OREANDA-NEWS. June 26, 2012. Vodafone, one of the world's largest mobile communications companies, announced today that it has signed an agreement with Exco InTouch, a leading provider of compliant, interactive mobile patient management solutions.

Together they will deliver Vodafone Patient Reported Outcomes (Vodafone PRO), a solution which has the potential to radically improve patient compliance and data quality in clinical research.

Vodafone PRO enables high quality data to be gathered as trial participants can report their experiences quickly and easily using their own mobile phone.  The service will be available on a global scale, benefiting from Vodafone’s international footprint and in-depth mobile and consumer insight, along with Exco InTouch’s extensive background in patient engagement. As more than 85% of the world’s population now own a mobile phone, the solution is using accessible technology that is firmly embedded in many people’s lives.

Exco InTouch’s solutions have been chosen by Vodafone as they provide simple, non-intrusive and compliant channels of communication. This enables sponsors and Contract Research Organisations to find and retain the right patients through engaging interactions and improved patient experience as well as offering customisable solutions to facilitate the collection of high quality patient data.

Axel Nemetz, Head of mHealth Solutions for Vodafone, said. “With this collaboration, Vodafone is confident that we can offer our clients the most innovative and effective clinical research solutions available in the global market. Our involvement will enable sponsors to choose our services for entire therapeutic areas around the world.” The initiative supports Vodafone’s strategy to expand its global and scalable healthcare services.

Tim Davis, CEO, Exco InTouch, comments: “Exco InTouch is delighted to enter into this complementary agreement with Vodafone. It demonstrates the extent to which mobile phone technology is increasingly being recognised by large pharmaceutical companies as an effective tool for the collection of clinical trial data. As a result of the partnership, research sponsors will be able to monitor safety and manage compliance in real time. This will make clinical trials easier and safer for patients, while enabling researchers to collect and process data quickly, accurately and reliably.”

Vodafone PRO can be configured for different study protocols in all phases of clinical research to collect crucial patient reported end point data. This scalable solution allows large volumes of high quality patient data to be securely transferred, validated and analysed in clinical trials. Vodafone PRO will make it easier for sponsors to retain and track people participating in trials and, through the patient-centred approach, is designed to improve the quality of data captured.

To learn more about this new partnership agreement, visit the Exco InTouch booth (#3201) at the DIA Annual Meeting, Philadelphia, 24-28 June, 2012.