DENVER—ClinOne, a mobile clinical trial management solution, reported in mid-April that it would soon finalize integrations with Lyft and Uber to offer free transportation services for patients enrolled in clinical trials through ClinTrialConnect. ClinTrialConnect is ClinOne’s patient-facing concierge platform that manages a patient’s clinical trial experience.
The integration completion, planned for June 2018, will allow auto-invoicing for Lyft and Uber trips to and from the study site, so the patient is not charged and doesn’t have to submit an expense report to the site and await reimbursement. As ClinOne puts it: “For the site, it’s one less piece of paperwork to process for each patient visit.”
As the company notes, patient compliance for a timely visit is important for any clinical trial, but transportation to visits can be challenging to patients and families. The logistics involved in securing transportation to clinical trial appointments has long been cited as a barrier to clinical trial participation, and missed appointments are detrimental to the patient and to the study site.
In particular, the elderly face additional challenges related to transportation. Many elderly patients rely on family for getting to and from their research visit, which complicates the process for patients arriving at their appointments on a consistent schedule.
“It’s easy to lose track of how complex this process may be for a single study. For example, a Phase 3 study could have 2,000 patients enrolled for 36 months and each patient needs to come in for a monthly visit. That’s 72,000 patient visits and 144,000 trips—a staggering number,” says Rob Bohacs, CEO of ClinOne. “We simplify the process for patients, families, and provide a true concierge service to patients, which is crucial to our mission. The cost of these services is not prohibitive compared to standard reimbursements for travel and parking time. This can average $35 per visit per patient, while Lyft and Uber costs would range from $22 round trip to $45 for most patients.”
The cost of patients missing treatment windows and triggering protocol deviations is a 50-fold increase versus the cost of a ride-sharing service, according to ClinOne.
