Open Access“Out of the Labs”: The role for ethnography in guiding clinical trials
Author(s) -
GARGEYA YOSHA,
HOLME MADS
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
ethnographic praxis in industry conference proceedings
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1559-8918
pISSN - 1559-890X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1559-8918.2013.00014.x
Subject(s) - ethnography , bridging (networking) , clinical trial , value (mathematics) , sociology , engineering ethics , psychology , knowledge management , medicine , computer science , engineering , computer network , pathology , machine learning , anthropology
Ethnography and clinical research appear fundamentally disparate, even conflicting. Their very objectives are dichotomous – the latter moves molecules ‘from the lab to consumer market’ in controlled environments, while the former studies the uncontrolled environment of everyday life. However, with the new reality of pharmaceutical research and development, companies are urged to look into new ways of delivering impact and value to payers, prescribers, and users. This paper explores how ethnographic research can fill that role in early stages of pharmaceutical clinical trials, challenging current paradigms of method as well as parameters for success – and how bridging methodologies can open new avenues for ethnographic practice in business.