8:30 AM - 11:30 AM Eastern

The online 10-Week Clinical Research Associate (CRA) “on-boarding” training course is appropriate for individuals who have less than two years experience as a Clinical Research Associate. The course provides practical, hands-on training as it relates to the CRA job function, and covers core sponsor and research site activities that promote the successful monitoring of studies for both drug/biologic and device trials. The course follows an ICH/ISO global GCP framework, and covers how to identify specific country requirements, making it appropriate for both US and global audiences. Core Good Clinical Practice (GCP) skills are reinforced through a combination of activities, including lecture, case studies, and scenario review, as well as application-based homework assignments.

12:00 PM - 1:30 PM Eastern

Notes to File (NTF), also known as Memo to File, are commonly used as essential documentation in sponsor and site files. Many times the content of the NTF does not serve the purpose for use or serves no purpose at all. This web seminar will discuss the appropriate and inappropriate uses of NTF, the questions to ask to determine if NTF would be beneficial, and the components of a quality NTF, if being used.

12:00 PM - 3:00 PM Eastern

The basis and success of any drug or device development program is the clinical trial protocol. Clinical trials conducted under an IND or IDE cannot begin without a protocol, and yet there is variability between companies and individuals on how to approach writing this critical document. Clinical trials and entire programs have failed because the protocol was not scientifically sound. Knowing how to effectively research and write a clinical trial protocol is essential to a compound achieving IRB and market approval.

12:30 PM - 2:30 PM Eastern

This web seminar provides an overview of the structural elements of Good Clinical Practice (GCP). Participants will learn practical application of GCP regulations and guidelines for critical components of the clinical research process. Specific attention will be given to how Quality Systems, or a lack thereof, impact overall data quality and regulatory risk. This web seminar is designed for professionals with at least two years of experience in the clinical research industry.

9:00 AM - 4:00 PM Eastern

Maintaining the accuracy and adequacy of clinical trial documentation is both a critical component of Good Clinical Practice (GCP) and a challenge in today’s rapidly changing clinical research environment. In this workshop, learners will focus on the regulatory requirements and practical implementation of three key study documentation components: Electronic health records, essential documentation in the site’s study file, and Notes to File (NTFs).

12:30 PM - 2:30 PM Eastern

As the clinical research environment evolves in response to both internal and external changes, regulatory agency communication appears to be focused on particular areas of GCP compliance. Regulatory agencies’ recent findings for Clinical Investigators, sponsors, and Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) tend to reflect historic areas of noncompliance; however, more attention is being placed on ensuring that corrective and preventive action plans are developed to secure compliance. This web seminar will examine the trends in recent regulatory communication and open discussion for review of acceptable versus unacceptable responses.

12:30 PM - 2:00 PM Eastern

Patient registries are based on principles of observational research and offer remarkable flexibility in design and applications. They have demonstrated value in both the biopharmaceutical and the medical device arenas. Patient registries are appealing to physician investigators, and can serve as a centerpiece or as an adjunct to a product’s late-phase scientific and promotional strategy.

12:00 PM - 1:30 PM Eastern

Complex regulations govern the development, manufacture, and commercialization of biomedical products. This web seminar will help participants understand the U.S. regulatory requirements for patented and generic pharmaceuticals, over-the-counter drugs, biologicals, and medical device products. Participants will gain high-level knowledge and insight into the regulatory agencies and their roles and responsibilities, regulatory applications and pathways, and post-marketing requirements. This is an important course both for those entering the biomedical profession and for those already in the profession to learn more about the laws governing this industry.

12:30 PM - 2:30 PM Eastern

This web seminar is designed for sponsor/CRO personnel responsible for protocol design and development, country allocation, site selection, and study feasibility assessments. It’s a well documented fact that the current study feasibility assessment process is inefficient and is incapable of identifying the best investigative sites to conduct a clinical trial. Feasibility questionnaires and the current process are often not effective in predicting site success in implementing a given clinical trial.

9:00 AM - 10:30 AM Eastern

The ICH Q9 Quality Risk Management (QRM) guideline has become an accepted standard, facilitating the development and implementation of a systematic risk-based approach to quality management of clinical trials and pharmacovigilance. Industry and regulatory bodies, including the EMA and FDA, have recognized the need and benefits of implementing a risk-based approach to quality management. This web seminar is designed to provide a strong conceptual foundation of the principles of quality risk management with a clear focus on the application of these principles. The course will address applying QRM to support decision-making throughout the clinical trial management and pharmacovigilance process, allocating limited resources effectively to areas of high risk, and preparing the participant to become an active contributor towards risk-based quality management at his/her organization.

