IAOCR Clinical Research Industry Leaders Think Tank

"This certification underscores our unwavering commitment to maintaining the highest standards of clinical research and patient safety across all our trials. At Re:Cognition Health we continue to push the boundaries in pioneering clinical research, ensuring that each step we take adheres to the most rigorous quality and ethical standards. Thank you to our incredible team and partners for your dedication to excellence in advancing medical science!"

"We are honored to be the FIRST clinical trial site in the Middle East to achieve GCSA Site Certification. This milestone reflects KAIMRC’s commitment to advancing clinical research excellence. Achieving the GCSA standard is a testament of the systems and processes we have built, and also a tribute to the dedication and capability of our clinical trial management team. This certification not only validates the strength of our operational frameworks but also enhances our reputation as a trusted global partner for delivering consistently high-quality research for sponsors and patients worldwide."

"For the Clinical Research Unit of the Hospital Internacional de Colombia – FCV, advancing through the GCSA certification process marked an important step in our commitment to quality, ethics, and excellence in clinical research. We have always believed that every study is an opportunity to change lives, which is why we work with rigor, care, and a strong commitment to continuous improvement, always placing the well-being of our participants at the centre of everything we do."

"The GCSA endorsement of our processes, systems and team are testament to the value we place on high quality outcomes to ensure patient safety and high-quality data and provides assurance to our Partners and the Industry that we are operating on a global level."

"It is easy to get caught up in the day to day and not take time to stop, reflect, and question processes, systems and outcomes. The collaborative nature of the certification processes enables you to do this in a supportive environment. We have made a number of improvements since embarking on our certification journey and have many more planned."

"Having solid, certified processes in place has significantly facilitated our site network expansion. The GCSA certification and robust SOPs have streamlined our operations, enabling faster onboarding of new sites while maintaining high standards of compliance and data integrity. This has increased trust with sponsors and CROs, opening doors to more strategic partnerships and studies."

"Demonstrating adherence and commitment to global best practice is essential for NHS research teams. It offers confidence and assurance for patients and provides an independent benchmark to our communities around the research we undertake. By proving that we are operating to the highest of quality standards, it provides our clients evidence that we are a trusted and valuable partner for the delivery of clinical research. Furthermore, our workforce is strengthened by attracting, engaging with, and retaining staff who work at the highest possible standards."

"I’m extremely proud to be the first Australian clinical trials team to be awarded this internationally recognised clinical research site certification. It’s a testament to Icon Group’s dedication to upholding patient safety and the delivery of a high quality comprehensive clinical trials program. Research is part of Icon’s DNA, and our proven robust governance, processes and systems allow us to bring clinical trials to more places globally, while ensuring we maintain the highest standards of international quality across a broad geographical footprint."

"The training is extremely user friendly, easy to use and makes learning ICH-GCP so much more accessible and dare I say it…enjoyable."

"The training course was easy and clear to understand, and also easy to manage completing it with the daily presentations and tasks"

"Short sharp bursts of learning work well, plus the daily reminders were very useful"

"An easy way to follow and learn, which also gives you time to do it alongside your regular work. You don't have to sit for hours to complete it and it's great that you don't have to complete everything in the same day."

"The daily tasks are very useful to help remember the concepts"

"Having worked in clinical research for several years I decided to complete the IAOCR investigator accreditation to ensure that I could demonstrate formal recognition of an internationally accepted program that proves my competence and ability to work to best practice global standards. I found the online examination straight forward and the staff at IAOCR to be very responsive to my enquiries. Having now gained accreditation, I believe that Sponsors, CROS and other stakeholders within the clinical research space will have utmost confidence that they are collaborating with a globally recognised Clinical Research Investigator."

"Qualifying staff to work in clinical trials based on number of years’ experience provides false reassurance of quality and also fuels the industry’s talent crisis. When an individual gains IAOCR accreditation I know they have been robustly competence checked… …The IAOCR approach reduces risk to clinical research and provides a reliable and trusted pathway for new talent."

"At Re:Cognition Health, we are always working on ways to improve quality and efficiency in our clinical trials, which means having a fantastic team. We implemented the IAOCR individual accreditations this year, as a way of externally assessing our staff team’s understanding and application of ICH GCP to their roles and duties, as well as assessing their wider understanding of clinical trials. This process has helped us recognize, company-wide our wonderful staff and supported their professional development. More importantly, it has helped us identify training gaps, so we can consider additional training need."

