By Chris Wells, Senior Director, Patient Concierge, at Illingworth Research Group, a Syneos Health™ company

More non-essential appointments are moving from virtual back to in-person visits at sites, bringing up new worries for clinical trial participants and resurrecting some old ones. Where site visits are essential, travel and logistics support can make a huge difference to ease the burden imposed on patients and families.

Getting patients and their caregivers to sites has been an ongoing challenge, but recent patient concierge technologies are on the market to help ease patient (and site) transportation burden. Travel and logistic support can make a huge difference, especially those traveling longer distances, traditionally marginalized or chronically ill.

By working with a patient concierge service to ensure logistics – from ground, air, and rail travel to short- or long-term housing accommodations and out-of-pocket expense reimbursement – are managed according to the visit schedule, pressure can also be relieved from site teams to ensure a smoother patient experience. As site administrators investigate the details of these services in order to identify the most effective transportation program to connect patients and sites, there are four critical questions to ask of any potential vendor:

1. Can you connect with non-fluent English speakers? More patients and their caregivers are expecting fluent outreach (and support) in their native languages. Any service that is meant to help patients connect to their healthcare providers – especially in a clinical trial setting – should be offered in several languages, not just English.
2. Is your service user-friendly? When evaluating the potential effectiveness of a site transportation program for patients, sites need to think through the user experience. Does your service offering include mobile-friendly (and non-mobile!) ways to make appointments and view travel-related reimbursement expenses?
3. Are there hidden fees for sites after start-up? Some services require sites to sign up to all, or a minimum portion of professional fees. Other providers limit the number of communication exchanges between the site and patient/caregiver.  These can expose clients to paying for activity regardless of site or patient uptake, providing no incentive to deliver a quality service since revenue is guaranteed.
4. Does the service integrate well with our specific patient population, and will it add value? A trusted transportation vendor will have experienced patient coordinators with a vested interest in proactive and efficient patient management and should be experienced in building a rapport with patients and families. A robust, patient-centric approach not just provides a better trial experience to participants, it enables sites to confidently recruit from further afield.

Clinical trial patients and their families can often be faced with unique and often indication-specific transportation challenges that can be affected by the distance between home and site. At Illingworth Research Group, a Syneos Health™ company, we believe no person should have to forego healthcare – or basic social needs – because they cannot get there. Our mission is to help to ensure that every patient, especially those that are traditionally marginalized or chronically ill, can access the care and resources they need to ensure good health.

Having a travel vendor that understands and appreciates these niche requirements is key to removing patient burden, offering both compassion and a duty of care to those who need it.