Castor EDC

Avantages

- Castor EDC is very easy to use; EVERYONE can learn it. There are very useful videos available to learn how to work with Castor EDC.
- Castor EDC is very easy to use in case multiple users need to add information to e.g. the same patient (i.e. record), you are able to limit the access/actions of each individual user
- You can access your data everywhere, it is widely availble and safely stored
- You can add validation criteria and data verification when you enter data to prevent incorrect data entry to limit missing/incorrect values
- It is very easy to incorporate surveys and send them to patients/users
- If you prepare your study well in Castor and use the features that are availlable, your data output can easily be uploaded to SPSS, which saves you a lot of work!

Inconvénients

Around two years ago it was not possible to send a survey to a group of people at the same time by using one link. Each person needed to receive an individual link from his/her own record ID. I would like to be able to use only one link that can be entered multiple times by multiple people.

PM. When I asked castor about this possibility at that time, I immediately received a reply. Within one hour they explained why it was not possible and suggested other possibilities to solve the question: the support is very good and always available!

Avantages

Easy to use, manage and build. Multiple users can easlily work in a case-by-case EDC. Setting authorizations is easy and feedback can be given by means of queries. Data export is easy and complete.

Inconvénients

It tends to get slower over time due to pilled up logs which are logged on the background and can be cleared by the team of castor.

Avantages

It is fast and the lay-out and structure of the site works well. It is also easy to add notes and commentary if necessary

Inconvénients

It isn't super intuitive. I made a few mistakes the first time I used it. But you learn from your mistakes and afterwards its easy to use.

Avantages

The tool was easy to learn thanks to a few, short instructional tutorials and a great FAQ. I enjoyed the great level of control when building forms, and even managed to do some coding - and to test that code to make sure it really worked. The user interface has a modern look compared to many other EDCs. The smooth two-factor authentication is a plus.

Inconvénients

Some building blocks are a bit limited in how they can be used. For example, some can't be set as "required", so one has to create additional fields to achieve the same result.

Alternatives envisagées 

Pourquoi passer à Castor EDC

Avantages

It’s very easy to create an eCRF and also to monitor studies. GCP compliance is also an important aspect

Inconvénients

Probably the ePRO module; questionnaire scheduling can be improved

Alternatives envisagées 

Pourquoi passer à Castor EDC

Avantages

I really liked the speed and security of this tool. it is very simple to trace all the data entered.

Inconvénients

Sometimes it has happened that the insertion of a single piece of data was not successful

Avantages

easy access and user environment for daily use

Inconvénients

some written things cannot be corrected later

Avantages

Ease of use when collecting data samples and knowing what criteria to meet for each pet on study.

Inconvénients

Needs a location to see a comprehensive list of pets due for another sample collection or next year visit

Avantages

user friendly EDC platform with easy saving tools.

Inconvénients

once subject ID# has been made, it cannot be edited/corrected anymore like for example entering the subject number in a wrong format (for multicenter studies).

Avantages

It is a generaly good EDC. user-friendly, fast, clear.

Inconvénients

Sometimes it is not clear of we need to send a questionnaire, or if it goes automaticly en if it is filled in by the patient.

Avantages

User friendly, easy to use from investigator and CRA perspective.

Inconvénients

Site couldnt enter different units for lab results

Avantages

Easy to navigate around the database and very clear if there are any data queries.

Inconvénients

can timeout of the database and need to log back in

Avantages

On the one hand I liked that the training of the platform was practical and fast. What I appreciated the most was that Castor is very intuitive. The fields are very well categorised and it is easy to see where the information you need is located. In addition, it is fast and without visual noise.

Inconvénients

What I liked least about Castor was that it did not collect all the information that, in my personal opinion, was necessary for the complete management of the trial.

Avantages

It is realible and the helpdesk is excellent. Most important is the fact that collected data can be saved and archieved in a safe way, according to the current standards of regulation. The online platform enables efficient management of participants. The online survey feature is very useful to collect data, where the collected data can be stored directly in the database.

Inconvénients

Loading of the entry fields sometime takes a while, although this could also be due to a poor internet connection.

