DIA Recap: CROs Reap Benefits of Digital Signatures for Life Sciences

It was a great year to attend DIA’s 2015 Annual Meeting, an event that unites life sciences professionals with the shared goal of nurturing innovation. We had the chance to travel to our nation’s capitol and exhibit at the event. Here are our key takeaways from the conference: 

1. The DIA crowd is a blast to hang out with!

We had a lot of chances to hang out with the amazing attendees and exhibitors at DIA. We especially loved getting the chance to network with attendees at the cocktail hour we hosted with our new partner Exostar.

Here are some of our favorite Tweets from the conference:

This place of peace the painting for #DIA2015 pic.twitter.com/h8741LGjBE

— Regina Holliday (@ReginaHolliday) June 15, 2015

We have arrived! Who else is excited to be at #DIA2015? pic.twitter.com/rrGVO4FXXY

— SIGNiX (@signixsolutions) June 15, 2015

First day at DIA starts early! Supporting Medical Heroes! @goecos #DIA2015 pic.twitter.com/wI56qh64t4

— Aaron Mazze (@aaronmazze) June 15, 2015

As always, great to catch up with the @goecos team at #DIA2015 @MergeHealthcare @AusClinical @zelassi @Datapharm #EDC pic.twitter.com/qWqL2XjIoo

— Datapharm Australia (@Datapharm) June 23, 2015

2. Many 2015 roadmaps include digital signature initiatives

In previous years, we’ve had a lot of general interest in electronic signatures. This year, however, many organizations sought us out to ask specific questions about our digital signature solutions for the life sciences, mentioning that they had been tasked with finding a digital signature solution this year.

This mirrors the feedback we’ve gotten from our sales team in the life sciences industry. After seeing large research organizations adopt digital signatures, many other institutions are following suit. The EMA’s looming requirement for electronic submissions likely also factors into this decision for many organizations.

3. Top research institution shares digital signature success

Peyton Hale, director of application services at HCA, spoke about Sarah Cannon Research Institute's success in transitioning from paper processes to digital signatures in the session, “Formula One Study Start-Up: Race to a 94% Reduction in Time By Going Paperless." 

In this session, Peyton highlighted the benefits of adopting digital signatures for life sciences, including:

• 94% reduction in time required to sign documents, greatly enhancing speed-to-market
• Projected $250 thousand in first-year savings in printing and delivery costs
• Eliminated need for new space to store ever-increasing paper files
• Enhanced security over ink signature system; fully compliant with FDA 21 CFR Part 11 regulations for electronic signatures and records
• Ease of use encourages quick adoption
• Works with many different IT systems 

What was your favorite part of the DIA 2015 Annual Meeting? Let us know in the comments section below.