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University of California Los Angeles Selects Velos eResearch

Posted on: Thursday, 23 April 2009, 04:00 CDT

FREMONT, Calif., April 23 /PRNewswire/ -- After a review of several vendors, the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) has selected the services of Velos and its flagship product, Velos eResearch. The clinical research management system is being implemented at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center and an affiliated clinical research network, Translational Oncology Research International, (TORI). Plans are in place to deploy the system in non-cancer studies being conducted in the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.

A UCLA selection committee chose Velos eResearch because the system offered the best core functionality for managing clinical trials and it was the most adaptable and user-friendly for tracking patients.

"We have a very complex structure here on campus and in the TORI Network," said Nancy Ryba, a registered nurse and director of the Jonsson Cancer Center's Clinical Research Unit. "Velos eResearch allows us to accurately track the patients and studies with the level of detail that we require. Equally important, Velos is the most user-friendly for those who work with the system. It is also the most flexible and adaptable for addressing all of our on-campus and off-campus needs."

The cancer center tracks everything from simple studies to very complex, multi-arm clinical trials that require very detailed patient information, Ryba said. The system will also be used to track studies within the TORI network, a large group of participating research sites and medical practices stretching throughout the country, as well as some international sites.

"We are pleased to be selected and to have this opportunity to serve UCLA," stated John S. McIlwain, President and CEO of Velos, Inc. "The School of Medicine and the Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer have a well-known commitment to excellence in medical research. They also have an outstanding leadership and technical team, which is so important for projects of this magnitude."

Implementation of Velos eResearch at the cancer center began through interviews with experts in clinical trials and stakeholders at the institution. It was determined that the system would first be deployed to tackle the most important business process needs of leadership and staff.

"There are so many areas that Velos eResearch is capable of addressing," said Courtney Martin, associate director of the cancer center's Informatics Division, "but we chose to start with the areas of highest need."

Improving the cancer center's ability to manage its research portfolio was foremost among the areas of highest need. With Velos eResearch, cancer center leadership know what studies are open, how well they are accruing patients and the stage they have reached in the regulatory process.

"Managing that was always a very laborious and inefficient process for us," continued Martin. "Before Velos eResearch, it was much more difficult."

Stakeholders and clinical trials experts helped cancer center leadership define other areas of focus for implementation. Senior leadership needed quick understanding of what was happening at the research staff level from those enrolling and interacting with patients. Those users are responsible for ensuring that all regulatory activities are carried out appropriately. They also are providing needed data to billers.

"Now our senior leadership will be able to log into the system and be able to access the data they need in real time," said Martin.

Billing has been an equally important priority for the cancer center. With Velos, the invoicing staff will have access in real time to the patient tracking data they need for billing. Previously, fund managers spent much of their time inefficiently retrieving the necessary data from several different locations.

"Velos will help us become more efficient in the turn-around time in processing billing for clinical trials," stated Martin.

Ryba said UCLA and the TORI network have been tracking studies and patients for nearly 13 years via paper logs and antiquated database processes.

"We look forward to moving into a system that will allow us to track studies and patients real time in an efficient manner that will facilitate coordination of our clinical trials and allow accurate financial tracking of study procedures and processes," Ryba said.

The cancer center will have the ability to electronically exchange data with the various TORI network sites. Previously, data was transmitted by email and fax and manually keyed into the old database. With the new system, the TORI sites will enter their own data directly into Velos.

"They can go online, view the studies available at their site and track their patients through Velos," Ryba said. "Eventually, protocols and informed consents will be Web-based for all studies."

Cancer center senior leadership will use accrual data in formulating NCI reports and for other regulatory functions such as the Internal Scientific Review Committee, Quality Assurance and the Data Safety Monitoring Board.

"We are closely watching progress at the cancer center," said Vikki Jenkins, MA, MPH, executive director of the Office of Clinical Trials at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. "We will no doubt apply our own perspectives and approaches when the system is implemented for non-cancer studies. In the meantime, we have enjoyed working with the Velos team and we are enthusiastic about the future."

About the Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center at UCLA

In the late 1960s, a group of scientists and volunteers at UCLA came together to develop a cancer center they hoped would become renowned for excellence in research, education and patient care. In 1976, the cancer center at UCLA was designated "comprehensive" by the National Cancer Institute (NCI). Of the 63 NCI cancer center programs nationwide, only 41 receive the gold-star comprehensive status. UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center (JCCC) receives this honor for maintaining the highest standards of excellence in patient care, education, basic science, clinical research and cancer prevention.

JCCC has established an international reputation in a number of areas, including: Developing new cancer therapies; providing the best in experimental and traditional treatments; and expertly guiding and training the next generation of medical researchers. Numerous successful targeted therapies were developed based on basic science done in UCLA laboratories and later clinical research with UCLA patients. A few of the more well-known therapies include: Herceptin, a targeted breast cancer drug and the first approved treatment that attacks cancer at its genetic root; Gleevec, a once-a-day pill that targets a common form of adult leukemia called chronic myelogenous leukemia, or CML; Sprycel, also a pill that targets CML; Tarceva, a targeted lung cancer drug; and Avastin, a targeted drug for colorectal cancer, lung cancer and breast cancer.

With a membership of more than 350 physicians and scientists, JCCC is one of the largest comprehensive cancer centers in the nation, handling more than 20,000 patient visits per year and conducting hundreds of clinical trials, providing the latest in experimental cancer treatments.

About David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA

The David Geffen School of Medicine is an internationally recognized leader in research, medical education, and patient care. In 2002 Mr. David Geffen announced a $200 million unrestricted endowment for the school and the school thus was named. The endowment enables the school to compete in perpetuity with the finest medical institutions in the world for outstanding faculty regardless of the economic climate, to provide critical financial support to enroll the finest students regardless of need, and to develop forward-looking research and clinical programs.

The medical school today has more than 2,000 full-time faculty members, almost 1,300 residents, more than 750 medical students and almost 400 Ph.D. candidates. The UCLA Medical Center has been ranked "Best in the West" by U.S. News and World Report's annual survey of the best hospitals in America for fourteen consecutive years. The medical school is ranked ninth in the country in research funding from the National Institutes of Health and third in the United States in research dollars from all sources.

About Velos

Velos, Inc. is the recognized leader and trusted clinical trial management resource for investigators, sponsors and academic leaders throughout the U.S. Its customers include 21 of the top 25 academic medical centers and research institutions. Among the 100 largest recipients of NIH clinical research funding, Velos customers receive over 50 percent of such NIH extramural funding.

Velos eResearch is deployed for clinical research in all parts of the healthcare enterprise and supports a broad diversity of clinical departments and functional needs. The system fundamentally improves the way data is collected, organized and shared. A pure Internet technology platform, Velos eResearch harnesses the Internet to enable research sites, sponsors, and patients to collaborate in a secure, integrated system platform. System users are freed of redundant data entry and related time delays associated with most clinical research today. With emphasis on workflow and integration, Velos addresses the clinical, administrative and financial information needs of medical researchers. Founded in 1996, Velos is privately held with headquarters in Fremont, California. For more information, visit www.velos.com.

This press release may contain forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements.

SOURCE Velos, Inc.

Source: PR Newswire

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