In a major advance for the sector, the Australia Clinical Trials Alliance (ACTA) is representing the investigator-led clinical trials community on the newly-formed Clinical Trials Advisory Committee (CTAC).
The Committee has been established to provide advice to the Departments of Industry and Health on the Government’s work program to progress clinical trials reform. It will aim to ensure the authority, expertise and a broad representation of the clinical trials sector can be harnessed to expedite the recommendations for clinical trial reform.
The first communique from the newly-formed Clinical Trials Advisory Committee (CTAC) was released yesterday following its inaugural meeting held 21st May in Canberra.
“I’m extremely pleased that ACTA has been invited to represent the interests of clinician researchers in this forum. It is critically important that work to improve the landscape for conducting clinical trials in Australia is informed by the needs of both the investigator-initiated and industry-driven clinical trials sectors” said Prof John Zalcberg, ACTA Chair.
The Committee is co-chaired by Ms Janet Anderson (First Assistant Secretary, Acute Care Division, Dept of Health) and Mr Paul Trotman (Division Head, Business Competitiveness & Trade Division, Dept of Industry) and comprises senior representatives from Commonwealth, State and Territory Governments, industry, health consumer organisations and the clinical research community.
During the first meeting, CTAC Chairs formally acknowledged the work of the former Clinical Trial Action Group (CTAG) Coordination Group and the progress it had made towards achieving recommendations put forward in the CTAG report.
Key issues discussed included new budget measures for health and medical research and the essential role of clinical trials in delivering evidence-based health outcomes.
Members also reviewed a range of work currently being undertaken to boost the conduct of clinical trials in Australia.
Read more in the CTAC Communique No 1, 21 May