SCOPE Summit | Participant Engagement Award

VIEW the 2026 Finalists’ Videos »

Deadline for Submissions: October 16, 2026

CREATIVITY AND ENGAGEMENT IN PATIENT RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION COMMUNICATIONS

Participant Engagement Award

WHAT IS IT?

Now in its 11th year, the Participant Engagement Award (PEA) recognizes innovation and change in how the industry communicates with participants in the fields of recruitment and retention in clinical trials. PEA embodies the values and personal accomplishments of Jerry Matczak, who sadly passed away soon after receiving the inaugural 2017 award. We dedicate this award to Jerry in the hope that it will serve as a reminder of his ideals and accomplishments. SCOPE’s 2027 Participant Engagement Award program is brought to you by Cambridge Healthtech Institute (CHI)’s SCOPE.

This exciting competition will bring awareness to you and your company for excellent and engaging work.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

We welcome submissions from all facets of the industry, including Sponsors, Sites, CROs, Patient Groups, Agencies, and Start-Ups, and invite you to submit your best work in the Patient Recruitment and Retention communications field by October 31, 2025.

Each submission will be reviewed and rated for creativity, innovation, regulatory and legal compliance, and the ability to improve access, awareness, and participation in clinical trials.
Prior to SCOPE in February, Finalists will be invited to submit a 3-minute video showcasing their work.
The video presentation, on-stage discussion, and judging will occur LIVE in-person at SCOPE, taking place March 1-4, 2027, in Orlando, Florida

HOW TO WIN?

Your submission must truly be designed to engage potential, current, or alumni study participants and/or their influencers and show marked improvements in the status quo.

We are not looking for: tip sheets, guidance documents, promotional “brochure-ware” or rewritten press releases
We are looking for: submissions based in education, recruitment, awareness, and beyond. This can be anything from an interactive tool to a Superbowl Television commercial. The world is your pallet ... find your medium and your muse.

Helpful questions to address in your submission:

How did you engage clinical trial participants in a novel and innovative way?
How did this benefit the clinical trial ecosystem?
How did you measure the success of your efforts?

Judges are looking for innovation, creativity, and messaging while meeting industry standards and compliance rules.

Deadline for Submissions: October 16, 2026

Submission Form

SAMPLE SUBMISSION FORM WITH ENTRY TIPS

Team Name

Does your team reflect more than one company or a partnership? Please list it here.

Company

Please list your company name

Telephone Number

Please list a good contact number

Email

Please list a good contact email

Proposal Title

Give your submission a descriptive title

Describe your idea: 3-5 Sentence Summary

This is your “elevator pitch”- an opportunity to briefly describe your idea to the judges

Why your proposal should be considered?

Describe the communication challenge addressed and its importance
Highlight success stories - Be a storyteller
List relevant technologies/products used on the project
Don’t forget to integrate both technology (product) features and project results

What impact does your idea have on the target?

How is your unique communication intended to affect the study participant?
Explain broader impact on the community/ industry

What results do you have/expect?

Clearly identify key results/benefits and if possible quantify the ROI associated with the project (e.g. man-hours or $ saved; new capabilities)

Short Bio:

Bio may be used in print material if proposal is accepted
Please keep this to 200 words or less
If multiple people are collaborating on a team, you may submit a team summary in lieu of a bio

Please provide a link to a sample of your work

You may upload any type of document with your submission that shows an example of your work and supports your submission
Results that can be quantified (charts, graphs) are an excellent addition to your submission

Must be in attendance to win.

All entrants receive a 20% discount off registration. Enter PEA26 discount code in the online registration form for this discount.
Note: We are currently seeking potential scholarships and support for patients and patient advocates.
Note: This discount is non-transferable and cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer or discount for this event.

Authorization
Upon Submission of this nomination, you grant CHI the use of any photos, video, or audio to be used for promotional purposes. A minimal number of entries will be required for a winner to be named, please follow #SCOPEsummit #BeLikeJerry for updates. Entries received after the deadline will not be guaranteed for consideration.

