Why We Pay Close Attention to Patient Distance from Trial Sites

Patients within 5km of a site are 40% more likely to book a screening visit

At Power, we recently redid an analysis of how distance impacts a patient's likelihood of booking a screening visit.

The impact of proximity on screening visits

Our data highlights a clear trend:

• Within 5km: Patients are 40% more likely to book a screening visit.
• Beyond 5km: Conversion rates stabilize at a lower level, showing less variation as distance increases. Interestingly, it looks like 5-32km from a site are approximately the same.

This indicates that proximity to a trial site is a key factor in driving patient engagement, particularly within the first 5km. The further a patient lives from the site, the less likely they are to follow through with booking a visit.

Understanding patient behaviour and convenience

The drop in conversion rates after 5km can be explained by how patients perceive convenience. Even relatively short distances (like 5 to 10km) can feel inconvenient when factoring in travel time, traffic, or disruptions to daily routines. What might seem like a minor distance to clinical teams can feel like a bigger hurdle for patients.

• 5-10km: Though not far, this distance may be just enough to feel inconvenient and reduce the likelihood of committing to a visit.
• 10-32km: Conversion rates stabilize, indicating that other factors, like scheduling or trial interest, may play a more significant role beyond this distance.

Leveraging location data to optimize recruitment

To address these challenges, Power offers location-based filtering on our website, allowing patients to:

• Filter by proximity: Patients can choose trial sites based on how close they are.
• View a map of sites: Each trial has a map view showing all nearby sites, so patients can select the most convenient one.

This approach both helps patients find sites that are close to them and reduces the perceived inconvenience by making it easier for patients to engage.

Proximity to a trial site plays a significant role in a patient’s likelihood to participate. By understanding how even small distances affect perceived convenience, clinical operations teams can tailor recruitment strategies to maximize engagement. Offering tools like location filtering and map views helps patients find the most convenient sites, improving both recruitment rates and patient experience. Tracking proximity-based metrics ensures that ops teams are selecting the right sites to optimize recruitment.

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