Insights

It may have been fate. It may have been just a coincidence. However it happened, the stars aligned and Tina Messina, RN, CCRC, a Senior Clinical Research Nurse providing services for Omega Clinical Research, LLC and NOLA Care, LLC in Metairie, La., didn’t have to go far to celebrate her remarkable 30 years as an ACRP certificant among others being recognized for milestones in their certification journeys when ACRP 2025 was held last month practically in her backyard.

In today’s clinical research landscape, speed, efficiency, and scalability are no longer “nice-to-haves”—they’re non-negotiables. That’s why sponsors and contract research organizations (CROs) are shifting their focus to one of the most underutilized levers of transformation: site-facing technology.

In recognition of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month this May, ACRP asked Sharleen Traynor, PhD, MPH, ACRP-CP, Director of the Clinical Trials Research Associate Program at Durham Technical Community College in North Carolina, to share her thoughts on the importance that AANHPI heritage has had in her life and more broadly in the clinical research enterprise, both for participants and professionals. 

The power of clinical research lies not just in individual trials, but in the collective knowledge we build together. From learning from every setback to celebrating every success, the determination and effort of both patients and researchers fuels a powerful cycle of discovery.

A poster on “Understanding the Role of CROs and Sponsors During the Feasibility Process to Increase Enrollment for Racial and Ethnic Minorities in Clinical Trials” was judged the best of the 10 posters accepted for presentation at the recent ACRP 2025 conference in New Orleans, La. It is the brainchild of Jalen Denson, BSPHc, LSSWB, who worked on the topic as an undergraduate student at Juniata College in Huntingdon, Pa.