It Changed My Practice:

  I’m an MD/PhD student and a CANTRAIN awardee. When I attended the first CANTRAIN Clinical Trials Summit in2024, I didn’t expect it to reshape how I approach research—but it did.   During a plenary session on patient engagement, I heard directly from patient partners about the barriers they face in accessing trials, especially in rural areas. Their stories—and their solutions—made me realize that my studies weren’t always accessible to the people who could benefit most.  That session stayed with me. Over the next year, I redesigned my trial to be more decentralized, allowing patients in Interior BC to receive care closer to home. The change wasn’t just logistical—it was personal. Participants told us that they felt included and valued. Thanks to CANTRAIN, I now build trials that meet patients where they are. It changed how I work—and I believe it’s changing the future of clinical research in Canada. 

Shaping Research Through Patient Voice:

After attending the 2024 CANTRAIN Clinical Trials Summit, an MD/PhD awardee was deeply impacted by a session on patient engagement.Hearing directly from patient partners about the challenges of participating in trials—especially in rural areas—prompted them to redesign their study.  As a result, they shifted to a decentralized trial model in Interior BC, allowing participants to receive care closer to home. “It changed my practice,” they later shared. “The patient perspectives I heard at the Summit completely reshaped how I think about trial design.”