ePharmaSolutions and CenterWatch Partner to Improve Patient Eligibility and Access to Clinical Trials

CONSHOHOCKEN, Pa., March 21, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- ePharmaSolutions, a leading clinical services and eClinical solutions provider, and CenterWatch, a top provider of clinical research business information and the leading online publisher of active clinical trial listings for patients and the public, are partnering to provide sponsors and patients with a novel solution that will increase the opportunities for patients to find trials for which they may qualify.

Only 5% of patients who respond to a specific patient recruitment advertisement ever end up participating, for one reason or another.   This is very discouraging for those patients who are highly motivated to gain access to experimental treatments through clinical trials.    Until now, 95% of patients who responded to a recruitment advertisement but were ineligible to participate are ever introduced to other studies for which they might qualify. ePharmaSolutions and CenterWatch, along with a consortium of the largest pharmaceutical companies and contract research organizations in the world, are aiming to change that through a collaborative effort called the 'Referral Plus' Initiative.  

The Referral Plus Initiative uses a proprietary technology platform developed by ePharmaSolutions that programmatically matches patients who screen and disqualify from one trial into other "like" studies using a geo-therapeutic matching algorithm that links the patients' screening responses to entry criteria of the studies listed on the platform in real time.   Patients who are not matched to active studies are invited to register with PatientLive™, a Microsoft based application that provides patients with personalized information about approved medications, new medical therapies and new clinical trial opportunities for their condition(s) provided by CenterWatch and hosted in Microsoft HealthVault. 

For pharmaceutical companies, Referral Plus helps optimize the millions of dollars spent on patient recruitment advertising while providing patients who respond to those advertisements with better chances to find studies for which they may qualify.

"We are fortunate to have CenterWatch as our partner for this important initiative," states Lance Converse, ePharmaSolutions Founder and CEO.   "CenterWatch has the solutions in place to help accelerate the trial listing portion of the solution while being a trusted source of clinical research content for the patients who register with PatientLive™."

"Referral Plus is a very exciting new service.  We are able to offer many more clinical trial opportunities to patients, while helping pharmaceutical companies develop important new treatments faster," said Joan Chambers, COO at CenterWatch. "We're delighted to be partnering with ePharmaSolutions and its progressive and innovative PatientLive™ approach."

About ePharmaSolutions 
ePharmaSolutions is a leading provider of technology-based clinical services that helps improve the way sites are selected, trained, activated and managed to exceed enrollment goals.   ePharmaSolutions won the 2009 Bio-IT World Award for best clinical trial technology and has activated and trained more than 300,000 clinical researchers in 120 countries for the top 20 pharmaceutical companies in the world.  ePharmaSolutions is headquartered in Philadelphia with offices in Slough, UK. For more information, visit www.epharmasolutions.com or email [email protected].   Contact Lance Converse, CEO.

About CenterWatch 
Founded in 1994, CenterWatch is a trusted source and global destination of clinical trials information for both professionals and patients. CenterWatch provides a wide variety of information services including grant leads for investigative sites; business development leads for contract service providers; postings of career opportunities; listings of clinical trials actively seeking patients; advertising and promotional opportunities; and proprietary business analysis and data about the global clinical trials industry. Visit www.centerwatch.com.

SOURCE ePharmaSolutions