Antidote Technologies and the National Minority Health Association Collaborate to Increase Diversity in Clinical Trial Recruitment

Antidote Technologies (Antidote), a patient-centric digital engagement company focused on connecting patients with clinical research, today announced a collaboration with the National Minority Health Association (NMHA), a leading national health equity advocacy organization dedicated to closing the disparity gap in minority health care. The relationship will help ensure that all patients have access to the latest treatment options, including promising new drugs currently being tested in clinical trials. This collaboration will bring Antidote's winning patient-centric recruitment strategies together with NMHA's proven community-based engagement.

All members of society need to be appropriately represented in medical research, but there is a major under-representation of racial and ethnic minorities in clinical trials. The imbalance in clinical research inclusion has multiple effects which include limiting the development of effective treatments across populations, discovering fewer drugs and devices, and decreasing opportunities to improve health outcomes.

Despite efforts by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to stimulate the inclusion of under-represented populations through the NIH Revitalization Act of 1993, non-Hispanic whites of European ancestry comprise more than 90% of the population in clinical trials. Last month, the FDA issued new draft guidance to makers of drugs, biologics, and medical devices to enroll more participants in clinical trials from racial and ethnic populations in the US, including Black or African American, Hispanic/Latino, Indigenous and Native American, Asian, Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islanders, and other persons of color.

"The FDA's effort to increase racial and ethnic diversity in clinical trials is a clarion call to the industry," said Laurent Schockmel, CEO, Antidote. "Change is here. We're here to help. We are grateful to work with and get guidance from the National Minority Health Association and bring awareness and increased clinical trial participation in communities of color."

Last year, NMHA received an $11.1 million grant from the US Department of Health Resources and Services Administration to develop a community-based mobilization effort to get underserved communities vaccinated for COVID-19. To date, through their community-based partners, more than 62,000 vaccine shots have been delivered across the US to underserved populations.

"We are excited to collaborate with the Antidote team and replicate our successful HRSA COVID-19 grant strategy in order to increase diversity in clinical trial recruitment," said Burgess Harrison, Executive Director, National Minority Health Association.

If you're interested in learning about how this relationship between Antidote and NMHA can support your health equity and DEI initiatives toward patient recruitment, please get in touch today.

About Antidote

Antidote is a digital health company on a mission to accelerate medical research. In a world where 80% of clinical trials are delayed or closed due to a shortage of suitable participants, Antidote uses precision recruitment to match the right patients with the right trials, striking the right balance between technology and human touch to deliver high-quality patient engagement. This is achieved through the integration of data-driven technologies, digital expertise, deep domain experience, an extensive diverse partner network, and personalized patient and site services. Antidote was launched as TrialReach and is based in the US and UK. For more information, please visit http://www.antidote.me.

About the National Minority Health Association

The National Minority Health Association, founded in 1988 by Dr. David L. Dalton, Chairman, and CEO, UNIVEC Conglomerate, Inc. (UNVC), achieved its initial mission of ensuring the establishment of Offices of Minority Health in all 50 states. Today the NMHA is adding to its mission, administering an $11.1M HRSA grant to reduce vaccine hesitancy, and deploying new programs that utilize patient-centered, value-based care, and new ways of enhancing care to patients where they are, lowering costs, and improving outcomes for minority and underserved communities. To find out more, visit www.theNMHA.org. Become a member of the NMHA Health Equity Action Leaders network (HEAL) and join the fight for health equity. https://www.thenmha.org/donation. Help build confidence in the vaccine www.GoFundMe.com/thenmha.