AI platform to match patients to local and global clinical trials

Digital & Innovation: A patient-led platform giving people the ability to self-select an interest in any clinical trial or research study anywhere in the world has been launched.

Opin is the first major platform that Australia’s Opyl has commercialised as a scalable enterprise model.

The platform is free-of-charge for patients to use and will generate revenue in three ways: by charging research organisations conducting trials a fee to unlock matched patient data, charging to have trials featured on the platform and in social media channels, and using the platform sophisticated data search capability to find matched patients registered to the platform waiting for a trial or study opportunity to open up, anywhere in the world.

“Improving efficiencies in research, creating greater equity, access and opportunities for patients to become more empowered in their health management is our goal,” said Michelle Gallaher.

“Opin is a great example of how AI and access to data can be applied
sensitively to generate exponential and shared value from discovery and development of new medicines through to helping an individual patient better manage their healthcare and feel more in control.”

When patients become genuine partners in their healthcare, and have the opportunity and motivation to learn more and actively participate in decision-making, they generally can achieve much better health outcomes.

More than 80% of clinical trials fail to recruit on time and on budget. Each month of delay caused by recruitment can cost a biopharmaceutical, medtech or research institute tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars.

The cost of clinical trial recruitment represents between 25-33% of clinical trial budget, therefore addressing recruitment inefficiencies, as Opin can
do, represents one of the most significant ways to reduce financial wastage in the research sector.

A key feature of the Opin approach, and one of its competitive advantages, is in leveraging social media and digital channels to create awareness and a door through which patients and carers can open to access the platform.

The Opyl team have been experts in using social media and digital marketing strategies to attract and support patient recruitment to studies and trials for over four years. Opin represents the conversion of years of consulting experience into a scalable, global enterprise solution.

“Opin still has a way to go in terms of development,” said Michelle Gallaher.

“We are working to an agile methodology which means that what you see today is the foundation of the platform functioning well and delivering the core value for users that we envisioned – there is much more development around features, content and data optimisation still to be released. This is our key priority in the business for the foreseeable future. We are keen to open up new content and feature-rich experiences for patients and carers
enabling them to explore, learn, participate and share in the research journey along with researchers and clinicians.”

The Opin platform also incorporates some of the novel AI and predictive analytics technology that Opyl has been developing in the background aimed at improving protocol (clinical trial plan) design.