Community

Clinical trials are one of the main reasons why so many diseases and medical conditions are treatable right now. Just take a look at the current scenario - they’re the reason why we have a handful of vaccines available for COVID-19. However, while clinical trials have been a trending topic since the pandemic started, they’ve always been an integral part of improving healthcare. Drugs, medical devices, and treatments are made available to the public only after clinical trials and stringent verification for side effects and efficacy.

There are many hurdles along the path for clinical trials

However, numerous challenges are faced by clinical trials even before they begin. Funding, patient recruitment issues, managing multiple sites, keeping data from being inconsistent, complying with endless rules and regulations - these are just a few of the known challenges faced by clinical trials. Unfortunately, there are many unknown challenges present as well, but the crucial yet overlooked issue that keeps popping up is professional study subjects. 

What are professional study subjects?

Professional study subjects are patients who attempt to participate in multiple trials, either simultaneously or consecutively. Most of them even participate in the same trial by visiting and enrolling in multiple sites! While different of these subjects have different motives, the effects they have on the trials are devastating. Not only are these patients a danger to themselves but they also hamper the integrity of the trials they are involved in. Their involvement skews the data and might even render promising agents to be presented as ineffective due to corrupted data. This causes promising drugs to never reach the market, causes unnecessary delays, and losses in millions for sponsors, pharmaceutical companies, and everyone else involved in the trials. Who knows how many promising agents might have been derailed by these professional study subjects? 

But the main question is - are professional study subjects stoppable? 

RightPatient prevents professional study subjects

By ensuring accurate patient identification right from the start, RightPatient can help prevent the participation of professional patients in clinical trials. It’s a touchless biometric patient identification solution that has been preventing fraudsters from hospitals and health systems for years and is ideal to prevent such study subjects, preventing millions in losses and ensuring the integrity of clinical trials.