An ecosystem approach to achieving diversity in clinical trials

Covid-19’s disproportionate impact on Black, Hispanic, and indigenous groups has amplified pressure on health care leaders to address longstanding health inequities. Clinical trials and research have been identified as areas where historic barriers to inclusivity have significant negative downstream consequences. The data is clear that minority and rural populations are not represented in research in numbers that reflect the disease burden and prevalence. As part of our ongoing research on this topic, the Advisory Board convened 23 executives across five industry sectors for a workshop to discuss:

1) What principles and practices must the ecosystem revisit as we layer on a new goal—diversity—to an enterprise built to generate product safety and efficacy data?

2) Does our current value framework for clinical research impede adoption of best practices for promoting diverse patient enrollment?

This briefing contains five of the most important takeaways from this conversation as well as questions we recommend stakeholders ask as they undertake this important work.