Over the past decade, many research organizations have been looking for ways to modernize the traditional clinical trial model. This has led to a clinical research organization like Veristat trying new methodologies and strategies to make the process more flexible and efficient to yield high quality and valuable results. Home health is one of the strategies the industry has adopted. This model means the patient receives all the care and treatment in the comfort of their homes. There are apps designed to monitor the patients’ progress while at home, eliminating the patient’s need to visit the physical research site. Here is some reason that makes home health a better way of meeting patients’ needs.
It improves the patients’ experience
Home health means that the burden of taking the patient to the research site is reduced for the caregiver and the patient during the clinical trials. Patients get to spend more time with their family members or focus on other responsibilities that they might have. They, therefore, do not need to only focus on being sick and stick in hospitals. The home health model is great for patients who have mobility problems or live far from the clinical trial site.
Reduced travel burden
When patients reduce the time they need to travel, they save money and effort. The reduced travel burden increased the number of patients you will have to enroll compared to the traditional setup. Since you get a more comprehensive range of patients who do not have to travel, sponsors have a higher patient retention rate since the reduced burden leads to greater patient satisfaction. For sponsors who have the opposite problem of not being able to cater to all the patients who want to be part of the trial, home care offers the solutions they need.
Improved data
Contrary to popular belief that home health offers essential research data, it offers high-quality data. This is because this model relies on mobile technology, which provides more transparent data than the traditional way of collecting research data. Additionally, you get to record more diverse data since you have a wider pool for research. The mode of data collection with this model also offers a more sophisticated analysis since all the data is readily available and reduces the margins of error since there is little human interference.
Less disruption to the patients’ daily life
Even with the hope that participating in the study could improve the patient’s life, being part of the study takes a lot from their personal life. So the less the disruption from their personal life, the better for the patient’s comfort. Traditional visits would require several hours in a week while relying on the help of a family member who must drive and accompany them to their visit.
Home care in clinical trials has revolutionized how patients are treated during research. It ensures that the patient is comfortable while ensuring that the sponsors retain the patients and get quality data for their study.
