Contents:

eHealth Solutions for Pharma Executive Summary 10 The changing pharmaceutical marketplace 10 eHealth solutions for the salesforce 11 eHealth tools for reaching physicians 12 Reaching physicians through eCME 13 eCompliance 14 eHealth solutions for clinical trials 15 Chapter 1 The changing pharma marketplace 18 Summary 18 Introduction 19 Market challenges 20 Greater involvement of patients in prescribing decisions 20 Price controls, reimbursement policies and generics 21 Strong competition in high profit markets 22 Poor public perception of the pharmaceutical industry 22 The changing role of sales and marketing 23 Chapter 2 eHealth solutions for the salesforce 26 Summary 26 Introduction 27 Key challenges 29 eHealth strategies for the salesforce 30 eDetailing 31 Physician demand for eDetailing services outstrips current supply 33 Strong growth is expected in the use of representative-assisted eDetailing sessions 34 Word-of-mouth as a method of recruitment 35 eSampling 36 An inconsistent sample supply makes eSampling an attractive option for many physicians 39 In support of ‘on demand’ sampling 39 Mobile capability and PDAs 41 Conclusions 43 Chapter 3 eHealth tools for reaching physicians 46 Summary 46 Introduction 47 Current approaches to physician-facing websites 48 Effective website strategies 51 Professional development 52 Product and disease information 52 Continuing Medical Education 57 Online forums 58 Patient resources 62 Patient education materials 63 Clinical trial information 64 Disease management and compliance tools 66 Blogging 68 Best advice for blogging 69 Blogs as a market research tool 70 Building a blogsite 70 Conclusions 75 Websites 75 Blogging 77 Chapter 4 Reaching physicians through eCME 80 Summary 80 Introduction 81 Europe 82 US 82 Online CME versus traditional CME programs 83 eCME activity 84 Geographical differences 86 Pharmaceutical industry sponsorship of eCME 86 Meeting the needs of physicians 89 Moving services from offline to online 89 Reduction in real-time CME events 89 Building effective eCME services 90 Success factors 92 eCME website visibility 93 Advertise 93 Organize 94 Deliver 94 Physicians have been disappointed in the quality of many eCME activities 95 Conclusions 99 A continuing role for pharmaceutical companies in CME 99 Does pharmaceutical sponsorship factor into physicians’ decisions to use eCME? 100 Working with the eCME providers to develop educational opportunities 101 Chapter 5 eCompliance 104 Summary 104 Introduction 105 Barriers to effective communication in the EU 105 Barriers to effective communication in the US 106 Effective communication with patients 107 Disease management and compliance tools 107 Text messages and email reminders are the most popular consumer channels 108 Compliance programs 109 Technology to enable eCompliance 110 Main eCompliance channels 111 Online channels 111 Product websites can help boost compliance 113 Email reminders can work in some patient populations 114 PDA’s – mobile access to online compliance tools 115 SMS messages provide a direct, personal reminder 117 Rapid answers to individual questions 117 Mobile phones as disease monitors 118 Mobile technology – increasing the options 118 Other tools 119 Key considerations for eCompliance tools 121 Using the right channel to relay the message 121 The age effect 121 eCompliance recommendations 122 eCompliance incentives 124 Demographic differences 125 Target conditions for ecompliance 126 eCompliance services 127 Chapter 6 eHealth solutions for clinical trials 130 Summary 130 Introduction 131 Market challenges 132 Clinical trial websites 133 Physician-facing clinical trial websites 133 Keeping physicians current 134 Use branded clinical trial websites to leverage existing relationships 135 Physicians need an online database for clinical trial outcome data 135 Conclusions 137 Index 138 List of Figures Figure 2.1: Prescribing decisions of physicians survey 29 Figure 2.2: How popular is eDetailing among physicians? 32 Figure 2.3: To what extent should detailing be made available online? 33 Figure 2.4: Have you used eDetailing in the last 12 months? 34 Figure 2.5: How frequently do you use eSampling? 37 Figure 2.6: How effective are detailing sessions? 38 Figure 2.7: What type of sampling method do physicians prefer? 40 Figure 2.8: The use of PDAs among physicians 42 Figure 3.9: What types of websites do physicians use to look for health information? 48 Figure 3.10: How do physicians rate current online healthcare resources? 53 Figure 3.11: Adequacy of online information provided in physicians’ native languages 55 Figure 3.12: Factors influencing physicians’ decision to use a healthcare website 56 Figure 3.13: How often do physicians participate in online forums? 60 Figure 3.14: What role should the Internet play in the physician-patient relationship? 63 Figure 3.15: What clinical trial information should appear on a healthcare website? 65 Figure 3.16: Would physicians like to use the Internet to monitor patients? 67 Figure 3.17: Preferred sources of health information for consumers 68 Figure 3.18: Driving traffic to blogsites and online forums 71 Figure 3.19: The involvement of healthcare professionals can drive participants to blogsites 72 Figure 3.20: What features dictate whether consumers participate in a blog discussion? 73 Figure 4.21: CME requirements in the US and EU 81 Figure 4.22: Would pharmaceutical sponsorship of eCME deter physicians from accessing it? 88 Figure 4.23: Doctors.net.uk 90 Figure 4.24: Provide a well-organized and searchable interface for eCME 95 Figure 4.25: Engaging eCME formats 98 Figure 4.26: Financial support for eCME from pharmaceutical companies 99 Figure 5.27: Barriers to effective communication in the EU 106 List of Tables Table 3.1: Key guidelines for blogging 74 Table 4.2: AMA identified subject areas in which CME is needed 102