Author: MRN
Home Trial Support (HTS) is one of the most effective Decentralized Clinical Trial (DCT) / Hybrid trial tools currently being utilized in clinical trials. It provides patients with the opportunity to participate in studies from quite literally the comfort and convenience of their own homes (or other suitable location), which results in higher enrollment and retention rates – overcoming serious barriers many clinical trials struggle to overcome.
However, it is not just the flexibility and comfort that HTS provides that keeps retention rates high. Rather, it is the fact that the HTS solution, when well designed and implemented, offers so much more than a busy traditional site could.
Patient Care Impacts Patient Retention
The overall well-being of a patient is the key to a good, and hopefully, improved quality of life while undergoing treatment and beyond. However, achieving this is challenging – both the treatment side effects, and just general symptoms of their condition all detract from this. Furthermore, their experiences will be different based on their demographics and/or severity of their symptoms – and because each person has their own unique set of circumstances that will have an impact.
There is little doubt that the complexity, severity, and uniqueness of each patient’s set of needs makes it almost impossible for Healthcare Providers (HCPs) in a traditional trial site setting to accommodate each individual fully. The story of Marina, a cancer patient who dropped out of a trial as she felt she was just a data set during site visits, captures both the struggles that sites and patients experience, impacting decisions to leave or stay in a trial.
Home Trial Support – Supporting Sites & Patients
To provide an elevated level of support and accommodate each patient’s own needs a key ingredient needs to be added to the trial – time. This is something that both sponsors, sites, and patients are perpetually short of. This is where HTS can play a critical role – by taking on a designated number of trial visits, to alleviate that time pressure in multiple ways:
- For patients this means that they save time in not needing to travel for treatment etc. but they also gain time – time with a HCP that is able to fully focus on them, and their needs. Further, the one-on-one time with the HCP actually allows the HCP the opportunity to observe the patient in their own environment – giving them insight into how the patient is responding to treatment as well as any additional needs that the patient may have that could impact their participation in the study. They are then able to feed this back to the study team, and proactive steps can be taken if needed.
- Sites now have less visits to manage and oversee, which instantly lessens the strain on their resources. Further, they get instant access to the reports & detailed data provided by the in-home HCPs. This gives them both patient insight and valuable study data.
- Sponsors see the benefits of HTS through higher enrollment, engagement and retention rates – all which help keep their trial meeting milestones as anticipated, if not sooner.
The overall effect of gaining more time through utilizing a correctly implemented service like MRN’s Home Trial Support is one where patients not only feel seen and heard, but rather seen and heard while in a space that is familiar and comfortable for them – allowing them the security to truly share how they are feeling with an HCP they see on a regular basis. Being able to offer this ultimately leads to an improved quality of life for patients, while simultaneously alleviating pressures on sites and providing sponsors with high quality results.
Learn more about MRN’s Home Trial Support service here. You can also learn more about the hidden healthcare benefits of Home Trial Support here.