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P230: The Use of Decentralized Research Technologies for the Continuity of Participant Follow Up during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Poster Presenter

Izabela Chaves Pedro

Clinical Research Associate
Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein
Brazil

Objectives

The objective of this study is to demonstrate that the adoption of remote strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic for follow-up visits has benefited the continuity of participants in clinical trials.

Method

This analysis was conducted using data from two clinical trials with a total of 13845 subjects, included between 2019 and 2022, with a 4-year segment (15 visits per subject) for data collection to analyze the outcomes of interest. Data from 155,994 follow-up visits reported as remote or presencial v

Results

The preliminary results of this study show a significant increase in the adoption of remote visit modalities for subjects follow-up in clinical trials during the first semester of the year 2020 when social distancing measures were at their peak compared to the second semester of the same year and the years 2021, 2022, and 2023. 2020:In the first semester of 2020, it is possible to observe that 70.24% of follow-up visits were conducted in-person, 29.14% of follow-up visits were conducted remotely, and 0.65% of visits were not conducted. In the second semester of the same year, there was an increase in in-person visits by 16.05% and a decrease of 17.26% in remote visits compared to the previous semester, with 1.82% of visits not conducted. 2021:In the first semester of 2021, it is possible to observe that 83.02% of follow-up visits were conducted in-person, 14.31% of follow-up visits were conducted remotely, and 2.68% of visits were not conducted. In the second semester of the same year, there was an increase in in-person visits by 4.53% and a decrease of 5.45% in remote visits compared to the previous semester, with 3.59% of visits not conducted. 2022:In the first semester of 2022, it is possible to observe that 88.05% of follow-up visits were conducted in-person, 6.74% of follow-up visits were conducted remotely, and 5.21% of visits were not conducted. In the second semester of the same year, there was an increase in in-person visits by 0.08% and a decrease of 0.97% in remote visits compared to the previous semester, with 6.10% of visits not conducted. 2023:In the first semester of 2023, it is possible to observe that 87.12% of follow-up visits were conducted in-person, 5.99% of follow-up visits were conducted remotely, and 6.89% of visits were not conducted. In the second semester of the same year, there was a decrease in in-person visits by 7.14% and a decrease of 0.84% in remote visits compared to the previous semester, with 14.87% of visits not conducted.

Conclusion

According to the analyzed period and the quantity of visits conducted in-person or remotely, it is possible to conclude that during the COVID-19 pandemic, the adoption of decentralized study technologies for conducting remote visits was responsible for maintaining subjects follow-up in the two clinical studies, ensuring the monitoring of subjects throughout the study, especially during the period when social distancing measures were most severe (first semester of 2020). In summary, the results of this study highlight the benefits of using remote technologies for conducting follow-up visits in clinical studies during the COVID-19 pandemic.