Digital Consent Empowers Patients At The Crofoot Clinic

By Tim Davis, VP of Strategy, MyVeeva for Patients, Veeva Systems, Inc

The COVID-19 pandemic forced the adoption of digital healthcare technologies, but clinical research documentation has remained in a time warp. “When I started practicing medicine in the late 1970s, there were no cell phones, and I used a 20-MB computer. Medical records were all on paper. Four decades later, to a large extent, they still are. Medical research has not caught up with the rest of the practice of medicine in its use of digital technology,” said Dr. Gordon E Crofoot, who heads up the Crofoot Clinic and Research Center, in a June interview. “Our investigators all use telehealth and other technology to connect with patients, but research hasn’t yet adapted to the new environment,” Charles Sydnor, project manager at the Center, noted in a recent webinar.

The Crofoot Center has pioneered in HIV/AIDS research since the 1980s, when AIDS killed nearly two million people each year. Since its work in the early testing of AZT as a treatment for HIV, the center has participated in more than 130 clinical trials for HIV, as well as Hepatitis B and C. It is now involved in Phase III of the global Mosaico AIDS vaccine trial, sponsored by Janssen Vaccines and Prevention BV. At any one time, the Center’s small, dedicated staff manages between 15 and 20 clinical trials.