There is no question that policy changes, like the Affordable Care Act, are having drastic changes on the healthcare space. Healthcare is shifting from an industry that’s rewarded for volume to one that is praised for quality of care. And with this renewed focus on patient healthcare, marketers are now carrying a new responsibility for patient and physician experiences. Healthcare marketers must drive not only awareness, but education pre and post admission, and must empower the patient to self-advocate.
This week at the Argyle CMO Leadership Breakfast for Healthcare and Life Sciences I listened as leaders in the space offered their insights. Below is advice from the top marketing leaders in healthcare.
“As quick as the patient wants information and feedback, physicians want it faster. More and more physicians are using their mobile devices. Clinicians are having text conversations with physicians via their mobile devices. You must also commit understanding the needs of the patient in both content and content delivery. For example, don’t overemphasize the value of videos. Healthcare wants to build a video for everything, but videos don’t engage the patient. Videos are often boring and disenfranchise the patient.”
- Margaret Coughlin, SVP and Chief Marketing and Communications Officer with Boston Children’s Hospital
![7653605_s.jpg]()
“Social engagement is no limited to the major channels like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. To meet regulatory risk concerns some organizations are building their own social platform that physicians can use to self-educate and engage with one another. You can’t control the conversation but you can be a part of it. Utilize your advocates. Be authentic. Remember that response is important.”
- Shannon Hartley, Managing Partner, Healthcare Industry Leader Rosetta
“Not responding to a social post is like not answering the phone. Some of our biggest mistakes were underestimating the volume as well as the commitment around the activity required. Develop a digital scorecard. Measure engagement. Evaluate the volume and response. Begin to understand the sentiment around both your organization and your competitors.”
- Darren Rodgers, SVP and CMO Healthcare Service Corporation
“Recognize that there are more than the 4 Ps. You’re responsible for communicating to the physician, payor, patient, pharmacist, and policy maker.”
- Joff Masukawa, Vice President and Global Head, Government Relations & Public Affairs Shire Pharmaceuticals
“The ACA's provision to move from fee-for-service (volume-based) to fee-for-value (efficacy, cost-based) payments/reimbursements is pushing the industry to a more open stance in terms of data transparency across the value chain. I see this, in addition to the rise of EHRs, as important influencers to break down walls to freer electronic information exchange, thereby opening the door to a more open attitude to digital marketing, as well.
The Internet of Things (IoT) is another important evolution with more data not only being produced directly from device and drug therapies, but new tools and approaches to making sense of the data for various purposes, including the aforementioned efficacy metric, as well as adherence, which is a huge loss area for pharma companies today. According to some estimates, medical non-adherence results in $188B in lost pharma revenue. This is just considering the revenue loss and does not consider the overall cost to the healthcare system in terms of re-admissions, lost productivity, or most importantly, overall patient population health.”
- John Danese, Senior Director of Life Sciences, Oracle
What advice would you offer to those marketing in healthcare space?