Appropriate Messaging at Point of Care Survey (Survey ran from 17 June 2004 through 20 October 2004. N=34 reponses)
See Resources & Further Reading below…
THE ISSUE
For pharmaceutical manufacturers, Drug information apps such as offered by ePocrates and ePrescribing may offer a new channel to influence physician prescribing at the point of care.
This survey asked respondents their opinions on what is and what is not appropriate messaging/advertising at the point of care and if pharma should or should not encourage ePrescribing.
Survey Results:
Select results are summarized in the chart below. Access a more detailed online Summary of Responses here.
Drug information smartphone apps (eg, Epocrates) and ePrescribing offers pharma companies and other stakeholders — including MCOs, PBMs and pharmacies — the ability to provide marketing messages to physicians at the point of care.
For each of the following types of marketing message techniques that can be used within an ePrescribing application, respondents were asked to indicate if they thought the technique should or should not be allowed.
- Splash screen when doc turns on PDA, smartphone, or iPad. The message not related to any prescribing transaction
- Specific targeted messages “triggered” by doc’s drug lookup choice, demographic, and/or prescribing history and designed to influence doc’s prescribing decision.
- Non-targeted messages delivered before, during, or after the prescribing process
Other Questions asked:
- Should pharma companies encourage ePrescribing and help physicians adopt this technology?
- In your opinion, will ePrescribing have a negative effect on some pharma companies due to increased formulary access by physicians and give MCOs greater leverage at the point of care?
Access these results in an online Summary of Responses here.
Associated article(s) touching on this topic:
- Pharma eMarketing: A Level Playing Field or a Killing Field?
- The Electronic Formulary Will Change the Equation -The author argues that the pharmaceutical industry should make a more aggressive push towards the inclusion of their clinically relevant content at the point-of-prescription in on-line managed care formulary lookups and ePrescribing transactions. Only then will the industry begin to change what is looking like a threatening future to one which offers the industry a more level playing field.
