In the ever-changing landscape of clinical trials, patient recruitment remains an ongoing challenge. To overcome this, researchers and sponsors are increasingly turning to innovative methods, such as electronic medical record (EMR) retrieval. Using EMR data effectively, clinical trial teams can enhance their recruitment strategies and improve overall trial success. Here, we explore how and why EMR retrieval can transform your patient recruitment approach.
EMR retrieval opens access to an abundance of patient information stored in electronic health records. These records contain comprehensive and up-to-date medical histories, demographic details, and clinical diagnoses. Tapping into this data means trial teams can quickly identify potential participants who meet specific eligibility criteria.
This targeted approach minimises time and effort spent prescreening unsuitable candidates. In turn, EMR retrieval can improve patient experience by limiting the number of patients who go through the prescreening process and are found ineligible.
Traditional patient recruitment methods often involve media outreach, advertisements and relying on healthcare provider referrals. This can be time-consuming and resource-intensive – and provide limited results in the long run.
EMR retrieval allows for automated screening and identification of eligible patients based on predefined criteria. This speeds up the recruitment process, reducing delays and enabling trials to start sooner. Using EMR retrieval lets researchers optimise their recruitment strategy, making it more efficient and cost effective.
Engaging and retaining participants throughout clinical trials can be hugely challenging – industry benchmark data suggests that researchers need to identify an average of about 10 patients in order to to randomise one. EMR retrieval can boost patient retention and engagement by enabling personalised communication and follow-up.
Having an understanding of patients' medical histories and conditions means trial teams can tailor their approach, providing relevant information and addressing individual concerns more effectively. This personalised engagement builds trust, enhances patient satisfaction and improves retention rates, leading to more robust study outcomes.
Having accurate and reliable data collection is also essential for the validity and credibility of clinical trial results. EMR retrieval lets researchers integrate real-time patient data directly into the trial database, minimising the risk of errors and inconsistencies that can come with manual data entry.
This streamlined process enhances data quality and reduces missing data points, improving the integrity of study findings. Incorporating EMR retrieval enables researchers to optimise data management, enhance data accuracy and strengthen the scientific rigour of their clinical trials.
Ultimately, integrating EMR retrieval into your clinical trial patient recruitment strategy offers many advantages. It provides access to comprehensive patient data, improves recruitment efficiency, enhances patient engagement and boosts data quality. This innovative approach can have a significant impact on the success and impact of your clinical trials.
Ready to find out more? EMR retrieval can be layered into Sano’s patient recruitment and engagement platform to take your precision medicine clinical trials to the next level. Get in touch below.