PhRMA-backed Yale trial diversity program launches as nonprofit

A pilot program that helped community sites take part in drug studies has been set up as a nonprofit organization in a bid to expand its network across the US.

The Clinical Trials Access Collaborative (CTAC) — which launched last week — was developed by Yale School of Medicine researchers looking to partner with community sites to increase diversity in clinical trials.

Tesheia Harris, CEO of CTAC, said, “By establishing CTAC as a nonprofit, we are ensuring that this work is sustainable and continues to drive meaningful change in how clinical trials are conducted and who has access to participate.”

During a two-year pilot, the program worked with clinical trial sites in 14 states, equipping them with the tools and infrastructure needed to sustainably participate in clinical research. The organization claims to have helped place more than 20 clinical trials with over 4,600 participants.

Program leaders also developed a site maturity assessment system — details of which were published in Trials last year — to help staff assess readiness and develop tailored research strategies.

The plan now is for CTAC to continue to support the 10 sites that took part in the pilot phase and expand across the US by partnering with 15 more clinical facilities in both urban and rural areas.

The organization will also work with healthcare providers, biopharmaceutical companies, research institutions, and community organizations to accelerate trial placement and improve patient engagement strategies.

In addition, the organization plans to develop training academies, non-physician staffing models, and compensation structures. To support these efforts, CTAC has launched a campaign to secure $50 million of funding.

US drug industry group PhRMA — which provided $10 million to fund the pilot phase of the project — has awarded CTAC an additional $2 million.

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