The financial sustainability of clinical research sites in Latin America is facing one of its most significant challenges: the rapid and persistent increase in operating costs. This trend was highlighted in the preliminary results of the 2025 LATAM Site Landscape Survey, presented by SCRS during the Ambassador Summit LATAM on November 17 in Buenos Aires.
According to the Site Operations and Budget Survey, sites reported an average increase of more than 20% in their operating costs in 2024. This surge is affecting financial viability, recruitment capacity, staff efficiency, and overall competitiveness with sponsors and CROs.
In this blog, we analyze the categories driving this cost increase, why expenses are rising faster than budgets, and which strategies can help sites regain operational balance in 2025.
What Is Driving the Increase in Operating Costs?
Respondents identified three primary contributors to the rise in 2024:
Personnel Costs (the most critical factor)
2024 strengthened an ongoing trend:
- Higher salaries to retain experienced coordinators
- Growing demand for specialized roles (data management, quality, regulatory)
- Increased staff turnover, driving onboarding and training costs
Personnel remain the largest operational expense—representing over 60% of total costs in some sites.
General Inflation and Higher Service Costs
Regional inflation combined with rising fees for essential services such as:
- Energy
- High-speed internet
- Facility rental
- Courier and laboratory services
…created a steady rise in fixed operational costs, without proportional adjustments in per-study budgets.
Increasing Study Complexity
Studies in 2024 require:
- More visits per patient
- More procedures per visit
- Higher documentation volume
- Multiple technology platforms
- Greater compliance and monitoring requirements
All of this increases staff hours, administrative tasks, and operational burden—often without a corresponding budget update.
Why Are Budgets Not Increasing at the Same Pace?
A key finding from the survey:
👉 Costs are increasing faster than the payments sites receive.
Main reasons include:
- Delays in budget negotiation with sponsors
- Historical fee structures that do not reflect real inflation
- Limited site visibility into its true cost per procedure
- Lack of standardized justification to negotiate higher fees
This forces sites to operate with shrinking margins, jeopardizing sustainability and growth.
Impact on Site Operations
Sites reported direct consequences such as:
- Coordinator overload
- Reliance on overtime to keep up with study requirements
- Recruitment delays
- Reduced availability for new protocols
- Increased stress and higher turnover risk
What Can Sites Do to Prepare for 2025?
Based on industry best practices and survey findings, we recommend:
Document true costs per procedure
Including labor, administrative time, and indirect costs.
Standardize budget-negotiation processes
Use clear templates and data-driven justification.
Adopt technology to reduce manual workload
Tools that help control costs include:
- eSource
- ePRO/eCOA
- Device Management
- Smart scheduling
- Productivity dashboards
Update fees at the start of each fiscal year
Many sites are still negotiating pricing for 2022–2023.
Measure actual operational capacity
To prevent overload and allocate resources more efficiently.
Conclusion
2024 made it clear that the sustainability of clinical research sites depends on precise cost management, data-driven budgeting, and the strategic adoption of technology. Sites that strengthen these pillars will be better positioned to compete, attract more studies, and operate with greater efficiency in 2025.
Is your site also experiencing cost pressure?
At Integra IT, we support research sites by helping them:
- Optimize operations
- Reduce administrative workload
- Improve traceability
- Enhance quality
- Demonstrate true workload to sponsors and CROs
