Insights from SCOPE Europe 2024: Enhancing Site Activation for Sponsors and Sites

This year’s SCOPE Europe was an event-filled conference held in Barcelona, Spain, on October 29-30. This year, the event attracted more people than ever, with an estimated 500 senior executives from more than 250 companies from 30 different countries. More than ever, the event was vibrant and active, with people genuinely interested in clinical trial innovations, among other things. 

Exostar was very honored to present this year. Our presentation focus was from the principal investigator perspective on the inadequate and manual processes that still exist in studies that affect performance. The response was very positive, and we got to hear some of the issues within the healthcare industry.   

Exostar’s SCOPE Presentation Recap 

The presentation we gave was hosted by Tom Johnson, Sr. Director of Life Sciences and Health IT Business Solutions at Exostar and Dr. Lestter Cruz Serrano, Head of Global Medical Affairs with Cognizant. The presentation was entitled Streamlining Study Start-Up: Accelerating Site Activation & Reducing Tech Burden for Sites.   

The focus of our discussion was that current spreadsheet-based user access management prevalent in studies is a major point of friction for enabling clinical teams during the critical activation period. This highlights the need for technology solutions that genuinely reduce site burdens while accelerating operations. We unpacked all the different tasks that Sponsors are performing behind the scenes to administer access to the necessary study applications so sites can become active.  

Overall, this led to the conclusion that SSO and newer, integrated access management tools for study user-onboarding are cost-effective ways to remove this major obstacle from study performance.  

Industry Discussions and Concerns

The people in attendance were very excited about moving the industry forward in a more digital direction. We were there to listen and discuss where we felt the healthcare and clinical trial world was headed and had some great conversations with others about the solutions. 

We had several Sponsors and CROs visit us, interested in how our solutions solve some of the administrative problems they’ve been having. In general, most agreed that despite efforts in the last few years to automate application access in studies, very little progress had been made and, in some cases, relying on methods introduced over a decade ago.  

Those who spoke to us were intrigued by the opportunity to consolidate the data from different source systems to help automate the user access process. For others, aligning the training requirements of all the different applications into an integrated system for managing access was especially compelling.  

The Shift Toward Data-Driven Protocols  

One of the key discussions at the event was the industry’s pivot from document-based to machine-readable clinical trial protocols, as emphasized by one of the speakers, Dr. Frank Berger, “Transitioning to machine-readable formats is more than a technological advancement; it’s a necessity for efficiency and scalability.”  

This shift is already showing dividends for both sites and sponsors. It not only reduces manual errors but also integrates seamlessly with tech-enabled solutions, aligning with the broader goal of streamlining clinical operations. As technology advances and the shift towards data-driven protocols in clinical trials continues, these efficiencies improve, leading to reduced data entry and increased time for data analysis.    

Looking Ahead: The Future of Clinical Operations  

The discussions at SCOPE Europe highlighted the industry’s trajectory toward more collaborative, technology-driven clinical operations. Looking ahead, , the adoption of data-driven protocols will continue to accelerate clinical trials, making them faster, more efficient, effective and secure.    

Exostar Solutions Answers Key Clinical Trial Questions 

As part of our presentation, we focused on some of the solutions Exostar provides. We were happy to preview CTAM (Clinical Trial Access Manager) with them, as a part of the Scope Best in Show contest. Our CTAM is part of our Secure Access Manager (SAM), which is an SSO solution designed for life sciences organizations.  

SAM provides the following solutions: 

• Centralized Single Sign-On (SSO)
• Enterprise Credential Integration 
• Enhanced User Control  
• Direct Support for Sites 

Our CTAM component adds the following benefits: 

• Centralized Access Management: Replaces disorganized spreadsheets with a secure, centralized system.  
• Real-Time Access Monitoring: Tracks user access and changes, mitigating compliance risks. 
• Faster Site Activation: Automates onboarding to eliminate costly delays.  
• Enhanced Coordination: Bridges communication gaps, fostering seamless collaboration across study stakeholders.  

Final Thoughts on SCOPE Europe 2024   

This year’s SCOPE Europe was an exciting event with more people than ever, from more countries than ever, converging to discuss how to improve the life sciences and healthcare industries when it comes to clinical trials. We were glad to be part of the discussion both at our booth, as well as being able to present our thoughts on the industry and discuss how Exostar can help. 

It has always been our focus to help with clinical trials and offer security for life sciences and healthcare businesses. Our goal is to offer solutions that make processes more efficient, cost-effective and secure for all involved. If you’d like to learn more, be sure to visit our webpage for more about SAM.