Who Will Run Canada’s Clinical Trials?

Canada is at a pivotal moment in its pursuit of global leadership in the life sciences sector.

Following the pandemic, the federal Government of Canada took significant steps to bolster its life sciences sector, notably through the $2.2 billion Biomanufacturing and Life Sciences Strategy (BLSS) and the creation of Clinical Trials Training Platforms (CTTPs).

These investments have successfully supported scientific talent and academic trainees, among other reforms.

The Workforce Crisis Behind Clinical Trials in Canada

However, a glaring gap remains: the operational research delivery workforce, the Clinical Research Professionals (CRPs). This group, which includes front-line study coordinators, trial monitors, quality assurance experts, research ethics officers, and project managers, is the “human engine” that translates a laboratory breakthrough into a medicine or vaccine. Without them, trials cannot run.

Currently, Canada treats this essential workforce as an afterthought. Many CRPs are misclassified as administrative staff despite their high level of expertise. They often labour under short-term contracts that offer no job security or clear career progression. This has created a “gig economy” environment within a sector that requires the highest levels of precision and stability.

The Challenges: Turnover, Gender Equity, and the Brain Drain

The lack of a formalized workforce structure has created several systemic risks that threaten Canada’s competitiveness:

• Frustrated by inconsistent pay and a lack of security, experienced professionals are leaving hospitals and universities for the private sector or abandoning the Canadian research ecosystem entirely. When these workers leave, trials are delayed, costs rise, and the ecosystem begins to break down.
  
• Approximately 70–80% of the clinical research workforce is comprised of women. The current instability and lack of professional recognition pose a direct risk to federal gender-equity commitments.
  
• Canada currently lacks clear, shared rules for recognizing the skills of scientists and researchers trained in other countries. Without “credential recognition” bridging programs, these highly skilled individuals remain underemployed, representing a significant loss of potential system capacity.
  
• Countries like the United Kingdom and Australia are already investing heavily in their research delivery workforces. If Canada fails to act, investment and innovation opportunities will migrate to jurisdictions with more stable and professionalized systems.
  
  

Building a Stronger Future for Clinical Trials in Canada

Despite these challenges, the opportunity for Canada to lead is significant. By implementing a cohesive Clinical Research Workforce Strategy, we can transition from an unstable ecosystem to a high-performance engine.

A professionalized workforce is not just about economic growth; it is a matter of national defence and health security. CRPs are responsible for the rapid evidence generation of medical countermeasures required during pandemics and health emergencies. Furthermore, as Artificial Intelligence (AI) reshapes the clinical trial landscape, Canada requires a formally trained and qualified workforce equipped to use these technologies responsibly and effectively.

Strategic Reforms Needed for Canada’s Clinical Trials Ecosystem

To win in the global life sciences space, Canada must move beyond fragmented investments and adopt a unified national standard. This requires immediate, coordinated action from three key interest-holder groups:

1. The Federal Government: Integrate Workforce into Health Sovereignty

• Provide urgent and sustained funding specifically for Canada’s Clinical Research Workforce Strategy to transition the sector out of the “gig economy”.
• Formally recognize the operational research workforce as a cornerstone of the Biomanufacturing and Life Sciences Strategy (BLSS).
• Support the development of a national framework for credential recognition to bridge internationally trained professionals into the workforce, preventing talent loss and increasing system capacity.
  
  

2. Research Sites and Academic Institutions: Standardize and Stabilize

• Implement a single national standard for clinical research roles, ensuring that job titles, competencies, and role classifications are consistent across the country.
• Move away from precarious short-term contracts in favour of stable roles that offer clear career progression, which is essential for retaining talent and ensuring trial efficiency.
• Reclassify CRPs from “administrative staff” to their rightful status as specialized professionals.
  
  

3. Industry Partners: Commit to Infrastructure

• Engage in long-term strategic partnerships that prioritize the stability of the research delivery workforce, recognizing that a stable site infrastructure is a prerequisite for successful clinical innovation.
• Support professional development and formal training programs that equip the workforce to handle emerging technologies like AI.
  
  

Canada has the ideas and the scientific talent to be a global leader in life sciences. However, ideas alone do not bring medicines to patients; people do. By formalizing this essential workforce, Canada secures its health sovereignty, protects its investments in scientific talent, and ensures we are prepared for future emergencies.

The time for piecemeal solutions has passed. We must professionalize the “human engine” of our research ecosystem to ensure that Canada is not just a place where discoveries are made, but where they are successfully trialled, proven, and brought to the world.