Clinical trials professionals face a host of challenges: for some, it’s the complexity in protocol design, for many it’s lagging enrollment rates, and for others it’s the site burden that’s inherent to change management.
The compounding benefits of effective training cannot be overstated. When clinical research associates (CRAs) and site staff are thoroughly prepared, they engage more deeply with the trial protocols, ask more insightful questions, and more proactively anticipate challenges.
I was recently invited to deliver a keynote presentation on embracing change. The audience was more than a 100 healthcare improvement and clinical trial professionals who had each committed to participate in a year-long collaborative.
We talk a lot about processes and platforms in clinical trials. But in the end, success comes down to understanding and supporting the needs of the people conducting the trial.
If training feels effortless, it probably isn’t effective. Passive learning doesn’t lead to protocol adherence. Active engagement does. And that only happens when training challenges people to think and apply.
We all like to believe trial decisions are purely rational. But behavioral science says otherwise. Trial teams rely on mental shortcuts, or heuristics, to make complex decisions faster. These shortcuts can be helpful in the moment, but they also introduce risk.
The concept of sludge provides an invaluable lens for clinical research professionals in identifying and mitigating unnecessary friction and bottlenecks.
ArcheMedX helps life sciences and healthcare organizations to better equip, evaluate, and predict team and clinician performance
