01Weeks 1–3

Site Feasibility Assessment

We review the protocol against the site's actual patient population, staff capacity, and facilities before committing to anything. A significant share of assessments end in a recommendation not to proceed.

02Weeks 3–8

Contract, Budget & Regulatory Start-Up

IRB submission, sponsor contract and budget negotiation, and staff GCP training and credentialing all happen in parallel, since any one of them can become the bottleneck if left to run sequentially.

03Weeks 6–16

Patient Recruitment & Screening

Chart review and physician referral pathways identify potentially eligible patients, who are then screened against the protocol's inclusion and exclusion criteria — usually the longest single stage of the whole lifecycle.

04Varies

Active Enrollment & Visit Conduct

Consented patients move through the trial's actual visit schedule, which can run anywhere from a few weeks to several years depending on the protocol's design.

05Ongoing

Data Management & Monitoring

Case report forms, source document verification, and internal quality checks run continuously alongside enrollment, ahead of the sponsor's own periodic monitoring visits.

06Final

Close-Out & Archival

Once the site's participation ends, records are reconciled, queries closed, and documentation archived to the retention standard the protocol and sponsor require.

Where Recruitment Actually Goes

A representative enrollment funnel from a recent hypertension study.

Illustrative figures from a single completed trial — not a guarantee for any future study, which will always depend on the protocol and the site's population.

Patients Referred100%
Screened68%
Met Eligibility Criteria41%
Consented33%
Enrolled29%