Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Clinical Trials

ACRO’s Diversity and Inclusion in Clinical Trials Committee was formed in 2020 as a part of ACRO’s ongoing efforts to work towards advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in the clinical research ecosystem.

Principles Statement

ACRO’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Principles Statement, created by members of ACRO’s D&I Committee, is comprised of four principles that are vital to the work of ensuring all trials are diverse, inclusive, and equitable. By focusing on the four principles and associated actions below, the CROs and technology providers of ACRO are working towards a clinical research ecosystem that is representative of the world we live in.

1. Improving Health Equity Through Access to Trials

  • Increase awareness and opportunities for clinical trial participation among
    diverse populations
  • Reduce the burden of participation for diverse communities through innovative methodologies, decentralized trial support services, and digital technologies

2. Empowering Research Partners (Patients, Sites, Health Care Professionals)

  • Educate and engage patients as research partners throughout the clinical development lifecycle
  • Harness data to better characterize relevant patient populations
  • Support sites with training and culturally relevant materials to work with diverse communities
  • Use data to identify investigators with access to clinically relevant, diverse patients

3. Partnering with Stakeholders & Policymakers

  • Work with policymakers and regulators around the world to promote policies that improve diversity and inclusion of underrepresented study participants
  • Embed a patient-centric mindset in policy recommendations by partnering with patient and minority advocacy groups

4. Driving Workforce Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

  • Support programs that drive diversity and inclusion in the clinical research industry workforce including employee retention, recruitment, and development
  • Foster relationships with minority healthcare associations and other groups to bring new generations into clinical research

Diversity and Inclusion Committee Sub-teams

ACRO’s D&I Advocacy team is tasked with leading efforts to engage with policymakers and regulators on topics relating to improving diversity and inclusion in the clinical research ecosystem. The team has been involved on policies including Congressional reauthorization of PDUFA and FDA’s Race and Ethnicity Diversity Action Plans.

Advocacy

Communications

ACRO’s D&I Communications team leads ACRO’s outward messaging on our diversity initiatives. The team spearheaded the development of the D&I Principles Statement and plays an active role in ACRO’s social media communications related to diversity and inclusion in clinical trials.

Collaboration

ACRO’s D&I Collaboration team works with BIO, MRCT, and other stakeholders- including industry, patient, and professional groups- to drive advancements in clinical trial diversity and inclusion.

ACRO’s D&I Workforce team is developing strategies for improving diversity and inclusion within the workforce of our member companies to help, in turn, drive diversity and inclusion among trial participants.

Workforce