CRO Covance said its central laboratory services once again ranked first in an independent global survey of physician investigators in clinical trials. Of the study participants, 47% named Covance’s central lab services as their "most preferred" central lab, with investigators citing Covance more than twice as often as the nearest competitor.  Investigators also reported having the "best overall relationship" with Covance, rating it 8.4 on a scale of 1 to 10.

Survey results underscore the growing importance of the selection of a preferred central lab because of its direct connection to investigators’ satisfaction and their willingness to work with sponsors in the future.  In addition, most physicians who want to learn about being a clinical trial investigator talk first to other doctors involved in trials.

The Clinical Trial Investigator Satisfaction and Central Laboratory Performance study was conducted in June and July by the Life Science Strategy Group, and surveyed 258 physician investigators actively participating in industry-sponsored clinical trials globally. Participants were prescreened to ensure a high level of involvement and/or key decision-making authority for their sites. All global geographies and practice settings were represented, as were more than 20 medical specialties. The mean experience level in a clinical trial setting was 12.7 years. The study is an update of a similar study Life Science Strategy Group conducted in 2011.

"This study demonstrates that investigators around the world continue to recognize and value Covance’s services and benefit from our decades of experience and extensive testing capabilities,” said Jon Koch, corporate vice president and global general manager, Central Laboratory Services.

The report shows a clear link between overall investigator satisfaction and sponsors’ choice of central lab, with 100% of respondents reporting they were satisfied when sponsors choose the investigators’ preferred central lab. When sponsors select investigators’ least preferred central lab, satisfaction drops significantly.  Respondents cited central lab preference as a key driver of satisfaction with the sponsor as well, with 91% of investigators saying they are more satisfied and willing to work with a sponsor on trials when sponsors have selected their preferred central lab. And 98% of investigators indicate the central lab selected by the sponsor affects their success, their day-to-day activities and their willingness to work with a particular sponsor on future studies.

Effective communication, a laboratory's reputation for reliability and quality and easy-to-use collection kits are among the factors that lead to a strong relationship between investigators and a central lab, according to the report. Respondents ranked Covance first in all of the key performance metrics, such as customer service, reliability and timely and accurate reporting.

Covance has five dedicated labs in the U.S., Switzerland, Singapore, China and Japan.  In the past five years, Covance central labs have conducted more than 214 million tests for more than 4,200 clinical trial protocols in approximately 100 countries, working with more than 125,000 investigative sites.