Smarter recruitment, stronger partnerships, better diabetes care
By Jackie Janssen, Medical copywriter & content writer, Clariness
On November 14th we recognize World Diabetes Day, a day dedicated to raising awareness about one of the world’s most critical chronic conditions. This is a day not only to acknowledge progress in diabetes prevention, treatment, and research, but also a day to reflect on the responsibility and opportunity we all share to find more accessible and equitable care for patients with diabetes.
Those of us in clinical trial research know this day is a vital reminder of the important role we play in helping to bring the latest discoveries and innovations to accessible treatments for all. At Clariness, we understand that access to life-changing care begins with access to clinical trials. Our shared mission to connect patients and partners more efficiently and more equitably can mean these trials transform discovery into impact.
Diabetes and its worldwide impact
With more than 589 million adults living with diabetes globally, there is an urgent need to find therapies for this chronic condition. Many patients still lack access to diagnosis and treatment despite medical advances in metabolic disorders research. This underscores a dramatic gap between access and care, largely through the clinical trial landscape.
According to WorldDiabetesDay.org, 3 out of 4 people with diabetes live in middle- to low-income countries and almost half of diabetes cases are undiagnosed. Now more than ever, it is imperative with a rising number of diabetes diagnoses that this gap is closed with better targeted recruitment to clinical research and a renewed effort for diversity in trials.
Clariness and diabetes patient recruitment
While some of the greatest challenges in diabetes research are enrollment and a lack of diverse patient representation, Clariness has a proven track record of successful and retention. Diabetes clinical trial recruitment has a historically low rate with over 50% of trials being delayed due to insufficient patient enrollment. These low rates of recruitment are due to underdiagnosis of diabetes, a lack of patient-centric materials, and patients with diabetes feeling a clinical trial is not necessary for them to participate in.
We have supported patient recruitment efforts for more than 75 diabetes studies worldwide. Clariness utilizes a variety of recruitment strategies that provide effective solutions to these problems. Clariness uses demographics as filters to help find the right match for certain trials as well as location services to reach patients living in areas where diabetes is more prevalent. Both of these solutions as well as a more patient-centric approach in recruitment materials increase the likelihood of diverse patient representation as well as higher retention rates.
With special screening techniques and data-driven digital campaigns from Clariness, these ensure minorities and diverse populations have access to these diabetes studies as well. While there are many patients with diabetes that may take a type 2 diabetes screener, most will not be able to participate in the trial. This means a higher volume of patients should be reached through digital campaigns. Clariness’ diabetes indication pages have over 3 million visitors, providing a larger number of potential participants for diabetes studies.
Some of Clariness’ unique strategies specifically for diabetes patient recruitment include removing transportation barriers and optimizing inclusion and exclusion criteria on study materials to better align with patient populations. Both of these tactics can greatly enhance the rate of registration and participation. Our Chief Medical Officer and medical team carefully review diabetes study protocols and work with the patient recruitment team to create dedicated study screeners and indication pages with patient-friendly content. Because of this accessibility, over 92% of patients on our diabetes study sites completed our online screener. By ensuring more patient-centric materials that clearly explain trials, regulations, and safety measures, patients with diabetes are better informed and therefore more likely to join the study and stay involved throughout the duration of the trial.
Effective strategies, real results in recruitment
In one such study for type 2 diabetes, Clariness was able to contribute over 24% of randomizations for a study including critical diverse patient populations including patients from the community which was requested by the sponsor. Utilizing special online recruitment strategies such as channels aligning to international demographics of the target population, Clariness was able to successfully refer 2,176 patients. Better screeners and more efficient ads also helped to increase another study’s diabetes recruitment process to 2x the number of patients completing the screener.
Clariness’ sponsor portal also is a vital tool that we use to showcase insights throughout the entire trial lifecycle from pre-screening to recruitment and retention. Sponsors have access to live data, ensuring that there is clarity through each step of diabetes trial recruitment. Another way to help make sure diabetes studies are run effectively is by meeting and even accelerating recruitment deadlines while maintaining compliance and quality. One of Clariness’ type 2 diabetes trials online campaign had a mere 10 days of approval turnaround time from submission.
Find out more about our tried-and-true recruitment strategies by downloading our . Get in touch with us to see how these methods can help your diabetes patient recruitment process.
Clinical trials and diabetes research
From insulin to GLP-1 receptor agonists and the continuous innovations of glucose monitoring systems, diabetes management and treatment are rooted in clinical research. Today, diabetes clinical research studies are continuing to explore new, life-changing therapies. Whether there are precision therapies or combinations of treatments for both diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, none of this progress could be possible without patients. Connecting the right patient to the right trial remains one of the most challenging aspects to continue progressing and finding therapies and innovations for prevention.
A renewed commitment on world diabetes day
On World Diabetes Day, we can celebrate the collective achievements of all those who work in clinical research, dedicated to improving diabetes care, treatment, and prevention worldwide. Sponsors, vendors, investigators, and research teams are coming together and making clinical trials more accessible and inclusive than ever before. Let’s all continue this commitment to transform the way patients engage with diabetes clinical research.
Find out more about how Clariness can help your diabetes trial patient recruitment