ZEST insights

The arrival of the iPhone and other smart phones has quickly changed the way we use the internet.  Email and SMS technology has been available for many years via your mobile but the ability to easily access You Tube, Google maps, Safari and a host of other content through an iPhone is revolutionary.   

The day iPhone arrived in Australia, ANZ launched a specific Mobile Web site with Qantas quickly following suit. The proliferation of hand held devices has forced these companies to think about a wider customer group and develop specific Mobile Web content. 

Small screen size and other limitations such as poor download speed means the functionality of Mobile Web – for the time being – is limited and usually focused on the most commonly accessed services on the main website. Currently, images and words need to be pared down to allow the user to move quickly through the site.

In an attempt to improve the Mobile Web user-experience, standards are being developed. Wikipedia has further information about this, including the W3C Mobile Web Initiative, which aims to develop best practices and technologies relevant to Mobile Web. The hope is that this will make browsing the Web from mobile devices more reliable and accessible.  

Despite the need for improvements, mass consumer uptake of the iPhone and its relatively user-friendly browsing experience means we need to get serious about providing tailored websites for hand held devices. The potential benefits for patient support and healthcare professional engagement are significant.   

At ZEST we believe that as we progress through 2009 we will routinely be asked to create Mobile Web content as part of the development of all websites. It’s something we’re excited about and look forward to providing an innovative way to interact with patients and doctors. Stay tuned to the ZEST blog for further updates about how Mobile Web can work for you! 

When you hear the term ‘key opinion leader’, who immediately springs to mind? A specialist or GP who commonly takes the lead in a therapy area, or maybe a leading academic in a particular field of research? But do your thoughts extend to members of other healthcare professions – say nurses, pharmacists, or physiotherapists? 

Allied healthcare professionals are likely to become more influential in patient management, with the Australian government taking active steps towards expanding their clinical roles to address the shortage of primary healthcare providers in this country. So it’s timely to begin challenging traditional concepts of a KOL and, by extension, your target audience.  

One key group to consider is nurse practitioners. These are nurses with the training and authority to manage patients, refer them to other healthcare professionals, and prescribe some medications. There are currently 300 nurse practitioners in Australia but Federal Health Minister Nicola Roxon has suggested that this number be expanded to address the current workforce shortage in primary care. 

Do you have a program for nurturing leading nurse practitioners to ensure they remain in touch with your latest developments? Or is there another group of professionals – perhaps pharmacists - you want to engage? 

At ZEST, we can help you identify and nurture KOLs from a range of healthcare professions to help you gain the most from their expertise and provide opportunities for them to develop as advocates. Call us to discuss our KOL Care Continuum programs and we’ll help you stay ahead of the changing healthcare landscape in Australia.  

As budgets get smaller and pharmaceutical companies get more competitive, we are constantly striving to find different ways to market new therapies. Some companies are attempting to secure doctor and patient groups even before their therapy has received approval. 

The latest company to do this is GlaxoSmithKline. Recently recruiting via the radio for a clinical trial, they required patients with severe rheumatoid arthritis who had not previously taken biologicals. And in doing so, taking potential patients away from approved drugs on the market such as MabThera RA, Humira and Enbrel.  

Pre-marketing activities such as early access, product familiarization and compassionate access programs are becoming more and more important when planning for a new product launch. These are an effective way for doctors to start gaining experience with the drug as well as capturing patients, who will usually stay on the therapy once PBS approval has been given. 

Although this has been going on in clinical trials with terminal patients (eg cancer patients), will we start seeing more of this in chronic conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis?