Recruit the right participants and keep them engaged through study completion, with participant-first strategies that hit your enrollment goals and keep your trial on time and on budget.
Recruitment delays are remarkably common and costly: according to Clinical Leader, nearly 80% of participant recruitment timelines in clinical trials are not met, and over 50% of participants are not enrolled within the planned time frame. Some studies suggest each day of clinical trial setback can cost a sponsor $1 million in expected sales.
Getting participants enrolled is only half the challenge. Making study participants feel valued throughout their entire clinical trial journey is essential for study success, and it's equally important to give site staff the tools they need to keep themselves and their patients engaged for the duration of the study. After years of experience, Veristat has identified the key pitfalls, considerations, and solutions that carry a trial from first enrollment through study completion.
Participant recruitment gets a trial started, but retention is what gets it finished.
Participant-Centric Recruitment
Focusing on consumers as well as science has had the most measurable effect on Veristat's participant recruitment success. Participant-centric advertising, including branded study websites powered by strong marketing and SEO strategies, improves recruitment success in a cost-effective way. Today's participants are tech-savvy, proactive healthcare consumers and nearly half find out about clinical trials through media and the internet. Veristat builds its recruitment approach around that reality, not around outdated assumptions about how participants search for care.
Retention isn't an afterthought; it's essential to keeping a trial on time and on budget. Veristat's in-house call center is staffed by domestic and foreign-trained doctors with knowledge of the disease state and standard of care. The same team that helps qualify participants during recruitment also speaks directly with enrolled participants about the protocol and study activities, answers questions, addresses concerns, and identifies issues that could affect continued participation.
How It Works
Veristat's approach centers on three connected strategies that carry a study from first contact through study completion:
Participant-centric recruitment.
Branded, digitally-driven outreach that meets participants where they already search for care.
An in-house call center.
Physician-staffed support that qualifies participants during recruitment, then stays engaged with them through the life of the study.
Site engagement and study branding.
Tools, training, and consistent branding that keep site staff effective and participants engaged until study completion.
Veristat's Expertise
Here's what sets Veristat's recruitment and retention approach apart:
A full-service CRO should bring more than functions and resources. It should bring experience that improves decisions throughout development.
Consumer-first, not just science-first.
We build participant recruitment around how real people actually search for and decide on clinical trial participation.
A full digital toolkit.
Digital media campaigns, social media, study apps, and targeted websites meet participants where they already are.
Physician-staffed call center support.
Our in-house call center, staffed by domestic and foreign-trained doctors rather than generalist call agents, supports participants from pre-screening through the end of the study, giving them real, informed answers about their protocol and study activities.
Site partnerships built to last.
No two sites or studies are the same, so we customize our site engagement strategy and tools for each one, treating every site relationship as a long-term partnership.
Branding that drives response.
Memorable, consistent study branding across every touchpoint increases participant awareness and response, keeping both enrollment and retention on track.
VERISTA’S PROVEN IMPACT
The Cost of Getting Recruitment and Retention Wrong
We built our approach around these exact failure points. Participant-centric strategy, not outdated assumptions about how participants search or stay engaged, is what closes this gap from first enrollment through study completion.
~80%
of participant recruitment timelines are not met
50%+
of participants are not enrolled within planned timeframes
$1M
potential cost per day of clinical trial setback
60%+
of sites fail to meet original participant enrollment goals
Veristat's Offerings
While service and need can vary from study to study, Veristat offers a full toolkit spanning recruitment through retention. Start with the patient and the enrollment decision: who may qualify, where they look for information, what could prevent participation, how the study will be explained, and which sites can convert interest into consent. Then select the outreach and support tools the evidence justifies.
Recruitment.
Reaching and engaging the right participants through targeted, participant-centered strategies.
Participant-Centric Websites.
Branded study websites powered by strong marketing and SEO strategies.
Digital Media Campaigns.
Targeted digital advertising to reach the right participants.
Dedicated In-House Call Center.
Supports recruitment and answers participant questions.
Online Platforms.
Meeting participants where they already search for information.
Targeted websites and Study Apps.
Reaching audiences actively looking for clinical trials opportunities.
Advocacy Groups Partnerships.
Engaging advocacy groups to extend recruitment reach.
Doctor involvement.
Bringing physicians into the recruitment and referral process.
Participant education & Study Information Sheets.
Ensuring participants understand what participation involves.
IRB-approved pre-screening protocols.
Streamlining qualification before formal enrollment.
Retention & Site Engagement
Pre-Populated Regulatory Document Packages.
Reducing site administrative burden from day one.
Site Tool Kits.
Equipping sites with what they need to stay engaged and effective.
Shared Best Practices Across Sites.
Spreading lessons learned to strengthen every participating site.
Ongoing Clinical Trial Specialist Check-Ins.
Regular, dedicated support throughout the study.
Recruitment & Engagement Hotline.
A direct line for site and patient support.
Ongoing Site Training.
Continuous training on procedures and FAQs throughout the study.
Progress Newsletters.
Keeping sites informed on performance and overall study progress.
Anticipated Question Scripts.
Preparing sites to answer common participant questions confidently.
Study Branding
Study Brochures & Information Sheets.
Clear, branded materials patients can trust.
Study-Specific Websites.
A dedicated digital presence for your trial.
Postcards & Thank You Cards.
Personal touches that reinforce patient engagement.
Online & Print Advertising.
Consistent branded outreach across channels.
NEXT STEPS
What's Next in the Drug Development Process
Monitoring & Site Management.
Ensure the sites recruiting and retaining your participants stay on track.
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Every day of delay has a price. We help you avoid paying it.
Nearly 80% of trials miss their recruitment timeline, and 85% fail to retain enough participants. Veristat uses enrollment and engagement data to identify where recruitment and retention are falling behind and determine where the strategy needs to change, giving your team clearer direction toward reaching its enrollment and completion goals.
Nearly 80% of participant recruitment timelines are not met, often because trials rely on outdated recruitment approaches rather than participant-centric, digitally-driven strategies that reflect how participants actually search for care today.
Veristat can use a variety of services that can include a combination of participant-centric branded websites, digital media campaigns, social media, an in-house call center, advocacy group partnerships, and IRB-approved pre-screening protocols to reach and qualify participants efficiently.
Natural history data may uncover important predictors of disease progression and help identify which patient subgroups may benefit from a particular drug trial. It can also be used to evaluate a new or existing clinical outcome assessment's ability to detect disease change.
Frequently Asked Questions on Retention & Site Engagement
35% of clinical trial participants drop out before the trial ends, and 85% of clinical trials fail to retain enough patients to meet their goals, making retention one of the most significant risks to on-time, on-budget trial completion.
Veristat's in-house call center is staffed by domestic and foreign-trained doctors who can answer detailed protocol and study questions, supporting participants through both initial screening and ongoing retention throughout the trial.
Consistent, memorable study branding, brochures, websites, and materials used across all recruitment and retention touchpoints, increases participant awareness and response, helping keep enrollment and retention on track.
