Blog

While critical investments in clinical research infrastructure and training are essential for supporting new principal investigators (PIs) leading clinical trials, a significant barrier remains—a lack of awareness of clinical research as a career option in the first place. According to the authors of a special feature in the forthcoming June issue of ACRP’s Clinical Researcher journal, one innovative and practical solution to PI shortages and broader clinical research staffing challenges comes in the form of early intervention programs, which could be adapted to provide early practical exposure to careers in clinical research. 

When managing clinical trials, one key question remains: is it better to rely on best-in-breed systems that focus on individual functions, or should you adopt a single, integrated system that integrates and centralizes everything? For sites juggling CTMS, eSource, eRegulatory, eConsent, payments, participant engagement, and more, the burden of disconnected systems can slow down everything. 

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.