How Decentralized Clinical Trials Are Changing the Way We Advertise

In recent years, especially following the impact of COVID-19, the healthcare landscape has dramatically shifted in a big way. From how healthcare professionals communicate with patients to how they conduct research, the healthcare world has entered a new era. This is most noticeable in how healthcare professionals conduct research; decentralized clinical trials are a prime example of this shift. 

As the popularity of decentralized trials grows, they’re shaking up the foundation of how trials have traditionally been conducted. This is also true for how clinical trials are advertised. This blog will focus on decentralized trials and how, as advertisers, we can help craft a more positive message and create a new narrative.

Zoom call between doctor and patients

Centralized VS. Decentralized Trials

Clinical trials traditionally use a centralized design, meaning that a trial is conducted at a central location such as a research site, doctor’s office, or testing facility. Participants are required to physically go to this central location to attend study visits, receive trial medication, or receive testing and supplies. Some obvious obstacles to the centralized design include the participant’s inability to travel long distances to a location or make in-person visits. Many participants are lost-to-follow-up or drop out of a trial for this very reason: a trial misses enrollment timelines or fails to recruit the required number of participants. 

On the other hand, decentralized trials are executed virtually through telemedicine and mobile healthcare providers. These types of trials are more convenient for participants as they eliminate travel requirements and allow participation from anywhere. Decentralized trials may help accelerate enrollment by enabling a more robust and diverse population to participate without common recruitment hurdles. 

Decentralized Trials and Advertising

In traditional advertising for centralized trials, advertising efforts focus on reaching a site’s surrounding local communities. Messaging commonly focuses on compensation for time, travel, and access to medical professionals. 

Location

However, when it comes to advertising decentralized clinical trials, the narrative changes. It’s no longer just about the study’s location or compensation but rather how accessible and convenient study participation is. Participants now have more options and are no longer limited to trials close to home. The same benefits, such as compensation, access to medical professionals, and potential new medications, apply with the bonus of participation right from home. 

Decentralized trials allow advertisers to expand the target audience and increase enrollment efforts. A win-win for sites and sponsors alike. 

Creating Your Custom Recruitment Plan

We know first-hand how challenging patient recruitment can be while managing various clinical trials. This is why putting a plan in place is essential to your trial success. ImageBloom offers a suite of recruitment tools to help get you started. We also create custom recruitment plans to help you achieve your goals. Our pride lies in our ability to customize plans and materials for your specific requirements. So whether you are conducting a centralized or decentralized clinical trial, our team has you covered. 

Want to learn more? Contact us to start building out your custom patient recruitment marketing plan today. 

Resources: 

https://www.tissue-analytics.com/the-debate-and-discussion-over-decentralized-clinical-trials/

https://www.augusta.edu/dcm/marketing/documents/clinicaltrialsadvertisingtoolkit.pdf