12:00 PM - 2:00 PM Eastern

Investigator non-compliance to the Statement of Investigator commitments has increased in many areas. One of the identified causes has been monitoring. Investigator compliance issues are great risks to product development success, but an even greater risk to sponsors is the lack of formal systems to manage compliance at research sites. With the promise of more sponsor inspections, the sponsor management of investigator noncompliance is an obligation that requires comprehensive management approaches that lead to control of investigational product, data integrity, and adequate documentation for regulatory inspection of sponsors monitoring programs and/or investigative sites. Seven steps in compliance management of research sites will be presented for the participants to assess their current practices for gaps and risks for preparing for potential regulatory inspection evaluating compliance management of research sites.

1:00 PM - 2:30 PM Eastern

This web seminar will cover the fundamentals of signal detection, and how signal detection can be augmented by the use of data mining techniques. The requirement for companies to perform signal detection is now mandatory in Europe and highly recommended in the U.S. Many simple techniques can be applied to the generation and review of potential signals, which can also be augmented by the application of sophisticated data mining algorithms.

9:00 AM - 11:00 AM Eastern

The concepts and processes of risk management are well known and often used in clinical research project management. Yet, few clinical research monitors realize the value of applying these activities to site management. This web seminar starts with an overview of risk assessment and management. The learner is then guided through the application of these techniques through all phases of study conduct: Site selection and initiation, routine monitoring, and site close-out. The course focuses on identification of site strengths and weaknesses and implementing strategies to address weaknesses before they lead to deviations or noncompliance.

1:00 PM - 2:30 PM Eastern

Protocols are rising in complexity, length, and numbers of procedures. Protocol training is trending toward webinars vs. live meetings where questions are more limited and less likely to be asked. With more to do and less time and instruction, taking on new and challenging protocols can be daunting. This web seminar will focus on some introductory steps to taking a protocol apart and making it operational and executable without deviations at a site. Topics to be addressed include how to get the most out of the initial protocol review, understanding and putting into practice the patient flow, and how to ensure protocol adherence in a busy, ever-changing site environment.

1:00 PM - 3:00 PM Eastern

RECIST stands for Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors. The National Cancer Institute is the best resource for information, and defines RECIST criteria as “a voluntary, international standard, and not an NCI standard. They are based on a simplification of former methods (WHO, ECOG) and based on measurable disease, i.e., the presence of at least one measurable lesion.” RECIST criteria provide a way to standardize measurement of solid tumors worldwide for any clinical trials that include this data to define study endpoints.

6:00 PM - 9:00 PM Eastern

The online 10-Week CRA & CRC Beginner Program provides a comprehensive introduction to clinical research and the job functions of the Clinical Research Associate (CRA) and Clinical Research Coordinator (CRC) for both drug/biologic and device trials. This program is geared toward individuals seeking a new career or career change into clinical research, but who don’t know which job track to pursue. Case studies and industry best practices are presented to underscore how the learning objectives apply directly to the responsibilities of the CRA and CRC. Upon completion, Barnett will provide resume assistance so that you can position yourself for entry into this market.

1:00 PM - 3:00 PM Eastern

The FDA announced in 2006 an initiative to modernize the regulation of clinical trials, including the BIMO inspections program. This includes conducting inspections and other assessments earlier in the development of a potential product to build quality into the clinical trial upfront rather than assessing it at trial completion. From this initiative, the FDA has generated new guidance and regulation that directly affect the performance of the research investigator and the research coordinator. The initiative is a dynamic process and this web seminar tracks the updates that directly affect the investigator and study staff. Examples of how to implement the agency requirements and recommendations into current practices and specific projects are also covered.

1:00 PM - 2:30 PM Eastern

Because the early life of a compound is dependent on the data and analysis derived from Phase I Studies, it is imperative that these trials are managed and conducted with the highest quality and care. Therefore, well-honed project management skills that can address the unique issues associated with Phase I Studies are needed. This web seminar will examine the importance of Phase I Studies in drug development, the issues commonly associated with conducting a Phase I Study from a sponsor perspective and provide project management best practices specific to overseeing a Phase I Study.

