Ireland continues to lag peer European countries in attracting clinical trials

Ireland is attracting fewer clinical trials than some European countries with similar populations and economic performances, according to a report by the Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association (IPHA), which represents the research-based biopharmaceutical industry.

The  2024 IPHA Clinical Trials Performance Report, which captures data across 10 years (2014 to 2023), saw Ireland attracting fewer all-industry sponsored interventional clinical trials than Finland and Denmark whose populations and economic wealth are similar to that of Ireland.

Of 2,411 interventional clinical trials carried out in the three countries across the 10 years, 19% were conducted in Ireland (460) compared to 27% in Finland (661) and 54% in Denmark (1,290).