"Our BPQC certification journey began on Clinical Trials Day, this year, which was no coincidence. At Momentum Pharma we absolutely live and breathe the values promoted on Clinical Trials Day: the pursuit of knowledge, best practice, and unwavering commitment to patient well-being. Through these values, clinical investigators, research sites and clinical trial staff work tirelessly to research new medicine and bring hope to millions of patients and their families. This became our launch pad to drive us forward in the pursuit of our goal to achieve the highest recognition possible, IAOCR Business Process Quality Certification. We are thrilled to announce that all three areas reviewed, Governance, Business Strategy and Workforce Process Quality, have fully met the rigorous assessment criteria.” Melissa Melton, CEO and Co-Founder."

"As a board member for the GCSA Global Advisory Board, it is possible to see the difference that this certification for the global quality standard for sites will make to the ongoing delivery of clinical trials in our ever-challenging environment. The benefits of the certification include transparency for both sites and sponsors, enabling reassurance and trust in the commitment to the delivery of the highest quality research and facilitation of true synergistic partnerships across the clinical trial landscape."

"The GCSA certification process offered more than just validation – it was a true opportunity for reflection and growth. It enabled us to celebrate areas of strength whilst also identifying opportunities to further refine and enhance our processes. The Certification reinforces the credibility and quality of our research operations through independent external review. Ultimately, it supports our continued commitment to delivering high-quality experiences for both patients and sponsors."

"At AGA Clinical Trials, we are dedicated to demonstrating how we are a global center of excellence and the GCSA and IAOCR certifications were the logical next steps for us to achieve our mission of improving health and quality of life for our patients. The GCSA and subsequent IAOCR certification processes were in-depth and detailed, which allowed our team to reflect on our working processes beyond the core assessment. We’re delighted with the results because we are truly committed to working to the highest Industry standards."

"We take what we do very seriously, because of the impact our trials can have on our patients and their families. We wanted to ensure we were providing the best quality service to our patients, their families, the Sponsors and CRO clients, whilst also developing our team. Through the independent GCSA assessment, we have been able to demonstrate and embed best practices and processes."

"As a board member for the GCSA Global Advisory Board, it is possible to see the difference that this certification for the global quality standard for sites will make to the ongoing delivery of clinical trials in our ever-challenging environment. The benefits of the certification include transparency for both sites and sponsors, enabling reassurance and trust in the commitment to the delivery of the highest quality research and facilitation of true synergistic partnerships across the clinical trial landscape."

"As a sponsor of dermatology trials, the GCSA certification standard gives me confidence that sites are working to a global quality standard and have been independently audited by IAOCR. When a site is GCSA Certified I have confidence that they will be a high-quality partner for our clinical trials."

"Workforce Quality Accreditation is one of the most rewarding programs I have ever worked on. It is not a check box exercise, it’s part of a continual improvement process—we learned a lot about ourselves: what we do well, what we can improve upon and how to fill gaps. IAOCR will not waiver from their standards—gaining the Clinical Operations Workforce Quality Accreditation really means something!"

"This Gold award allows us to market for commercial research, as it’s an indicator of our quality. It provides a layer of assurance for the Trust in terms of an external assessment and where we’re at in terms of our clinical research workforce"

"I would absolutely recommend IAOCR. They’ve really helped us over the last couple of years, re-organize the way we deliver training. I think the way they go about their business is very diligent, it’s quite strict, which I think you need when you’re setting up levels of competence for the industry. IAOCR have really helped us shape out thoughts around competence over the last four or five years."

"I would absolutely recommend IAOCR. In all my dealings with them I’ve found them to be highly professional, extremely focused, and I’ve been delighted to be a member of the Executive Advisory Board and part of the Workforce Quality Accreditation program. I think [IAOCR accreditation] has the real potential to be adopted across the industry. The fact that there is an accreditation process where none existed before, we are looking at common competencies that work across academia, across CRO and pharma. This is something to be absolutely celebrated!"

"I think they’re really shaping the industry, they were the primary and first people speaking about competency….IAOCR are the frontier of how we should be evaluating clinical research professionals. It’s the wave of the future and I'd like to see the industry embrace it as a whole."

"The Project Management Course provided by IAOCR was a new and innovative way of providing this kind of training within this industry. My team contained people with varying experience and they all benefitted from it, even though some of them did not meet the accreditation criteria. The follow up work by IAOCR was excellent and really got my team thinking about the training and using it in real life examples which is rarely achieved with other training methods. The main selling point is the fact that participants have to demonstrate understanding, and that really opened my eyes to the ability of my staff within my team."