Chicago, IL. - Excel Life Sciences, a U.S.-based, India-focused provider of comprehensive trial management services, announces that Executive Director of Operations Dr. Saurendra Das has been chosen as one of five finalists of the 2008 GCPj Awards “Clinical Research Professional of the Year”. The GCPj Awards has been developed to recognize excellence in the Clinical Trials industry.Now in its second year the GCPj Awards honors and reward corporate and individual excellence and celebrates innovation throughout this industry, with 12 carefully planned award categories.
The GCPj Awards are open to anyone working within the Clinical Trials arena and will culminate in a black tie event with industry leaders where the Awards will be presented. “I have had the privilege of knowing and working with Dr. Das for many years. Dr. Das is an extremely valuable part of the executive team and our success at Excel Life Sciences. His experience in the field of clinical research has helped train hundreds of clinical research professionals in India. We are proud of his nomination and thrilled that he has been chosen a finalist by the GCPj awards for Clinical Research Professional of the Year,” said Dr. Vijai Kumar, President and Chief Medical Officer of Excel Life Sciences.
Dr. Das has over 10 years of experience in coordination of all phases of global and domestic clinical trials. He is a key leader in a large movement underway to make India a premier destination for clinical research in the months and years ahead. His passion for clinical research and for making Excel Life Sciences and India successful is arguably one of the most impressive in the business. He drives himself relentlessly to help build and expand ELS and the greater India clinical research enterprise by applying an impressive work ethic, dedication to learning and training, priority on ethical conduct of clinical trials and the advancement of healthcare across class and income lines throughout India.
Prior to joining Excel Life Sciences, Dr. Das was personally responsible for establishing two major SMOs and one CRO in India. He has led large clinical operations teams and brought many innovations to the field including strategies, systems and processes for faster enrollment and increased retention. Dr. Das’ vast experience includes designing and reviewing clinical trial related SOPs and WPDs, designing SOPs for Ethics Committees, budgeting for Clinical Trials and setting up Central Pharmacies. He coordinated the clinical trials at the two sites that successfully passed the first US FDA audit in India. As an active trainer, he worked closely with faculty from Harvard Medical International developing a global training program and has personally trained hundreds of pharma, CRO, SMO, Central Lab and Site employees in ICH-GCP. Dr Das has worked on the faculty of the CDSCO, WHO and ICRI. Dr. Das holds an M.D. in clinical pharmacology from M. K. C. G. MedicalCollege in Orissa, India.
Other finalists in the “Clinical Research Professional of the Year” category are Dr. Janice Albrecht, Vice President, Clinical Research at Schering-Plough; Dr. Naida Gurshumov, Director of Clinical Research at superDimension Ltd.; Dr. Gordon Kapke, Senior Director, Biomarker Services, Covance, Inc.; and Prof. Dr. James Stegmann, Chief Medical Officer, CardioVascular BioTherapeutics, Inc.
About Excel Life Sciences Headquartered in Chicago, IL with offices in Boston, Raleigh-Durham, Washington DC, Hyderabad, Mumbai, New Delhi and 21 other locations across India, ELS is one of the fastest growing trial management and site support organizations in India, offering customized clinical trial solutions including: regulatory consulting, preparations, submissions and query resolution; site identification and selection; patient recruitment and retention; training of all clinical research stakeholders; technology transfer; product licensing and more.
ELS has one of the most experienced and respected clinical operations teams in India with over 125 years of collective experience in conducting more than 350 global and domestic trials at hundreds of sites and with thousands of patients. ELS has also trained over 1,500 clinical research personnel in India. For more information visit: www.excellifesciences.com
