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FIG. 11
Clinical project teams: Relationships between inner and outer teams and
external groups. Courtesy of A. E. Berridge, Technical Management
Development Ltd. (adapted). |
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that this is being taken seriously at a high level. But how can such a partnership make a really positive contribution? |
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The key is surely in the word partnership. At present, all parties value their independence highly and will oppose any apparent attempt to erode it. Consultants do not want to be told what studies they should be taking on, ethics committees must be free to consider each protocol without strings attached, and pharmacies will discourage any extension of the formulary, to name a few. Therefore, an integrated clinical trials function within a medical care facility, first, must clarify what the benefits will be for all potential partners and who are the potential beneficiaries. There can be no new drugs without clinical trials, so, the ultimate beneficiaries are the patients. Along the way, there will be others, such as saving money for health service by treating patients more quickly, the manufacturer sustaining its continued research from the new drug's profits, and of course the medical care facility receiving income from the trials it undertakes. This is looking at the situation positively. The converse is that, with the world rapidly becoming an electronic village, it matters less and less where one carries out one's research program. Indeed, the continuing International Conference |
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