Array BioPharma selected Medidata Solutions’ Rave system as its enterprise-wide electronic data capture (EDC) solution. “Rave’s ability to build forms electronically on our initial trials has resulted in improved protocol design for clinical study managers,” said Jim Rizzi, senior director of computational technology at Array BioPharma. “We have been continually impressed with Medidata’s corporate culture, the vision of the company’s executives and the professionalism of its services team.” Over three years, Array BioPharma plans to conduct more than 20 studies using Medidata’s software for Phase I and II trials in oncology and inflammation. Here’s the release.

Akaza Research said its technology will be used at the University of Alberta. OpenClinica, Akaza’s open source software for clinical trials, will be used by the Women and Children’s Health Research Institute (WCHRI), a joint effort between the University of Alberta and Canada’s Capital Health. Lawrence Richer, a University of Alberta clinical researcher in pediatric neurology, said “OpenClinica gives WCHRI a proven, out-of-the-box technology foundation upon which to develop additional modules and features. The open source licensing approach will ensure that our enhancements will be freely available to disseminate to other researchers within Canada and worldwide.”

Captaris, a provider of software products that automate document-centric processes, announced Physicians Reference Laboratory (PRL) deployed Captaris RightFax to support immediate delivery of accurate and reliable diagnostic information in the areas of clinical and anatomic pathology services, clinical trial testing and drug testing for both the public and private sectors. PRL has achieved related cost-savings in reduced supplies and increased productivity, according Dan Spragle, director of information technology at PRL, “Just saving money was not our driving force. We wanted a quicker, more secure, accurate and reliable way to deliver critical lab results to better serve our clients and their patients.”

Emergis announced that it has concluded an agreement with the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) for the implementation of the Java web-based version of Oacis, Emergis’ electronic medical record (EMR) system, throughout MUSC’s clinical enterprise including its new state-of-the-art health care facility, Ashley River Tower. The new facility, along with the upgraded version of Oacis EMR, is expected to be in operation early next year. Oacis is the first Java-based enterprise EMR solution available, resulting in enhanced flexibility as well as low cost and rapid deployment. Frank Clark, vice president for information technology and CIO of MUSC. “After a review of other EMR systems, we realized that Oacis is far ahead of the alternatives. With the Java version of Oacis, we anticipate delivering leading-edge, affordable EMR capabilities to our entire care team, enterprise-wide.”

The chairman of the CDISC board of CDISC (the Clinical Data Interchange Standards Consortium), David Hardison, announced changes to strengthen the global base of the organization. Next month, Tim M. Jaeger, Isabelle de Zegher, and Sue Dubman will join the board of directors. Paula Stafford was re-elected for a new term; Frank Rockhold was elected to be the new CDISC chair-elect. Kenneth Getz, Charles Jaffe, and Steve Ruberg, who were on the board of directors, recently rotated off the board.

Standard & Poor’s revised its outlook on PharmaNet Development Group, a clinical research organization, from negative to stable. “The outlook revision reflects the company’s stabilizing operating and financial results, following significant challenges encountered in late 2005,” said Standard & Poor’s credit analyst Alain Pelanne. A new management team has since been put in place, earnings and revenues have resumed a growth trajectory, and the company has altered its business mix to reduce its reliance on early-stage development.

The EDS consultancy won a seven year, $715 million data services deal from Bristol-Myers Squibb. EDS will manage most IT systems at the big pharma, including critical operations data and help-desk support. A Bristol-Myers Squibb VP,  Paul von Autenried, will oversee the effort. Here’s a story and a release.

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