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Kendle Appoints John Needham Executive Director and Global Head, Patient Enrollment Strategy

Posted on: Monday, 5 October 2009, 10:26 CDT

CINCINNATI, Oct. 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Kendle (Nasdaq: KNDL), a leading, global full-service clinical research organization, today announced the appointment of John Needham as Executive Director and Global Head, Patient Enrollment Strategy. Needham will lead the development and implementation of innovative programs designed to accelerate patient recruitment, improve retention and support timely and efficient delivery of Phase I-IV clinical development programs for the Company's biopharmaceutical customers. His experience includes leadership of patient enrollment and retention programs in a wide array of therapeutic areas, including cardiology, endocrinology, oncology, pain management, pediatrics and many others. Needham is a recognized thought leader in the patient recruitment arena, having served as co-chair of the Drug Information Association (DIA) Special Area Interest Committee for Patient Recruitment and Retention and as a frequent chairperson for patient recruitment and retention seminars throughout the United States and Europe. He will be based out of Kendle global headquarters in Cincinnati and will report to Melanie Bruno, PhD, Vice President, Regulatory, Site and Medical Affairs.

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"I am pleased to welcome John to our team," said Dr. Bruno. "Patient enrollment is the backbone of the clinical development process, ensuring that clinical trials adhere to timelines and include the proper patients to produce scientifically valid results. John's extensive expertise and standing as a thought leader in the patient enrollment arena will serve our customers well."

The addition of Needham strengthens Kendle's position as an industry leader in the development of global patient enrollment strategies. Kendle has been an innovator in developing best practices in patient recruitment and retention, hosting a series of international patient recruitment forums bringing together top experts from around the world to collaborate and define best practices. The result is one of the clinical development industry's only thought leadership groups dedicated exclusively to the advancement of innovative patient recruitment techniques and strategies. As a thought leader in the industry, Needham will be instrumental in leading the Company's ongoing commitment to this initiative.

Needham has more than 30 years of industry experience, including more than 20 years in senior leadership roles focused on patient enrollment. Most recently he served as founder and CEO of Needham and Company, a patient recruitment consulting firm he established in 2004. Prior to founding his own company, Needham served as Senior Director at Johnson and Johnson Pharmaceutical Research and Development where he was responsible for global recruitment strategy. His experience also includes co-founding and serving as general manager of PatientQuest, a clinical trial market research firm, as well as senior leadership roles for Acurian, Telerx Marketing, Telespectrum Worldwide and PharmaKinetics Laboratories.

Needham holds a bachelor's degree in marketing from Villanova University and is a graduate of the United States Naval War College. He served for three decades in the United States Navy Reserve reaching the rank of Captain, and is the recipient of three Navy Achievement Medals, three Navy Commendation Medals, one Meritorious Service Medal and one Legion of Merit Medal.

Kendle has been recognized by several leading industry organizations for the quality of its patient recruitment programs. The Company won a 2007 Silver Award for "Innovation in Patient Communication" from the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising, was a finalist for "Most Innovative Patient Recruitment Campaign" at the 2007 GCPj Awards, and has won multiple industry awards for study advertising in a variety of therapeutic areas, including asthma, allergy, ulcerative colitis, lupus and HIV-associated diarrhea.

Innovative patient recruitment strategies in support of recruitment at the investigative sites have in turn earned Kendle consistent recognition as the CRO of choice. The Company is the only CRO to be ranked consistently among the top two CROs to work with in the 2009, 2008 and 2007 CenterWatch surveys of U.S. and European investigative sites, including the top overall ranking in 2007.

About Kendle

Kendle International Inc. (Nasdaq: KNDL) is a leading global clinical research organization providing the full range of early- to late-stage clinical development services for the world's biopharmaceutical industry. Our focus is on innovative solutions that reduce cycle times for our customers and accelerate the delivery of life-enhancing drugs to market for the benefit of patients worldwide. As one of the world's largest global providers of Phase I-IV services, we offer experience spanning more than 100 countries, along with industry-leading patient access and retention capabilities and broad therapeutic expertise, to meet our customers' clinical development challenges.

Additional information and investor kits are available upon request from Kendle, 441 Vine Street, Suite 500, Cincinnati, OH 45202 or from the Company's Web site at www.kendle.com.

SOURCE Kendle International Inc.

Source: PR Newswire

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