Pharmafile Logo

How to boost clinical trial access and make patients health-empowered

Clinical research is becoming more patient-centric, but there’s still more that needs to be done to make clinical trials available to everyone. This could include wider participation.

- PMLiVE

How to increase patient participation

Pharmaceutical companies are working on overturning this statistic by designing and building trials that centre around participant needs. This includes greater patient involvement in trial design; more opportunities for treatment at home; fewer tests and assessments; and new technologies for support and monitoring.

However, it seems clinical trial participation is not for everyone. Could it be because a huge amount of trust, awareness and understanding is needed to become a clinical trial participant?

Where the ‘activated’ patient comes in

According to health researcher Judith Hibbard, activated patients, who are actively engaged in managing their health and advocating for themselves, are better equipped to handle health conditions and contribute to treatment decisions.

Although, it’s not always an equal starting point because not everyone will be at activated status. Because initiatives often engage with those who are already activated and have high levels of health literacy, The complexity of clinical trial information means that some patients defer decision-making to their doctors. It may not be on purpose, but this excludes many from potentially life-changing medicines.

Empower patients through clinical trials

This may be an opportunity for those in charge of clinical trials to take a leading role in helping patients to become activated, creating a push-pull that works in all directions. Consider clinical trial education and awareness resources developed with  everyone  in mind, helping to bridge the knowledge gap and supporting people to make informed decisions for their own health.

Shift towards community-inclusive trials

The industry is already beginning to shift towards more patient-centred clinical trial recruitment and providing trial information that speaks to all. But that’s just the start. Perhaps it’s time to bring whole communities into contact with the clinical research world instead, giving everyone an opportunity to share their opinions and ideas —, a chance to feel part of something bigger.

It might not be easy, but it will be worth it.

This content was provided by Cuttsy + Cuttsy

Company Details

 Latest Content from  Cuttsy + Cuttsy 

Does being an independent agency really matter?

With Cuttsy+Cuttsy ranked as #6 in the Independent Agencies listing from PM Live’s T40 Creative Healthcare Agencies 2021, Mathew Cutts reflects on what being ‘independent’ means to him.

Opening up about patient engagement

Read the third blog of the series looking at key barriers to effective patient engagement in pharma

Committing time to making meaningful connections – top 5 tips

Read the second blog of the series looking at key barriers to effective patient engagement in pharma

Key barriers to effective patient engagement in pharma, and how to fix them: Making engagement processes more patient friendly

In the first of this blog series, Patient Engagement Lead, Philippa Pristerà looks at making engagement processes more patient friendly

Cuttsy+Cuttsy awarded Gold accreditation by Investors in People

Healthcare communications agency, Cuttsy+Cuttsy, has been awarded ‘We invest in People, Gold’ from Investors in People.

Cuttsy+Cuttsy marks its 10th anniversary with the launch of Cuttsy Cares

Healthcare communications agency, Cuttsy+Cuttsy, has announced the launch of Cuttsy Cares, in celebration of its 10th anniversary.  The agency's charitable programme will deliver up to £10,000 to help improve the quality...

Caroline Benson and Colin Williams to Chair the PM Society from February 2020

For the first time both industry and agencies will be equally represented as the PM Society appoints a joint chair.

Clinical trials, Actually.

This Christmas, we’re thinking of the thousands of clinical trial volunteers across the UK, both patients and healthy participants. We have a lot to thank them for...

A patient view on the ABPI’s patient collaboration sourcebook

Last month, the ABPI released a much-in-demand document: The Working with Patients and Patient Organisations sourcebook.

The Exhibition Hall: Past, Present and Future

As I sit here at another pharma conference, I start to reflect on how they have changed over the years.