Clinical Trial Technology: Top 5 Considerations for Training Site Staff
By Andrew Gerrard, Product Trainer, Greenphire, the global leader in financial lifecycle management for clinical trials.
At the 2022 SCRS Global Summit, I had the opportunity to speak on the panel, Advancing Technology with Attention to Site & Participant Burden. While I typically conduct trainings live online, it was rewarding to be with sites face to face, hearing directly from them about the ongoing burden of frequent technology trainings, as well as their thoughts on what creates the ideal training experience.
These insights are valuable for us all. Below are the top takeaways to consider when training site staff with various clinical trial technologies.
1. Provide training in different formats
Considering the fundamental fact that not every person learns the same way, to get the most out of your training, you need a multi-pronged approach. Some people prefer videos that can be watched at home when it’s convenient for them while others want hands-on experience and an opportunity to ask questions from experts in person or access resources via tips & tricks built right into the application as they go along. By providing multiple avenues for consuming educational materials and learning how to use a given platform in a way that best suits the individual, we set site staff up for success when it comes to easy adoption and overall satisfaction with the technology.
2. Adaptability for existing knowledge or prior experience
Many of the most used technologies in the industry have been leveraged across a multitude of studies at sites around the globe, therefore site staff may already be familiar with the fundamentals of a technology when they join an existing site, so it is important to avoid duplicating trainings if those were completed elsewhere. This again echoes the notion that one size does not fit all when it comes to training, and the value of providing site staff with several options when it comes to how they would prefer to learn a technology.
3. Ongoing access to guidance and support
No matter how robust your initial onboarding training was, there is always room for improvement. With so much time passing between the day you conducted an informative session and now- when users are using these tools daily – it can be easy to forget some of those little tips or tricks that may help make things go more smoothly during study entry. That’s why it’s a good idea to have a solution that continues to provide tips and tricks and pop-up reminders for quick answers to questions that may arise during the study. These on-demand support features empower sites to easily find many of the answers they need without escalating support tickets or wasting valuable time.
4. Accommodating time zones and schedules
Since many studies include sites that are located all over the globe, to make sure that site staff can get the most out of their learning experience, it’s essential to offer a schedule of live trainings so they can meet experts at times convenient for them. This approach not only welcomes more coordinators to join live sessions and ask questions, but also provides the opportunity for a trainer to address any country or region-specific variations that might come into play when using the given technology.
5. Providing and welcoming feedback
Feedback isn’t just about the negative stuff. Constructive comments are as important in determining what worked well, and how we can improve our training or technology for future use. Welcome individuals to give their opinions on the tech so that the solution can truly become user-centric and provide real value. At Greenphire, this feedback is incorporated into our product innovation roadmap.
As you can see, there are many factors to consider when training site staff for your clinical trial. You’ll need to think about the format of the training, how to adapt it for different levels of knowledge or experience, and ongoing access to support. Additionally, time zones and schedules can be a challenge, but feedback is essential. These are just a few considerations – what are some others that you’ve had to consider?
