6 Leading Pharma and Big Data Articles to Wrap Up the Week
All Aboard!
This week’s roundup highlights the ways in which big data will change the pharma playing field. From making consumers brand-aware to the growing power of mobile devices, this week’s crop of articles is all about reaping the rewards of the digital revolution. Latest research shows healthcare leaders all anticipate major shifts in how care is delivered, with half of the doctors saying that e-visits, or telemedicine, could replace a tenth of in-office visits. But more doesn’t necessarily mean smarter. A recent conference at Washington’s Brookings Institution saw industry and government officials warning that simply releasing data in bulk without context or meaningful comparative tools won’t achieve the ultimate goals of improving care.
Happy reading!
From dinosaur to digital
By Nick de Cent, published on Eye for Pharma
Enlightened pharma executives argue that digital per se is not the threat; indeed, it’s an enabler for those in the sales organization who choose to embrace it. Technology helps the best salespeople do what they have always done, only better – bring value to customers through effective communication. The real threat lies in failing to respond to the changes in the commercial landscape that technology is ushering in.
Where pharma’s future lies
By Hanno Wolfram, published on Pharma Phorum
Staying with sales, Germany’s Hanno Wolfram argues powerfully in this impassioned article that the word “sell” should be replaced by “serve” when it comes to the relationship between reps and prescribers. “Pharma is probably the last industry,” he argues, “sending myriads of ‘sales people’ to make unsolicited and unannounced calls to doctors, pharmacists and other healthcare providers…” Meanwhile, the general public, including patients themselves are largely unaware of the tremendous achievements of the pharma industry, in curing diseases and improving lives. “Did you ever hear in an annual press the ‘burden of disease’ reduced in suffering patients? Did you ever read about the improvement in ‘quality of life’ next to the financial statement?”
All aboard! The revolution train is going, going, gone…
By Magnus Franzen, published on Eye for Pharma
This article presents three ways in which big data will impact patient care:
1. Patients will change their relationship to the system as they get increasing control over vast amounts of their own – and comparison – data. They will also become more demanding when it comes to outcomes.
2. Data infrastructure will become the nerve centre for the industry in the future: cloud solutions, predictive analytics, CRM, CLM, PRO, outcomes data, and so on.
3. Boundaries of business will change. There will be more partnerships and “new” companies will start talking about science and R&D.
Each of these three implies a great challenge for pharma, from building a relationship with the consumer to the need to build partnerships with partnerships with companies that do have data infrastructure as their main focus. Pharma needs to partner up in order to survive beyond 2020. But it can’t wait until 2020. It needs to start happening now. When change like this is on the horizon, it’s time to start taking initiative. You want to be the conductor, not just part of the orchestra.
Report: Provider attitudes on digital health, big data more closely aligning with consumers
By Dan Verel, published on Med City News
Here’s some stats to get you thinking:
42% of physicians are comfortable relying on at-home test results to prescribe medication.
Half of physicians say e-visits, or telemedicine, could replace over a tenth of in-office patient visits. This latest report found that leaders across health plans, hospitals, and the pharmaceutical industry all anticipate major shifts in how care is delivered. However, data-sharing, consumer consent, privacy and security, fragmented workflows and digital investment constitute barriers.
Pharma Business Model
Published on World of DTC Marketing.com
Smartphone users are a third more likely than the general population to ask their doctor for a specific branded medication, according to this latest survey. 55% of mobile health consumers are women. Almost half of people who use their mobile phones for health-related tasks are the parents of children aged under 18.
Pharma’s top 10 M&A deals of 2014’s first half
Published on Fierce Pharma
Finally, mergers and acquisitions in the pharma industry have been non-stop this year, with lots of deals done, and some that failed to cross the finish line. The top ten deals in the first half of 2014 totaled nearly $90 billion in value, with Actavis’ $25 billion deal for Forest topping the list.
