The first technology-enabled remote clinical trial was launched nearly a decade ago, and that field — now generally referred to as "decentralized clinical trials" — has been advancing and gaining traction ever since. But, like so many other remote tools, it's been greatly accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

On today's HIMSSCast, host Jonah Comstock and MobiHealthNews Managing Editor Laura Lovett welcome John Reites, CEO and cofounder of THREAD Research, to give us an update on where this new paradigm for clinical trials is today, and where it's headed.

Talking points:

• The effect of the pandemic on decentralized clinical trials
• Reconciling cultural differences between pharma and tech
• How vaccine trials are their own animal
• How decentralized trials can help improve clinical trial diversity
• The role of consumer wearables in clinical trials today
• Why clinical trial innovation must be global
• How physicians, researchers, and patients are responding to new clinical trial models
• What everyone should know about decentralized clinical trials

More about this episode:

THREAD Research

That Apple video

Trials and tribulations – the new world of decentralized trials

Spurred by the pandemic, AI is driving decentralized clinical trials

Virtual clinical research company Thread acquired by two private equity firms

Exo raises $40M for handheld ultrasound; decentralized trial platforms raise nearly $100M; and more digital health funding news

Current Health launches decentralized clinical trial initiative

Decentralized clinical trial startup Florence lands $80M for company growth

Labcorp updates its clinical trial process with a technology-enabled platform

The year for mobile-enabled clinical trials: 2013 or 2030? (Throwback #1)

ResearchKit update: Notes from the field on trial retention, Android integration, and more (Throwback #2)