Clinical Trial Innovation Pioneer Craig Lipset Joins Spencer Health Solutions Advisory Board

Spencer Smart Hub Opportunity to Accelerate Adoption of Decentralized Clinical Trials Engaging Patients at Home

MORRISVILLE, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--#digitalhealth--Craig Lipset, a pioneer in clinical trial innovation for Pfizer, has joined the Spencer Health Solutions advisory board.

Lipset is an active advisor for pharmaceutical companies, technology leaders, and investors seeking to identify and scale innovative solutions for clinical trials. He is the co-chair of the Decentralized Trials and Research Alliance, a global community of healthcare companies, regulators, patient groups and research organizations committed to expanding clinical trial access to more patients. He previously led clinical trial innovation for Pfizer and was an advisor for venture capital investments. He has been an advocate for decentralized clinical trials for more than a decade.

"Now is the time to deliver the future of clinical trials, accelerate drug development and improve the lives of patients," Lipset said. “The time has arrived for innovative approaches to engage research participants and improve both access and experience. The Spencer platform represents a unique opportunity to provide a single hub in the home to simplify research participation.”

In addition to strategic assistance with the Spencer Smart Hub deployments, Lipset will join a series of discussions on the Spencer podcast, “People Always, Patients Sometimes.”

Telehealth Driving Decentralized Clinical Trials

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, biopharmaceutical companies are exploring a new model of drug development engaging patients from their homes with smart home digital healthcare devices.

The pandemic brought about a drastic increase in telehealth virtual visits. Many patients experienced the ease and convenience of telehealth visits for the first time. “The trend in the industry for increased use of telehealth services and smart home devices for decentralized clinical trials is here to stay, engaging patients from their homes,” said Spencer Health Solutions founder and Chief Executive Officer Tom Rhoads.

Telehealth virtual visits give clinical care providers and biopharma clinicians direct access to patients without the need for an in-person office visit. Health technology overcomes the last mile barrier, enabling decentralized trials as an alternative to in-person clinical site visits. The new decentralized model for clinical trials offers hybrid or fully virtual options for pharma, clinical sites and patients in rural and remote areas.

The Spencer smart hub is unique with a suite of services that no other single device brings into the patients’ homes. Services are integrated in an easy-to-use device the size of a small kitchen appliance and often placed on a kitchen countertop. The Spencer device dispenses medications, integrates data from other Bluetooth in-home medical devices, captures electronic clinical outcome assessment (eCOA) data for insights and analytics, and enables telehealth virtual visits and participation in clinical trial research.

The Spencer device supports improved study compliance with medication adherence, patient surveys, and real-time data for drug efficacy and patient safety. More than 95 percent of patients take medications as prescribed and more than 90 percent of patients respond to health status questions presented on the touchscreen.

About Spencer Health Solutions

Spencer Health Solutions is advancing clinical research and healthcare from patients’ homes. The company, headquartered in North Carolina’s Research Triangle Park region, is leading the digital health market with a unique smart hub that empowers healthcare providers to extend care to patients at home – the “last mile” of a new generation of patient engagement. Customers include pharmacy, care management and biopharmaceutical companies. For more information, visit www.spencerhealthsolutions.com and follow on Twitter @spencerhealth.

Scott Yates
919-649-6621
syates@spencerhealthsolutions.com