Decentralized clinical trials aim to reduce patient burden. Decentralized clinical trials can help make research more patient-centric. Tim explains the role of decentralization, "It's fair to say that that change management component is absolutely critical in terms of the decentralized adoption, and I think, when I look ahead in terms of decentralization, I see an amazing landscape for patients and the partnerships with EmVenio and also the kind of opportunities Thermo Fisher Scientific has in really driving forward unique and collaborative solutions for the better of the patient and really focusing on reducing that patient burden."

We need to make clinical trials more patient-centric. Patient-centricity is key when it comes to improving participation in clinical trials and clinical research progress overall. Tim says, "As an industry, we talk about patient-centricity and I think we embrace significant patient-centricity by taking a research site with all the research professionals on board to the patient's home."

Representation in clinical trials matters. Diversity is vital to preventing and treating diseases across race and gender. Thad says, "A couple of stats recently — there was one study we supported where of the 2,500 patients that EmVenio enrolled, 65% were from underrepresented populations, and so it really showed that value there. And what we're seeing more broadly is that across the studies we support, greater than 40% of the patients we're working with come from minority populations. And so, to contrast that against industry stats of around 10% to 20% as an average, we're offering more than double the ability to reach these populations that otherwise don't have access. So I think what we're seeing is that the results are really bearing on the value that we're bringing together."

Thad says, "There are really two ways that we're working with the PPD clinical research business of Thermo Fisher Scientific. The first is through a site extension model where our mobile sites are an extension of an existing research site, really complimenting and enhancing what that site is already doing today, allowing for mobilization into the community, and expanding the geographical reach of those sites. The second is in a standalone site model where the mobile site actually acts as the site itself. And so these are both models that we're deploying and really helping to drive equality in research as we're able to reach underrepresented populations. And, I think, with this, we've got some great examples of how this is really helping patient retention and driving some other positives in clinical research."

Tim says, "The way I look at rare disease — it's certainly one of the most challenging, if not the [most] challenging, populations to recruit into. And we all know that the very nature of rare disease makes studies incredibly hard. So, when we do have patients in rare disease studies, every data point, every sample, every visit is of the utmost importance."

Tim says, "What we've done within digital and decentralized solutions is we've created a decentralized ecosystem, and what that DCT ecosystem is, it's a toolkit. If you think about it, it's a toolkit of solutions — whether that be technology, operational site structures, community, etc — which enable us to serve the broad client base and the variability of protocols that we see day-to-day. And it enables our dedicated DCT consultants to ensure we're applying the right solution to the right protocol at the right time."

Tim says, "We've never been this situation before where we have so much awareness of research in the general population. Research is in the news, research has been talked about in terms of vaccinations and so forth. So there's an increased awareness and with that, what we really want to do is maximize on that and put the patients at the center of everything that we're doing."