Leveraging technology to diversify clinical trial participation 

Clinical trials often lack diversity with ethnic minorities being underrepresented. This imbalance can lead to treatments that are less effective for certain populations, reinforcing existing health inequalities. Caring for a population of around 2.5 million people representing 97 nations, Barts Health NHS Trust is well positioned to change this. 

Barts Health is already routinely capturing the diversity of research participants to monitor which groups are underrepresented. By increasing the diversity of participants in clinical research, we can make our trials more inclusive and ensure that their outcomes are globally relevant. 

To support this goal, Barts Life Sciences has secured funding from the National Institute for Health and Care Research to further develop our Patient Cohorting Tool.   

This tool helps researchers efficiently identify trial participants to recruit a patient cohort that reflects society, ensuring treatments are inclusive and beneficial to all. 

 Dr. Concetta Piazzese, Data Scientist at Barts Life Sciences, said: 

 “Rooted in one of the most diverse communities in the world, clinical trials at Barts Health include groups who are often underrepresented in research. This makes our trials not only relevant to our local population, but also impactful on a global scale. The NIHR funding allows us to further develop a tool that simplifies patient identification for clinicians. It saves valuable NHS resources and ensures that our trials remain inclusive and representative.”