12:00 PM - 1:30 PM Eastern

Globally, there is a need for orphan drug research, development, and approval for underserved patient populations who have diseases that affect very few individuals. While this patient population has been largely ignored, some pharmaceutical companies have built their research pipeline around these patients. Receiving orphan drug designation and approval confers many benefits to the developer to compensate for the development costs of the drug. This web seminar will explore which countries allow orphan drug designations, the application requirements, population limits and how to support this number, how the applications are the same, who to submit the application to, if and when the application can be changed, and how it needs to be supported over the development process.

9:00 AM - 4:00 PM Eastern

Clinical Monitors (CRAs) must document many details of the happenings at investigational sites, including Confirmation Letters to sites, Monitoring Visit Reports, Follow-Up Letters to sites, Telephone Contact Reports, Email/Faxes to sites, and Queries and Notes to File (NTF). All of these become essential documents as they demonstrate the compliance of the monitor and, thus, the sponsor in the conduct of the clinical trial. These are all eligible for inspection by the regulatory authorities at any time both during and after the study is completed and submitted for product approval. This is the same regulation for drugs, biologics, and devices. Effective writing skills are, therefore, extremely important so that we show the diligence and detail involved in effective monitoring. Increasingly, we notice that the Confirmation Letters, Monitoring Visit Reports, and Follow-Up Letters have discrepancies. This may be simple date inconsistencies, or critical data credibility issues. It is important that the monitor be aware of the importance of these issues in the review of study documentation. This module will provide some practical solutions to addressing document deficiencies as well as provide a practical understanding of how these documents provide evidence for the regulated activities of the investigator and the sponsor.

12:30 PM - 2:30 PM Eastern

The phrase “garbage in, garbage out” can be applied to the data collection efforts in clinical trials. To avoid this pitfall, it’s important to be thorough in the evaluation of the data collection items that will validate the protocol hypothesis endpoints and statistical analysis. It’s also important to consider the future compilation of data from multiple clinical trials for agency submission and the assurance that the data are in compatible format. With this goal in mind, it’s essential for data collection to be consistent, concise and compatible – hence the need for standards. CDISC and CDASH are instrumental in the establishment of these standards. This web seminar will discuss the timing of Case Report Form (CRF) design in relation to clinical trial startup and the team that will contribute to the data collection recommendations. We will review the resources utilized in determining what data collection is required and the current standards – CDISC and CDASH – for CRF data content. Best practices for CRF design as documented by the Society for Clinical Data Management Good Clinical Data Management Practices (SCDM GCDMP) will also be presented.

12:00 PM - 2:00 PM Eastern

The Clinical Study Report (CSR) is a critical document in the drug development and regulatory submission process. This web seminar presents the basic tools required to generate CSRs for the pharmaceutical industry. Participants will learn the elements of the CSR and the appendices, methods for turning the protocol and statistical outputs into one cohesive document, the basics of writing and preparing a document for submission, and the guidances to follow for reference.

2:30 PM - 4:00 PM Eastern

Diagnostic studies vary greatly from standard pharma and device studies, and the documents generated for these studies differ accordingly. This web seminar presents the basic tools required to generate Clinical Study Reports (CSRs) for sample collection, accuracy, and reproducibility studies. Participants will learn the elements of each of these CSRs, the guidances to follow for reference, basic skills for understanding the data (i.e., false positives, false negatives, and percent agreement), and other diagnostics output and results, as well as coordination with the 510(k) submission.

9:30 AM - 11:00 AM Eastern

Hosting a client audit can be a stressful experience for all involved when there is a lack of preparation, communication, and understanding of expectations for the audit. As the audit host, there are ways to gain a sense of control in your work environment while providing the auditor(s) with the best audit experience possible. Meeting their audit needs while reducing unnecessary lost work time and increased stress by the company being audited can be accomplished by way of audit preparation efficiencies. In this web seminar, we will discuss preparation techniques for hosting a client audit including room staging, strategies for responding to audit requests, and the audit follow-up process. During the course, learners will walk thru the process for hosting a client audit, discuss the various roles and responsibilities, as well as review strategies for successful audit results.

12:00 PM - 3:00 PM Eastern

Negotiating study contracts and budgets is critical for the future success of the clinical research site. This web seminar provides strategic skills and best practices for contract negotiations and budget development. Learners will also review and practice the art of negotiation.