Use technology that works best for your site
Use technology that works best for your site
Have IT professionals help with tech solutions
Electronic information technology is paradoxically shrinking even as it expands its global reach. Apple CEO Steve Jobs recently predicted that more people in coming decades will be using small hand-held computer devices than will continue to use desktop computers.
Whether or not this prediction will extend to clinical trial investigators and coordinators remains to be seen. But the fact is that trial sites already are evolving to increased use of portable communication and information technology devices.
"We have the freedom mobile technology offers versus the need to secure data and make it safe in that process," says Jaime Parent, MA, MHS, vice president of information services and associate chief information officer at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, IL.
"The future is with the mobile device and going beyond the laptop," Parent says. "The younger generation can't move fast enough with the technology, but some investigators are reticent about moving to new technology."
This trend is particularly true in clinical medicine where mobile devices can provide continuous monitoring of patients and allow doctors to type in patient care notes on a handheld device.
Research sites also are following the national trend of increasingly relying on mobile devices, but the extent to which these are embraced might depend on site investigators' resistance to change.
"Whether someone is a researcher or a consumer, people are most comfortable with their own way of doing things," Parent notes.
When a research institution plans to upgrade its technology or tighten data security, it's a good idea to have an information technology professional work with research staff in implementing the changes.
"I get to know researchers well and build relationships with them," Parent says. "I make sure they know the risks involved and understand the benefit of information security."
Parent asks investigators these questions in an effort to determine which technology and security strategies will best meet their needs:
- What is it you are trying to accomplish?
- What is it about your research that creates this unique need?
- Do you need mobile devices, telecommuting technology?
- Do you need video conferencing?
- Do you need to share documents online?
- What do you need within your group of researchers?
"By training, I'm a clinical microbiologist and have done research, so at a very basic level I understand their challenges, and that helps me enormously in trying to build bridges with those folks," Parent says.
For example, a researcher in Chicago might be working collaboratively with researchers in another country on a project. The Chicago investigators will come to Parent and say they need to connect electronically with an international colleague, sharing large files. But the Chicago investigators don't know how to do this securely and easily, Parent explains.
Parent asks them what their workflow is like and how they would like to collaborate.
"Would they like to do this online or through videoconferencing?" he says. "If they have large files to send that cannot be attached to email then they might want to set up FTP, a file transfer protocol server, which is used fairly commonly among researchers."
If the files will have protected health information or sensitive data then it's important to encrypt the information.
"I need to understand how they work with other researchers," Parent says. "So I try to figure out how they work together and then provide technology solutions."
In another example, a researcher asked Parent to help him set up video teleconferencing in a private room. Depending on the availability of the equipment, this technology can cost up to $10,000, which would take a substantial chunk of any research grant funding.
Before Parent could make a suggestion, another investigator suggested the researcher have Parent set up a computer monitor camera for a few hundred dollars.
"Because I had established a relationship with this other researcher, there was this bridge built that helped the [new] researcher with buy-in," he says. "This made my job easier in terms of selling the investigator on the less expensive technology."
Some investigators never learn about the cheaper technological options because they go to the wrong sources with their questions.
"They'll get a grant and turn to a major vendor and say, 'Build me a technology solution,' and they'll pay a lot of money for this," Parent says. "It's like buying a cell phone with a lot of features you'll never use."
Parent helps investigators sort through their options to find the best value for their research dollar.
Another problem researchers face is in relying on data back-up that they can manually handle and use.
"I recommend they back up to our data center where we perform multiple back-ups," Parent says. "It's adequately cooled, secured, and monitored 24 hours a day."
The data center can provide investigators with access to any data at any time they need it, and yet some researchers are hesitant to take advantage of this option.
"They way want to use their own PC network under their desk," he adds. "We discourage that because what happens if you spill coffee on your computer, or what happens if your back-up device fails and you can't retrieve the information?"
Electronic information technology is paradoxically shrinking even as it expands its global reach. Apple CEO Steve Jobs recently predicted that more people in coming decades will be using small hand-held computer devices than will continue to use desktop computers.Subscribe Now for Access
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