How to strengthen clinical research in Shenzhen, China: qualitative study

OBJECTIVES: To better understand the strengths and weaknesses, and to propose policy recommendations, regarding conducting high-quality clinical research in Shenzhen, China. DESIGN: A qualitative study conducted from August to November 2016 using a semistructured interview format involving both focus group interviews and individual interviews. SETTING: Shenzhen, China. PARTICIPANTS: Stratified purposive and convenience sampling were used. Thirty individuals experienced in conducting and managing clinical research were selected from key stakeholder groups, comprising 11 from local hospitals, 14 from pharmaceutical/medical device companies and 5 from government agencies. METHODS: A semistructured interview guide was developed by the study group and used by experienced interviewers in focus group discussions and individual interviews. The interviewees were encouraged to share their opinions freely and discuss their own topics of interest during the interviews. Thematic analysis was used for analysis and all data were coded and extracted using NVivo V.11.0 software. RESULTS: Favourable driving factors for clinical research in Shenzhen identified by all stakeholders included the recent trend of increased governmental funding for clinical research, supportive governmental policies, wide recognition of the value of clinical research and high demands from local industry. The major challenges include a lack of technical infrastructure, weak human research subject protection and a lack of capable research resources. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the established strengths, Shenzhen still needs to develop suitable technical platforms, human resources training programmes and strong human research subject protection programmes pertaining to clinical research. This would facilitate the establishment of a functional system that can be expected to lead to increased medical research innovation in Shenzhen.