Contract Trial Management

Find the right medical contract management group for your clinical trial
By Irene Durham If your organization is interested in conducting a clinical trial, hiring a contract clinical trials management service is one way to get the job done. Contract research organizations, also known as CROs, provide a number of services, from helping with the development and formulation of a product to clinical trial management to preparing materials for FDA submissions.
 

The first step in the process of contract clinical drug trial management is to find out what is being offered by various groups and determine what your own particular needs might be. For example, do you have a statistician or medical writer on staff, or will you want to use and employee at the CRO? When determining whether your company will benefit from contract trial management, consider the following:

1. Attend a conference to explore your contract trial management options.

2. Identify contract clinical trials management services.

3. Determine what company could best manage your clinical drug trials.

Go to a contract clinical drug trial management conference

Attending a contract clinical trials management service conference is a great way to learn more about CROs and the services they offer. Workshops on developing effective contractor selection criteria and understanding the current regulatory compliance environment will help you in your search.
Try: Contract Pharma holds an annual meeting that is attended by representatives of over 100 CROs. ASSOCHAM holds conferences that feature CROs in India. You can also find out about upcoming events by using the conference directory on the Pharma Marketing Network site.

Obtain a contract research organization directory

These clinical trial consulting directories will help you to find contract clinical trials management services and give you an idea of the services they offer. For example, you might want to outsource your regulatory or publications writing to these groups, or you might have an in-house staff that can handle this function. You will also want information about contract research organization software that provides security for your clinical trial results.
Try: Biores.org is an online directory that offers links to contract clinical trials management services. Biotech-Register.com also has an online directory, as does Fierce Biotech.

Research the ins and outs of clinical trial contract management

Once you select a CRO to handle your clinical trial it is difficult to change vendors. It's best to learn all you can about the selection and use of contract research organizations upfront.
Try: Research and Markets is a good source of information, and HighBeam Research has hundreds of articles about how to manage a clinical drug trial.

• Ask your researchers about their experiences with various CROs. An investigator can often provide good unbiased insights into the strengths and weaknesses of a contract clinical research organization that you are considering.