As a society we are navigating how to live in isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Scientists are experiencing the same reality while also partnering and collaborating with fellow researchers all over the globe in hopes of quickly and effectively finding a cure for the virus. With almost all other research paused for the time being, resources are being shifted to the current crisis and scientists around the globe have adopted a more collaborative approach.

The New York Times highlighted some of the global collaborations targeting the virus and stated that “the coronavirus has ignited the scientific community in ways that no other outbreak or medical mystery has before.” Dr. Ryan Carroll, a Harvard Medical professor currently involved in a coronavirus trial is quoted, “The pandemic is eroding the secrecy that pervades academic medical research. Big, exclusive research can lead to grants, promotions and tenure, so scientists often work in secret, suspiciously hoarding data from potential competitors.” However, COVID-19 has resulted in scientists putting aside their pursuit for individual recognition for the betterment of society.

To contribute to the efforts, scientists are looking to unconventional methods for sharing information at a faster pace. Historically, it may have taken months to announce findings while papers were peer-reviewed, edited and published. The urgency of COVID-19 has inspired scientists to share their results immediately on conference calls or social platforms such as Twitter and Slack rather than waiting until they can meet in person. Researchers are also publishing their raw data and findings on preprint servers, such as bioRxiv and medRxiv, which house research papers that have not yet been reviewed. Studies are read by other researchers and then discussed on social media platforms, resulting in a collaborative discussion of the findings on a public forum.

Scientists agree there are both advantages and disadvantages to the trend of a more open communication science, but the benefits of such global collaboration likely outweigh the negatives. Stanford News published thoughts from said Russ Altman, Kenneth Fong Professor, and professor of bioengineering, genetics, medicine and biomedical data science at Stanford University. “It’s a great way to get preliminary results out and shared with the wider community, which can encourage collaboration and speed up the science. Of course, the negative is that it’s not peer-reviewed, so people have to remember that what they’re reading might actually be slightly – or totally – wrong.”

Ijad Madisch, co-founder and CEO of ResearchGate, a professional network for scientists to connect, share and discover research sees the current situation as an opportunity to shift the way science is currently shared. “The urgency and ubiquity of this crisis is encouraging the global community of researchers to share more readily, working across disciplines, domains and sectors, even as borders remain closed.”

This trend of a more openly shared, global and fast-moving science will likely be with us far past the COVID-19 crisis. Scientists have demonstrated that this new “agile” method of research is possible, and with the inevitable improvement upon online collaborative tools, it is to be expected that these methods will become the new normal for the life sciences industry.

The PharmaOut team remains committed to doing our part to fight COVID-19 and help keep our families safe. Our team of expert recruiters and consultants have years of experience to assist our clients in successfully continuing their business with our staffing, consulting, HR and investigator meeting services. Please contact us if you would like to discuss how PharmaOut can be your strategic partner.

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