Innovating Clinical Trials

Ep 2.30: Scott Burgher on Where AI Actually Helps Patient Recruitment (Part 3/3)

In the final part of this three-part conversation, Liam and Ted close things out with Scott Burgher, Director of Patient Operations at Quest Diagnostics, looking ahead at

Ep 2.29: "That's Not a Performance Problem, It's a Structural One" Scott Burgher on Why Sites Stop Recruiting (Part 2/3)

In Part 2 of this three-part conversation, Liam and Ted continue with Scott Burgher, Director of Patient Operations at Quest Diagnostics, going deeper into why recruitmen

Ep 2.28 Scott Burgher on Why 86% of Trials Miss Their Enrollment Deadline (Part 1/3)

In Part 1 of this three-part conversation, Liam and Ted sit down with Scott Burgher, Director of Patient Operations at Quest Diagnostics, who brings over 20 years of pati

Ep 2.27: 31 Years of Clinical Trials, Here's What Ted Trafford Knows for Sure

In this special episode, we mark Ted Trafford's 31st year in clinical trials with a candid reflection on what three decades in this industry actually teaches you. I

Ep 2.26: Lasagna's Law and Building Recruitment Forecasts You Can Actually Trust

Every trial starts with a number on a slide,  patients needed, months allotted, a clean straight line on a chart.  Liam and Ted pull that line apart in this episode, sta

Ep. 2.25 The Burdens Still Breaking Clinical Trials: 50-Page Consents, Broken Tech, and Stolen CRCs

In this episode, Ted  opens with a poem that captures the persistent, compounding burden on clinical trial sites: 50-page consents, non-functional tech, poached CRCs, fin

Ep 2.24 The Decision Threshold Matrix: Why Patient Motivation Isn't Fixed and What It Means for Trial Recruitment

In this episode, Liam and Ted explore one of the most underexamined problems in clinical trial recruitment: patient motivation is not static.  Drawing on real-world expe

Ep 2.23: Jill Fikowski on Why Participants Drop Out and What to Do About It (3/3)

In the final episode of our three-part series with Jill Fikowski, founder and CEO of Changemark Research + Evaluation, we get into one of the most persistent problems in

Ep 2.22: Jill Fikowski on Designing Trials That Communities Actually Want to Join (2/3)

In Part 2 of our conversation with Jill Fikowski, founder and CEO of Changemark Research + Evaluation, we get into what good community engagement actually looks like in p

Ep 2.21: Jill Fikowski on on Substance Use, Stigma, and the Research That Actually Changed Policy (1/3)

Jill Fikowski, founder and CEO of Changemark Research + Evaluation, brings 25+ years of lived and professional experience in substance use and mental health research. In

ICT Ep 2.20: What Monty Python Can Teach Us About Clinical Trials

Clinical trials don’t become complex overnight, they get there one added process at a time. In this episode, Ted and Liam break down why the industry is so effective at

ICT Ep 2.19: Everyone Has a Plan Until the Trial Starts

A 5 AM wake-up call. A perfectly planned setup. And a moment that never delivered. In this episode, Liam and Ted use a story about a missed “blood moon” to explore a dee

ICT Ep 2.18 What Recruitment Is Missing: Time, Trust, and a Cup of Tea

What does it actually mean to put the patient first? In this episode, Liam and Ted explore the role of empathy and human connection in clinical trials. From rushed pre-s

ICT Ep 2.17 Borrowing the F1 Playbook: What Formula One Gets Right That Clinical Trials Don't

What makes a truly high-performing team? Inspired by the precision of Formula One pit crews, where the difference between winning and losing is measured in milliseconds,

ICT Ep. 2.16 Leading Teams That Take Risks and Deliver Results With Frank Watanabe (3/3)

In Part 3 of 3, Liam and Ted continue their conversation with Frank Watanabe, CEO of Arcutis Biotherapeutics discussing work-life balance, building social capital, and ma

ICT Ep. 2.15 Innovation, Risk and Building Great Teams With Frank Watanabe (2/3)

In Part 2 of 3, Liam and Ted continue their conversation with Frank Watanabe, CEO of Arcutis Biotherapeutics, focusing on what it takes to hire and build high-performing

ICT Ep. 2.14 From Navy Officer to CEO: The DNA of Leadership with Frank Watanabe (1/3)

In this episode, Liam and Ted sit down with Frank Watanabe, President and CEO of Arcutis Biotherapeutics, to explore his journey from a Navy officer to a biotech executiv

ICT Ep 2.13: The Hidden Complexity of Trial Feasibility

A patient in a database is not a patient in a trial. So why do we keep treating feasibility like a headcount? Fresh from a week deep in feasibility work, Liam introduces

ICT Ep: 2.12: Dropping the Baton: Why Clinical Trial Handoffs Keep Failing

In elite sports, races are often won or lost in the transition, and Liam and Ted argue that the same is true in clinical trials. Drawing on the precision of Olympic relay

ICT Ep 2.11: The Top 10 Signs Your Site Feasibility Process Is Off Track

Using a David Letterman-inspired “Top 10” format, the conversation highlights common feasibility pitfalls faced by sponsors, CROs, and clinical trial sites, including ove