For sponsors and CROs, enrollment speed is one of the biggest drivers of trial cost and timelines. One of the most dependable ways to improve it is to put studies where the patients already are: inside specialty practices.

The enrollment problem

Research from the Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development found that roughly 11% of sites enroll no patients and another 37% under-enroll. Every underperforming site adds cost and delay. Site selection is where much of that risk is decided.

Reason 1: The patients are already there

A standalone research center often starts each study from zero, recruiting through ads and databases. A specialty practice already treats the target population. A pain and spine practice sees patients with chronic back pain and sciatica every day. An endocrinology practice follows patients with diabetes and obesity over years. Pre-screening an existing panel is faster and more predictable than finding strangers.

Reason 2: Procedural expertise

Many device, biologic, and interventional studies require procedures that only specialists perform routinely, such as image-guided injections, spinal cord stimulation, or disc therapies. Sites where investigators already perform these procedures every day can run the protocol as written, with fewer deviations and a shorter learning curve.

Reason 3: Trust

Patients are more likely to consider a trial when their own physician explains it. That trust shortens the path from interest to consent and helps with retention through the end of the study.

Reason 4: Better feasibility estimates

Because specialty practices can count their actual patients by condition, their feasibility estimates are grounded in real data rather than hopeful guesses. That helps sponsors build a more reliable site plan.

Reason 5: Retention and follow-up

Patients who continue to see the same practice for routine care are easier to keep on schedule for study visits. Long-term follow-up is less likely to be lost.

What specialist sites need to succeed

Patient access alone isn't enough. A specialist site still needs trained coordinators, efficient startup, strong regulatory systems, and a recruitment process that goes beyond the practice's own panel when needed. That is why pairing specialty practices with an experienced research operator works well. See what sponsors look for in a new site.

Questions to ask during site selection

• How many patients with the target condition does the practice treat each year?

• Do investigators routinely perform the procedures in the protocol?

• Who will coordinate the study, and who provides backup coverage?

• What is the pre-screening and follow-up process?

• How will enrollment be reported, and how often?

Whizz Health builds procedure-ready research sites inside independent specialty practices, with built-in recruitment and weekly enrollment reporting. Browse our specialties or tell us about your study.