WIRB-Copernicus Group (WCG), a provider of solutions that measurably improve the quality and efficiency of clinical research, has acquired Patient Genesis’ ConsentNow eConsent technology.

ConsentNow enables healthcare, pharmaceutical, and medical device companies to share important information with patients during the informed consent process in a format that is both easy-to-use and easy-to-understand. The technology employs custom video and animation segments to educate patients and online knowledge assessment questions to determine their level of understanding. This multimedia experience is delivered directly to the patient using a tablet device at the clinical site.

“Knowledge empowers patients to make the best decisions for themselves and for their families,” commented WCG Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Donald A. Deieso, Ph.D. “Using a patient-friendly format that includes plain language, videos and animation, ConsentNow helps to ensure that patients truly understand the benefits and risks of their clinical trial participation.”

“In global clinical trials, communication can often pose significant challenges,” added Jeffrey S. Litwin, M.D., FACC, CEO of WCG’s MedAvante ProPhase. “ConsentNow enables providers to deliver important information in the patient’s native language and capture their feedback via questionnaire. This helps to eliminate confusion for the patient, and increase efficiency for the trial’s sponsor.” Dr. Litwin co-developed ConsentNow with Kevin B. Kimmel and their team at Patient Genesis, in 2015.

ConsentNow is the newest addition to WCG’s interrelated platform of technology-enabled services that measurably improve clinical trial efficiency while ensuring the safety of clinical trial participants. In addition to improving the quality of patient education and the consistency of trial communications, ConsentNow fosters regulatory compliance because it is always loaded with the latest version of the protocol and will not allow the consent process to be completed until all required signatures are in place. Another benefit of the ConsentNow solution is increased patient retention, as patients who are better informed at the start of the trial are less likely to drop out. And with a secure, web-based dashboard, it provides both the sponsor and clinical site team members with real-time access to valuable site statistics.

For clinical trial sites, the ConsentNow technology delivers an easier patient enrollment process, better informed patients, a significant reduction in paperwork, and real-time tracking of patient progress.

Financial details about the transaction were not disclosed.