Pharmacy store giant Walgreens forays into clinical trial business

American pharmacy store chain Walgreens has launched its clinical trial business with the aim of redefining the patient experience and boosting access and retention in sponsor-led drug development research.

According to Walgreens, its flexible clinical trial model combines its foundation of patient insights, in-person and virtual care options, and partner-enabled health and technology capabilities for crossing hurdles to engage larger and more diverse communities.

Ramita Tandon — Walgreens chief clinical trials officer said: “Walgreens trusted community presence across the nation, combined with our enterprise-wide data and health capabilities, enables us to pioneer a comprehensive solution that makes health options, including clinical trials, more accessible, convenient and equitable.

“Through the launch of our clinical trials services, we can provide another offering for patients with complex or chronic conditions in their care journey, while helping sponsors advance treatment options for the diverse communities we serve. This is yet another way we are building our next growth engine of consumer-centric healthcare solutions.”

Pharmacy store giant Walgreens forays into clinical trial business. Photo courtesy of Anthony92931/Wikimedia Commons.

Walgreens said that its patient reach and access to a vast foundation of pharmacy and clinical data which is patient-authorized will help it proactively match varied patient populations to trials in a variety of disease areas based on gender, race, location, and socioeconomic status.

The pharmacy store chain expects to make use of a tech-enabled approach for patient identification and building a large registry of clinical trial participants. This will help in cutting down the time taken for matching eligible patients to clinical trials, said Walgreens.

The company will partner among others with Pluto Health, a smart care coordination service, which combines siloed health information from various places within 30 minutes.

Joy Bhosai — Pluto Health Co-Founder and CEO said: “Pluto Health was co-created within the healthcare community to make the provision of care achievable and more equitable for more people with better care coordination.

“As a part of our primary goal to coordinate care and support patients on their terms, we are thrilled to play a part in making the latest medical advances more accessible. It’s time to accelerate healthcare access for all patients, from all walks of life, and from anywhere in the nation.”