NorthWest EHealth (NWEH) has launched a pilot program to accelerate and optimize the recruitment of participants for clinical trials in the UK. The initiative combines NWEH’s FARSITE platform with data from the Medicine and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency’s (MHRA) Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD). This aims to improve the speed, scale, inclusivity, and representativeness of participant recruitment for clinical trials.
Streamlining Participant Identification
Traditional methods of identifying suitable clinical trial participants can take weeks or months, leading to increased costs and delays. The new model integrates NWEH’s FARSITE platform with CPRD's database of over 18 million anonymized patient records. This allows for rapid feasibility assessments while maintaining participant anonymity.
How FARSITE Works
NWEH’s FARSITE platform enables precise identification of potential trial participants through user-friendly inclusion and exclusion criteria. This unlocks potential participant pools for find-and-refer services, with GP practices directly contacting individuals, thereby increasing opportunities for participation in clinical trials.
Potential Impact and Future Expansion
If successful, this model could enhance innovation and efficiencies in medical research, improving public access to clinical trials and supporting the discovery and validation of advanced treatment approaches. The initiative has the potential to be expanded across the UK.
Jonathan Wogel, Chief Executive Officer of NWEH, stated, "By combining our agile and innovative FARSITE technology with CPRD data, clinical trial feasibility and find-and-refer services can be conducted more quickly, with more precise determination of the most relevant clinical trial participants, including under-served populations. This, in turn, can reduce costs and support more robust studies optimized to help improve health outcomes for patients, once again positioning the UK as a leader in clinical research."
