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SIX DELIVER AND DISSEMINATE THE RESEARCH OUTCOMES OF THE COMPASS TRIAL, C4 AND OTHER POLICY RELEVANT RESEARCH
COMPASS TRIAL AND THE SUPPORTING COMPASS REGISTER The Compass Trial is a key piece of Australian research supporting the National Cervical Screening Program. Compass is the largest clinical trial in Australia, conducted by VCS Foundation and Cancer Council NSW. The roll out of the Compass pilot has already delivered major benefits to the Department and the NCSP by informing the implementation of the renewed screening pathway in December 2017, including laboratory and registry processes. It is expected to inform future changes to the NCSP by confirming that the HPV test is a superior screening method and to assess different ways of deciding which women need further investigations. This is particularly important to understand in the context of Australia’s HPV Vaccination Program, where vaccinated and unvaccinated cohorts are participating in cervical screening. The trial will answer a lot of different
questions for the program around demand, the pathway and safety. Compass recruitment closed in January 2020. VCS Foundation has continued to operate the Compass Register to support healthcare providers and the 76,000 trial participants until the conclusion of the Compass Trial. The Compass Register routinely accepts and records cervical screening test information along with information about related investigations, such as colposcopy, biopsy and treatment in order to provide follow-up services in accordance with the Compass Trial protocols. As women complete their participation in the Trial, the Compass Register manages the exit of participants with their complete records transferred to the National Cancer Screening Register. VCS Foundation is working closely with the Australian Department of Health and Telstra Health to establish and implement processes to facilitate the safe exit of participants from Compass to the National Cancer Screening
Register. The work is overseen by a Governance Committee and supported by key project leads from each organisation committed to ensuring the best possible outcomes for transferring participants. VCS Population Health is leading this work for VCS Foundation. The services of the Compass Register include the following: + The Compass Hotline for participants and healthcare providers + Reminders and communication to women participating in the Compass Trial + Management and provision of screening histories to healthcare providers and laboratories + Monitoring and follow up of trial participants + Provision of reports to healthcare providers to remind them when participants are due for their next Compass screening test, and + Data processing and reporting.
THE COMPASS TRIAL OUTCOMES WILL PROVIDE CRUCIAL EVIDENCE TO GUIDE HEALTH STRATEGIES BOTH IN AUSTRALIA AND OVERSEAS