EVENT HOSTS & JUDGES

Micah Lieberman, Executive Director, Conferences, Cambridge Healthtech Institute (CHI)

Kelly McKee, Vice President, Strategy & Transformation, Science 37; Co-Creator of the SCOPE Participant Engagement Award

David Sall, President & CEO, Patient Enrollment Advisors; Co-Creator of the SCOPE Participant Engagement Award

Andrea Bartucca, Director, Patient Recruitment and Retention, Clinical Operations, Eli Lilly and Co.

AmyBohn Amy Bohn, Director, Clinical Trial Strategy & Optimization, Sarah Cannon Research Institute

Savine DaCosta, Clinical Trial Access and Representation Site Lead, Biogen

Anita Difrancesco, Senior Vice President, Clinical Operations, Endeavor Biomedicines

Gretchen Goller, Head, Clinical Trial Recruitment, Retention and Experience, Pfizer Inc.

April Lewis, Clinical Solutions, PatientPartner; Strategic Advisor, ZS

Wendy Lurrie, Patient/Author, BestGuessistan

Adrienne Walstrum, Senior Director, Global Trial Optimization, Merck

Kate Wilson, Senior Director, Head of Global Clinical Trial Access & Representation, Biogen

Biogen Named 2026 Participant Engagement Award Winner

2026 PEA Winners

Winner (Biogen and Proximity Health Solutions)

Finalist (Science 37 and RxE2)

Finalist (Science 37 and RxE2)

Finalist (Empath Labs)

Finalist (Empath Labs)

Finalist (PACT)

PEA Awards Highlights

Judges

2026 Finalists

2026 Participant Engagement Award Finalists Announced
SCOPE 2026: The Winners Are… - Clinical Research News, published on February 5, 2026

VIEW the 2026 Finalists’ Videos »

2026 Participant Engagement Award Finalists

2026 PEA Winners

2025 Finalists

Grove AI Named the 2025 Participant Engagement Award Winner

Grove AI – Winner

Runner up | SGM Alliance

Runner up | SGM Alliance

Runner up | Ichor

Runner up | Ichor

Judges

2025 Participant Engagement Award Finalists Announced
2025 Participant Engagement Awards Finalists Named - Clinical Research News, published on January 9, 2025 - Clinical Research News, published on December 12, 2023

Congratulations to our 2025 Finalists:

AstraZeneca & Walgreens -- AstraZeneca & Walgreens Partner to Improve Community and Patient Engagement
Grove AI -- Personalizing Participant Recruitment & Engagement at Scale with AI
Ichor Research and Loretto -- A new model for clinical trials in long-term care
Mural Health -- Removing tax barriers from clinical trial participation - the Harley Jacobsen Act
Pathway -- Clinical Trial Matching Platform for Pediatric Oncology Patients
SGM Alliance -- Expanding Access and Inclusion: Reimagining Clinical Trial Engagement for SGM Populations

VIEW the 2025 Finalists’ Videos »

2024 Finalists

2024 Participant Engagement Award Finalists Announced
2024 Participant Engagement Awards Finalists Named - Clinical Research News, published on December 12, 2023

Congratulations to our 2024 Finalists:

PatientWing -- The Limitations Faced by Rare Disease Patients: Expanding Clinical Trial Access for EoE Patients
Acclinate -- Enhancing Equitable Clinical Trial Participation
IMA Clinical Research -- Innovative Patient Engagement: Leveraging Mobile Research Units to Bridge Gaps in Clinical Outreach
CISCRP -- Journey to Better Health Mobile Exhibit
Oliver Patch Project -- Patches of Positivity: A New Approach to Pediatric Clinical Trials Retention
SGM Alliance -- Improving Diversity of Sexual and Gender Minority Patients

Finalists

2024 PEA Winners

2023 Finalists

2023 Participant Engagement Award Winner

2023 Participant Engagement Award Finalists Announced
2023 Participant Engagement Awards Finalists Named - Clinical Research News, published on December 8, 2022

Congratulations to our 2023 Finalists:

1nHealth: Have The Colon Conversation: An omni-channel digital outreach campaign to challenge older adults to get their first screening colonoscopy
Cedar Health Research: Diversity Enrollment Through Tech-Enabled Community Healthcare Partnerships
ClinOne: Connecting HCPs (and Their Patients) to a Phase 3 Trial for Frontotemporal Dementia
ProofPilot: A Co-Pilot for Patients
StudyKIK: Leveraging Mobile Technology to Improve Engagement and Support Patients in Oncology Trials

