Many IVD clinical studies still run on a patchwork of disconnected tools: a file share here, a spreadsheet there, a separate system for clinical operations and another for the data. The handoffs between them put time, money, and clean data at risk. Since 2021, DCN Dx has been developing something different: one connected platform on Veeva, with the electronic trial master file, EDC, and CTMS all talking to each other. In this candid discussion, host Emily Friedland (VP of Clinical Research, DCN Dx) sits down with two of the people who built and run it, Thomas Martinache (Associate Director, Data Management, DCN Dx) and Jill Hutton-Pugh (Clinical Trial Manager, DCN Dx), along with John Acampado (Senior Director of Clinical Strategy, Veeva). They get into what the old patchwork model cost, how DCN put the connected platform together piece by piece, and, most of all, what it changes for the sponsors who hire them: faster study startup, real-time visibility into enrollment and milestones, cleaner data with fewer manual handoffs, and a compliant foundation that an emerging IVD or MedTech company can grow on. The conversation leads into the team’s Veeva webinar on July 15, Platform Over Patchwork: How Consolidation Drives CRO Efficiency, where DCN Dx will share its journey of moving onto a single platform to drive operational efficiency in high-intensity trials, including 60% improvement in IMV preparation, 45% reduction in build time, and 30% faster study closeout. Register for that webinar here: https://veeva.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_m8krwBa4RLCnK17MpVZVCw#/registration Emily Friedland | VP of Clinical Research, DCN Dx Emily Friedland is Vice President of Clinical Research at DCN Dx, where she leads the company's clinical operations across IVD and medical device studies. She has more than two decades in clinical research, including a turn as Global Director of Clinical Operations at Teleflex and earlier roles at Singulex, Grifols, Celera, and Roche, spanning infectious disease, genetic testing, and women's health. She holds a B.S. from Virginia Tech and is based at DCN Dx's headquarters in Carlsbad, California. John Acampado | Sr. Director, Clinical Strategy, Veeva MedTech John leads strategy at Veeva MedTech, focused on helping CROs and sponsors build connected, scalable clinical solutions across device and diagnostics. He came to Veeva from the sponsor side, including time at Becton Dickinson, and brings that experience to Veeva’s MedTech product direction and to his work on the MDIC IVD standards working group. Jill Hutton-Pugh | Clinical Trial Manager, Clinical Operations, DCN Dx Jill Hutton-Pugh is a Clinical Trial Manager in Clinical Operations at DCN Dx and the clinical team's lead on its connected Veeva platform. She has two spent decades in clinical research spanning IVD, clinical safety, and pharmaceutical strategy, with study experience across infectious disease, HIV, interventional cardiology, and hypertension. Known for getting multidisciplinary teams aligned and projects finished on time, she has held clinical operations and monitoring roles at Teleflex, Conformal Medical, and Essential Medical, with earlier years at Merck in hospital sales and pricing. She holds a B.S. in microbiology from Ohio State University and pursued graduate business studies at both Ohio State and Temple. Thomas Martinache | Associate Director of Data Management, DCN Dx Thomas Martinache is Associate Director of Data Management at DCN Dx, with 15 years in clinical data management. He spent much of his career supporting CROs and sponsors in cardiology and oncology, in roles at Teleflex, HeartFlow, and BioClinica, before turning his focus to IVD. At DCN Dx he leads the data management team and the connected Veeva platform that runs across the firm's studies, supporting sponsors from protocol design and site selection through final statistical reporting and regulatory submissions.
