient Engagement, Patient Centricity, mHealth, Mobile Strategies

At last, patient centricity is much more than an industry buzzword. We’re seeing real efforts to put patients at the center of clinical research, and it’s beginning to impact all areas across the clinical research continuum.

Topics: Patient Centricity, mHealth