2022 Finalists

Congratulations to our 2022 Finalists:

Merck -- Back to Virtual Reality: Getting Real about Patient Engagement! [2022 Winner!]
inVibe Labs -- TrialPulse: Integrating the Patient Voice to Optimize and Validate Throughout the Drug Development Process
Guardant Health -- Guardant GAP Program: Closing the GAP for Oncology Patients
Infiuss Health -- Connecting Africans to Global Clincal Trials
Tryl -- Tryl's Empathetic Patient Engagement System

2022 Participant Engagement Award Finalists Announced: https://www.clinicalresearchnewsonline.com/news/2022/01/13/2022-participant-engagement-award-finalists-announced

Merck Employs Virtual Reality To Combat Burden Of Long Study Visits: https://www.clinicalresearchnewsonline.com/news/2022/03/16/merck-employs-virtual-reality-to-combat-burden-of-long-study-visits

Merck Using Virtual Reality To Make Pediatric Study Visits More Pleasant: https://www.clinicalresearchnewsonline.com/news/2022/02/08/merck-using-virtual-reality-to-make-pediatric-study-visits-more-pleasant

EVENT HOSTS & JUDGES

2021 Finalists

Congratulations to our 2021 Finalists:

Medidata - Patient Centricity by Design [2021 WINNER]
Datacubed - Vaccine Trials: Prevent Low Data Quality and High Patient Dropout
Havas Lynx Faze - Suffering Behind the Selfies
CISCRP, Praxis, RTM360, MediaPlanet, and USA Today - Appreciating Medical Heroes for their Gift of Participation through Mass Media Channels
Signant Health - #NoGoingBack: A Pledge to Continue Advancing Clinical Trials Globally

2021 Participant Engagement Award Finalists Announced
https://www.clinicalresearchnewsonline.com/news/2021/02/17/2021-participant-engagement-award-finalists-announced

Medidata Named Winner of 2021 Participant Engagement Award
https://www.clinicalresearchnewsonline.com/news/2021/03/03/medidata-named-winner-of-2021-participant-engagement-award

Award-Winning Participant Engagement Strategies
https://www.clinicalresearchnewsonline.com/news/2021/03/16/award-winning-participant-engagement-strategies

2020 Finalists

Congratulations to our 2020 Finalists:

https://www.clinicalresearchnewsonline.com/news/2020/02/19/trialscout-receives-top-honor-at-scope-s-participant-engagement-awards

https://www.clinicalresearchnewsonline.com/news/2020/01/03/finalists-for-2020-participant-engagement-award-announced

TrialScout - #FindtheFive: Can active and past clinical trial participants solve the issues that the industry has struggled with for the past 10+ years? [2020 WINNER]
H.E.A.L. - Sickle Cell Disease: A Community Education Conversation
Javara - The Clinical Trial Navigator: Breaking Down Barriers & Increasing Access for All
GRYT Health - The Global Virtual Cancer Conference
Michael J. Fox Foundation - Parkinson’s Clinical Trial Companion
Astellas and Bridgeable - Reimagining the Pediatric Assent Process

2019 Finalists

Congratulations to our 2019 Finalists:

Journey to Better Health from CISCRP - The Journey to Better Health Campaign [2019 WINNER]
BMS Study Connect - Industry-leading patient engagement platform
Langland, Insync and Janssen - Beyond Awareness: Uncovering the truth behind study population bias and inspiring action
Biogen, H.E.A.L and IQVIA - Starting at the Grassroots to Increase Diversity in Clinical Trial Populations
DigiHUMAN Clinical from Data Cubed - Science Meets Gaming for Patient-Centric Clinical Engagement

2018 Finalists

Congratulations to our 2018 Finalists:

Clara Health - Breakthrough Crew: Demystifying Clinical Trials Alongside Patient Advocates [2018 WINNER]
Greenphire - Hope for Houston
GRYT Health Inc - Empowering patients to connect with peers and new treatment options
Brite Health - Improving patient experience, compliance, and retention using data-driven technology
mProve Health with Pfizer - Patient Engagement Hub

Winners