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Improving Diversity and Inclusion in Clinical Trials

One-on-One with Advarra

Get an IRB's perspective on improving diversity and inclusion in clinical trials by watching our interview with Michele Russell-Einhorn, Chief Compliance Officer and Institutional Official at Advarra.

BBK Worldwide Featured in Newly Published Innovations in Pharmaceutical Development™

Guide Provides In-Depth Profiles of World’s Most Disruptive Pharma Services Innovators

BBK Worldwide has been recognized as a top innovator in Innovations in Pharmaceutical Development™. This newly published guide highlights the companies and thought leaders at the forefront of innovation in the pharmaceutical development space. 

As part of our Crystal Ball series, we asked BBK Worldwide President Matt Kibby to share his predictions for 2021, which include engaging  underrepresented populations in clinical research.

Matt Kibby, Principal, President

Is there a particular trend that you expect to have a significant impact on the industry in the coming year?

With COVID-19 dominating the headlines for much of 2020, one might expect that a key development for clinical R&D in 2021 will be the continued integration and expansion of services that support the hybridization / decentralization of clinical trials. Keeping trial participants – who tend to be older and at greater risk for complications from COVID-19 – away from clinical trial sites not only reduces the risk of SARS-COV-2 infection, but also offers the possibility of enrichment of the clinical trial experience; reduces the overall visit and expense burden for patients; and, moreover, reduces the trial burden on clinical trial site healthcare professionals.

What do doctors and nurses think about solutions designed to make clinical trials easier to conduct? Are they helpful? Do they alleviate burdens? And which ones do they prefer?

In this special Pharma15 Live! segment, BBK Worldwide industry experts Matt Kibby and Aaron Fleishman discuss recent Study Voices survey results that shed light on this topic. They examine doctor and nurse perspectives on services designed to provide support in conducting clinical trials — including services for virtual, hybrid, and decentralized clinical trials.

“We were looking at whether or not doctors and nurses at sites that were conducting clinical trials would appreciate different types of services that assist with their ability to conduct them."

-Matt Kibby, Principal, President, BBK Worldwide

Putting clinical trial participation
within the context of a patient’s entire life experience.

BBK Worldwide is marking the evolution of the patient experience with the introduction of a new construct called study-life balance. It leverages patient-centric solutions to help patients more easily integrate clinical trial participation into their daily lives. 

Insights from Advarra on Managing Changes to Patient Enrollment & Engagement due to COVID-19

Get an IRB's perspective on managing clinical trial enrollment modifications due to COVID-19 by watching our interview with Michele Russell-Einhorn, Chief Compliance Officer and Institutional Official, Advarra.

For clinical trial sponsors, staying on top of the latest innovations can be a challenge, especially in an industry historically slow to adapt to change. But experts warn of the risk of falling behind, especially in light of advancing technologies that are impacting clinical trial enrollment and engagement.

While you may not be ready to embrace the use of a virtual self-service hologram—greeting patients in the doctor’s office with information about a clinical trial—there are a few key innovations that all clinical trial sponsors should keep on their radar. Below, we highlight three that are driving significant change.

All you need is a brief conversation with Andrew to understand why he’s our RSG^® Arrive Driver of the Month. A native of the Philadelphia area, he has been an RSG^® Arrive driver for over two years. His assignments include taking patients with progressive neurodegenerative diseases to and from their study appointments, at times traveling two hours each way. He recognizes the challenges that some of the patients face and always tries to find opportunities to lighten their day with a smile or light conversation. “I try to take their mind off where they are traveling and why – even if it’s for a brief moment.”

Season 2 Episode 2: As part of our Pharma15 Live! web series, we recently had the opportunity to sit down with three-time clinical trial participant Richard Brescia for a candid conversation about his experience – both positive and negative. As an industry, we can learn a tremendous amount by going directly to the heart of the matter and listening to the “patient voice.”

Georgia Mitsi spoke with BBK Worldwide’s Aaron Fleishman about her company’s newest app E.V.A — an engagement platform for patients who suffer from chronic neurological conditions. Says Mitsi: “It’s about evaluate, validate and act.”