Patient retention in clinical trials is one of the largest challenges facing sites, sponsors, and CROs. The Center for Information and Study on Clinical Research Participation found that 23% of participants who enroll in a study don’t complete it. 

When a participant drops out of a study, the time spent identifying, consenting, screening, and enrolling them is wasted. The average trial already faces delays of 1-6 months because of recruitment shortages. Losing one-quarter of the patients who actually enrolled can cause trial timelines to stretch out even longer and can cost sponsors $600,000-$8 million per day. 

If the industry truly wants to make clinical trials more efficient, we need to think about how to increase participant retention. To do that, we should listen to the most common reasons patients drop out of trials, like:

• Inconvenient study visits
• Lack of belief in the trial’s benefits
• The feeling that they are undervalued or unimportant

Then, we must address these concerns with patient-centric study design and conduct. Here’s how.