A single harmonised pharmacy process to improve clinical trial set-up times

Area of Science:

• Clinical research operations
• Healthcare management
• Pharmaceutical sciences

Background:

• The UK's global ranking for clinical trial activities has declined significantly in recent years.
• Pharmacy services are a bottleneck, causing delays in clinical trial setup and delivery due to workforce limitations and approval backlogs.
• This impacts the UK's competitiveness in the global clinical trials market.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and test a harmonized single pharmacy review process for multicenter clinical trials in Greater Manchester (GM).
• To assess the feasibility and implementation of this streamlined process within the region.
• To identify potential solutions for improving clinical trial setup efficiency.

Main Methods:

• A collaborative initiative was undertaken to create a unified pharmacy review system for multicenter trials across Greater Manchester.
• The feasibility and implementation of this harmonized process were evaluated.
• A survey was distributed to each participating NHS Trust in GM to gather feedback on the process.

Main Results:

• Survey data indicates that the harmonized pharmacy review process is expected to expedite trial setup times at individual pharmacy sites.
• The new process is anticipated to standardize pharmacy review procedures across Greater Manchester.
• Stakeholders believe this approach can reduce overall pharmacy setup duration.

Conclusions:

• The harmonized single pharmacy review process shows promise in accelerating clinical trial initiation.
• Implementing this standardized approach could enhance the efficiency of pharmacy services in multicenter trials.
• This initiative may help to improve the UK's position in the global clinical trials landscape.