Indian pharma and clinical research organisations (CROs) are adopting cloud technology solutions to accelerate drug development, enable data compilation, create efficiency and decrease the time-to market. Following changes on the global regulatory landscape, there is an increased dependence on reliable data which has led pharma companies and CROs opt for cloud computing to nurture innovation and improve productivity, according to industry experts.

A recently concluded DIA workshop on ‘Evolving landscape of clinical data management: Focus on technology and data standard’ indicated that in the current competitive landscape, pharma industry was looking to collaborate with the clinical data management service providers to garner regulatory compliance and improve efficiency.

“Clinical research business in the country is on a revival mode and is indicating signs of growth. But the momentum of growth is still found wanting even though change is evident and perceptible. The focus is not on just clinical data management (CDM) but a shift to value-added services like medical monitoring and safety data processes. Now this will see India play a big role in the space of clinical data management projects”, Suresh Ramu, chief executive officer, Cytespace told Pharmabiz on the sidelines of the DIA workshop.

“However, the growth in clinical research particularly human studies is not exponential but steady. The way forward is mergers and acquisitions with the industry moving to a consolidation mode”, noted the Cytespace chief executive officer, in his keynote address on the ‘Interplay of technology and data standards in CDM'.

There are clear signs that global majors have recognised the indispensability of India. This has led pharma and the CROs to move on to cloud computing and analytics platforms to reduce manual errors and help achieve better quality and patient safety. Since clinical trials are a critical component of drug development, there is need to achieve seamless integration across applications to diminish data duplication, highlighted experts at the DIA workshop.

The participants like clinical data managers, clinical database programmers, bio statisticians, besides related professionals were given a lucid angle on the role of cloud technology as an innovative tool for clinical data management.

Mandar Ghatnekar, senior manager, Life Sciences Practice, Accenture in his presentation on the recent innovations in technology solutions for clinical data management said that the focus of pharma industry and the CROs was to achieve speed, functionally and collaboration. Technology trends like social media, mobility, analytics and cloud computing (SMAC) are evolving in this space.

“Particularly, cloud computing and analytics have created a seamless and scalable environment. The industry be it pharma or CROs are now seen to increasingly invest in such technologies to achieve speed to market,” he added.

A few years ago, global pharma companies were reluctant to host any data of clinical trial on an external environment. But today, all these companies and those in India are looking to increase their presence on a private cloud environment. The focus of information technology majors including SAP and Oracle is to develop life sciences software powered by analytical tools and reporting applications to enhance knowledge management, said Ghatnekar.