As a research community, it’s our duty and, quite honestly, our pleasure to research, analyze, and distill information that can help our society progress. At Cayuse, our mission is to empower organizations to conduct globally connected research. But this isn’t just something we say; it’s something we act on every day. So it should come as no surprise that we decided to explore the trends, priorities, and challenges facing the research community today.
In the spirit of globally connected research, we asked research professionals to participate in a benchmark survey. More than 600 research professionals from 264 organizations globally answered the call to participate.. Of those, 66 participants from 38 institutions were specifically associated with hospitals and health systems.
The healthcare community is no stranger to change. Yet, the past couple years have pushed the limits for many healthcare professionals as they adapted to the evolving needs of the pandemic. Researchers in hospitals and health systems had to not only reimagine how and where they worked, but also likely had to put many research projects on hold as resources were reallocated to more urgent projects.
A closer look across the research lifecycle
To truly understand the current state of research administration, we took a closer look at specific areas of interest, such as budgeting, staffing, and growth planning. We also explored key priorities for 2021 and beyond. We then examined these areas of interest through the lens of the research lifecycle, including:
- Pre-award management
- Post-award management
- Risk management and compliance
- Resource management
Participants then responded to a series of questions related to digital transformation, efficiency gaps, and the profound impact of technology on the research administration landscape.
Key themes and notable mentions
We uncovered some intriguing insights across all responses, but especially for participants in hospitals and health systems. For example, some of the key themes we identified include:
- Increased workloads with expectations to maintain this new level of work long-term
- Disconnected systems and processes have made it increasingly difficult to effectively drive research program growth and track results
- Integrated technology with exceptional customer support has shown to improve researcher satisfaction
Researchers also indicated placing high priority on increasing funding, minimizing risk, and improving reporting capabilities. It’s clear that the researchers involved in hospitals and health systems are focused on building a strong future.
Benchmark survey results
We compiled all of the data and insights from our survey into the 2021 State of Research Administration Benchmark Report: Spotlight on Hospitals and Health Systems. There, you’ll find answers to questions like:
- What is the lasting impact of COVID-19 on the research community?
- How has the workload changed and what do my peers expect going forward?
- How can technology support the various milestones in the research lifecycle?
- What impact does technology have on researcher satisfaction?
- What are the core metrics that researchers are tracking at the various stages?
- How will regulatory changes impact my research activities?
- How will collaboration be affected?
The more we know, the stronger we will be as a research community. Download your copy of the report here, and then discuss the findings among your peers. Let’s keep the conversation going!
