Innovating Clinical Trials
Welcome to Innovating Clinical Trials, the podcast designed for clinical research professionals eager to deepen their understanding of clinical trials through concise, insightful segments. Join your hosts, Liam Eves and Ted Trafford, as they uncover the core issues in clinical research, reflect on the industry, and challenge conventional wisdom.
Ted Trafford - https://probitymedical.com/
With almost 30 years of experience in clinical research, Ted serves as the Director of Business Development, driving business growth and leading Feasibility and Site Relationship teams at Probity Medical Research, a clinical trial site administrative support company with a consortium of 70+ sites across four countries. As a writer and speaker, Ted contributes to thought leadership and strategic initiatives in the clinical trials industry, leveraging his extensive experience and creative approach to drive meaningful discussion and progress for Sponsors, CROs, Sites and Technology Vendors.
Liam Eves - https://www.theendpointpodcast.com/
Liam's held executive roles in SMOs and CROs, and led all major functions of trial delivery. His journey into the field began unexpectedly after an injury ended his career as a professional footballer. Over the years Liam has optimized trial delivery methods / systems for effective enrollment and trial delivery. Currently, he focuses on building and advising companies in the clinical trial space.
Innovating Clinical Trials
ICT Ep29: Feasibility is Broken: Maya Zlatanova on Redesigning Feasibility
Welcome to Innovating Clinical Trials, the podcast where Liam and Ted explore the evolving landscape of clinical research and challenge the assumptions holding it back. In this episode, we sit down with Maya Zlatanova — CEO of TrialHub and FindMeCure, and host of Trials with Maya Z — for a no-nonsense look at one of the most misunderstood concepts in research: feasibility.
Episode Overview:
Maya takes us deep into the hidden layers of clinical trial feasibility, arguing that what most of the industry calls "feasibility" is really just site contracting in disguise. Instead, she introduces a broader, patient-aligned view that incorporates standard of care, access, and real-world motivation. We discuss:
How clinical trials often fail because they ignore the healthcare systems patients actually live in
Why standard of care varies country to country — and how that affects recruitment and retention
The painful disconnect between pharma’s incentives and patients’ reality
Why relying on investigators alone leads to blind spots
How AI and emerging tech can streamline feasibility, but only if paired with real-world insight
And why hope, as Maya bluntly reminds us, is not a strategy
This is an unflinching and inspiring conversation about why better feasibility planning isn’t just a project task — it’s the foundation for better trials, faster development, and ultimately, better care.