During the course of his career as a medical researcher Doug McClain
has seen a number of clinical trials fail for various reasons. This is
always demoralizing, particularly if your initial research appeared to
demonstrate that a positive conclusion could be reached, and he has
highlighted all of the following as potential reasons for why this may
happen.
Human Error
It is always possible that a human error that was committed during the research that led to the trial could lead to its downfall. While this can sap motivation, it is also important to realize that such errors can be corrected if you know where to look, so it is sometimes possible to run the trial again using correct data, which may provide a more positive result.
Enrollment Problems
If the clinical trial carries a certain amount of risk, it may be difficult to enroll enough candidates to create a viable study group. In other cases, it may be difficult to retain a group of participants if the demands being placed on them are too great or little progress appears to be made with the trial. This can be combated by providing detailed information about the purpose of the trial and ensuring that all participants have the support they need at all times.
Poor Feasibility Studies
Before you can run your clinical trial, Doug McClain points out that you need to consider a variety of factors from the site you are going to use through to the budget that you have to run the trial. Failure to create a good feasibility study based around these factors may lead to issues mid-way through the trial that result in its cancellation and failure.
Human ErrorIt is always possible that a human error that was committed during the research that led to the trial could lead to its downfall. While this can sap motivation, it is also important to realize that such errors can be corrected if you know where to look, so it is sometimes possible to run the trial again using correct data, which may provide a more positive result.
Enrollment Problems
If the clinical trial carries a certain amount of risk, it may be difficult to enroll enough candidates to create a viable study group. In other cases, it may be difficult to retain a group of participants if the demands being placed on them are too great or little progress appears to be made with the trial. This can be combated by providing detailed information about the purpose of the trial and ensuring that all participants have the support they need at all times.
Poor Feasibility Studies
Before you can run your clinical trial, Doug McClain points out that you need to consider a variety of factors from the site you are going to use through to the budget that you have to run the trial. Failure to create a good feasibility study based around these factors may lead to issues mid-way through the trial that result in its cancellation and failure.
