US clinical researchers rate GSK, Eli Lilly and Pfizer top sponsors

GlaxoSmithKline, Eli Lilly and Pfizer are rated the top three pharmaceutical companies by the research centres that conduct their clinical trials, according to a recent survey carried out by Thomson CenterWatch, part of The Thomson Corporation, of the US.

Pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies rely heavily on the quality of their working relationships with the research centres that enrol and care for patients in clinical trials. The results of the survey indicate that research sponsors have done a good job of maintaining - but not improving - the effectiveness of their collaborations. Protocol design, query handling, subject recruitment support and the study grant payment process continue to receive poor ratings from investigative sites. For example, only one out of three research centres gives sponsors top ratings for the quality of their study protocols despite the importance of this activity to the success of clinical trials.

The 2003 CenterWatch Relationship Quality Survey was conducted between January and March of 2003. In all, more than 40 biopharmaceutical companies were rated by 367 investigative sites in the 2003 survey and results compared with those from similar CenterWatch surveys conducted in 1997, 1999 and 2001.

'Most sponsors continue to receive mediocre ratings from their clinical investigators and study staff,' said Dr Mary Jo Lamberti, manager of market intelligence at CenterWatch, 'but there are clearly areas where improvements have been made. Likewise, there are areas where companies are falling short.'