Fundamentals Of The Patient Recruitment Process: Better Recruiting For On-Time Studies

By Shaheen Limbada, Cetero Research

The leading cause of drug development program delays is the challenge of recruiting the right number of patients with the right qualifications. Patient recruitment continues to be ranked as the most costly and time consuming aspect of clinical trials. And with fierce competition for study participants, the costs associated with a small delay can quickly escalate. A slight setback can allow a competitor to get to market first, costing an organization that first-to-market advantage and potentially millions of dollars in revenue. The use of sound recruitment techniques are essential for increasingly complex clinical trials.

Successful recruitment starts with a thorough and well-executed feasibility process to provide a comprehensive assessment of available potential participants, a clinical study's potential operational challenges, specifically recruitment challenges. This early analysis will minimize the crippling effects of delayed study enrollment.