H Clinical News

Opportunities to highlight the importance of clinical research trends in Latin America are rare. That’s why it’s big news when a podcast that focuses on the journey of medical technical (medtech) leadership invites H Clinical to participate in a conversation on the state of clinical trials in Latin America. Mitchell Parrish, president of H Clinical, joins a recent episode of LATAM Medtech Leaders.

Bioaccess produces the weekly podcast. Bioaccess is a contract research organization (CRO), regulatory, and market access consulting company. The firm delivers a full spectrum of offerings in Latin America. The CEO of Bioaccess, Julio G. Martinez-Clark, is the host of the podcast series.

About the LATAM Medtech Leaders Podcast

The synopsis is a conversation with leaders who have meaningful experience with clinical research trends in Latin America. The series targets US and European medtech companies that may struggle to enter Latin America. The reasons vary, but mostly center on the lack of information and expertise to succeed in the region. The goal is to overcome obstacles and accelerate breakthrough innovations to patients in Latin America. By sharing best practices, quality, and actionable information to address these challenges, guests are taken through a structured interview to tell their stories. The podcasts share experiences, plans, and suggested best practices in the region for the benefit of the patients and those who conduct research.

Key Takeaways for Listeners

(4:27) What are the clinical research trends in Latin America? Study sponsor and CRO organizations have started to recognize that there is a strong knowledge base to execute research in the region. Further, the population in Latin America is more open to participating in research. Many see trial participation as a care option and the patient-physician relationships are trustworthy. Ultimately, this benefits enrollment challenges typically seen for studies such as rare disease and pediatrics trials.

What’s more, governments have been more active in working to minimize timelines for ethics review and regulatory approvals. In addition, several are enacting other research-friendly regulations in countries such as Panama and Argentina. And finally, the global COVID-19 pandemic really brought Latin America into focus by necessity. A good example is the need to diversify the patient population for vaccine studies.

Overall, addressing higher enrollment and faster timelines open the door to research in Latin America. Then, regulatory evolution and the acceleration brought by COVID-19 give study sponsors a reason to walk through the door. All things considered, these trends help contribute to a sharp rise in interest and investment to conduct research in the region.

The H Clinical View

(12:36) What does H Clinical do? We are a niche player that supports clinical trials across 22 countries across Latin America. H Clinical performs at-home clinical trial support with GCP-trained staff dispersed throughout those countries. What sets us apart are seven regional depots to support the logistics of clinical research operations and procure supplies to facilitate studies. Plus, we provide project management that coordinates with sites and the study sponsor, addresses regulatory components, and executes the operation to perform home visits.

H Clinical also provides staffing for in-demand clinical research associates, or CRAs, in Latin America. And finally, H Clinical offers a number of bespoke services. These make use of the comprehensive infrastructure and knowledge our organization incorporates for accomplishing clinical research in Latin America.

Listen to the full podcast