Avantages

The most convenient thing about using Castor is that I do not have to send paper questionnaires and fill out all data manually. I created a survey and now my patients fill out the questions electronically. Subsequently the answers are converted to the nessecary data so I can perform my analyses.
Another pro is that I can provide others access to the database but monitor their actions and changes, and also provide limited access in case of multicenter trials, to limit the risk of errors creating new cases.

Inconvénients

I cannot see which patients have fully been included or have finished the study. Although a progress bar is included now, some questions are not obligatory and are still counted for the study progress. But there is not much to dislike.

Avantages

We are a small start-up company and the task of setting up our study fell on me, a person with absolutely no experience with EDC systems. After doing a little research we selected Castor EDC because it seemed easy to use and the price was right for us.

Castor EDC has been everything we've hoped it would be. It is easy to learn and set-up. Our study sites have liked it and found it very easy to use. It is feature complete doing everything we have wanted to do.

One concern we had was that the company has no US-based support and we are on the West coast. As such, getting support in real-time is really not an option. I was also concerned about possible language barriers. Those initial concerns have not materialized to be realities. On the three occasions I have required support, I have received it within 24 hours, via email. Each time the answer I received was complete and they addressed my question on the first response.

Overall, we are very satisfied.

Inconvénients

I have two fairly nit picky issues:

1. Setting up user rights is a bit clunky. It is very flexible, which I love, but a bit clunky.
2. Dependencies and validations are limited to a single field and the logic is very limited. On the plus side, one can work around those limitations with hidden calculations.

Avantages

Castor gives an easy to use, easily understandable online tool to set up and execute your research projects. Starting up is easy: just play with it! Don't be affraid to ruin anything, just try it. It give some excellent videos for your support in starting with Castor.

The helpdesk is very helpful: mails are responded to within the hour and issues are actually solved, even it takes quite some time (several days in my case).

Inconvénients

If you want to set up calculations in Castor, you need knowledge of java. It would be a great benefit if this was made easier. With a little trial and error, you will get a long way, but it remains an issue. Despite the fact that Castor gives you quite good support on these calculations.

Avantages

very easy to understand and use.
you have an immediate layout overview when setting up the database.

Inconvénients

some validations are not yet possible
some validations need multiple calculations which takes time to build

Avantages

Castor is very easy to use for data collection, but also to build other sharing platforms.

Inconvénients

The possibility to upload video's should be more easy.

Avantages

Easy to use, very intuitive, powerful, agile, fast and accurate online support

Inconvénients

There are NO cons in my experience in this moment

Avantages

We literally have found tons of uses for Castor. The ability to build your own forms quickly and knowing the data is stored in a GDPR Compliant way is a HUGE help for us. Also the validation options in the fields are really good / ensure high level of data quality. And Also, The SPSS export function is really a great help too!

Inconvénients

The Surveys do not work well on Mobile phones and most of our research participants would use them that way.

Avantages

I really like Castor EDC. It is easy to build and has many features.
I use Castor EDC on a daily basis for my multicentre RCT.
It is easy that I an keep in touch with other centres through this system.
Futhermore, it is very easy to send out questionnaires.
The most positive thing about Castor is that you have all your data in one place.
Finally, Catsor has a very good customer service. If I have a problem, I get a respons in one hour. At the beginning we had some difficulties with our study, and Castor invited us to their main office to help us.

Inconvénients

I hope in feature, Castor will be linked with EPIC.
Furthermore, I hope will be possible to sign Informed Consents in Castor.

Avantages

easy to build up your project with. The structure helps you think about your statistical plan.

Inconvénients

expensive compared to redcap, but still value for money

Avantages

Easy to use and intuitive
Accessible
Easy to set up

Inconvénients

Payable
Difficulty of getting statistical nice graphs

Avantages

What I like about Castor is that I can create a user-friendly database that will also create a user-friendly output, i.e. that I can already prepare the data as much as possible to make data analysis easier.

Inconvénients

More possibilities regarding surveys would add even more value: automatic reminders to subjects to complete their survey, notifications if surveys have not been completed yet (in addition to the existing notifications that surveys have been completed).