Personalisation is everywhere – where we shop, what we read, how we watch TV. There's growing demand for clinical trial participation to follow a similar route. Alongside emotional needs and communication preferences, there are practical considerations too.

For example, decentralised clinical trials are often seen as a benefit for all participants, reducing time and travel burden. However, many participants are not comfortable with home nursing visits, or completing tests and assessments independently (CISCRP survey).

We recently found that trial experience scores and completion rates are highest among participants who have all their visits at the study clinic. Equally, among those who had poor trial experiences, frequently-requested improvements include “improved in-person communication” and “more regular check-ins”.