The value of patient engagement (PE) has become a hot topic across the pharmaceutical industry, largely due to its reputation for being di­fficult to track and measure. As companies increasingly adopt a patient-centric strategy, there has been a growing need to determine what makes a strategy successful. The question on every pharma company’s lips is: “How do  we help patients get the information they need and also measure success?”

Below are the four steps to help you lay the groundwork for a winning PE strategy.

Define Success

For different clinical trials or products, success can mean different things. It could be increased adherence by patients during a trial, better understanding of the patient experience, or greater effi­cacy of the product. It goes without saying that before you are able to measure success and judge progress, you must create at least a preliminary definition of success.

Determine where technology fits in

In recent years, we have seen the pharmaceutical industry embrace technological advancements in a number of ways, particularly in efforts to increase patient engagement and improve the patient experience. With the developing trends of BYOD in clinical trials and the increased availability of technology to the patient population, new opportunities to engage patients in novel ways have presented themselves. Innovative departments across pharma companies have begun to develop wearable technology, mobile apps, and web portals at both the R&D and commercial levels to support their clinical trials and marketed products.

Be aware of regulatory challenges

New opportunities also bring new challenges. As questions around the regulatory requirements of new PE technologies have arisen, regulatory bodies such as the FDA have released guidance on how they will regulate these tools. As this exciting area continues to evolve rapidly we should expect more opinions to surface and further guidance to be released.

Plan your patient voice strategy

Another challenge for pharma is how to incorporate the patient voice into these tools to ensure the highest engagement. As part of any successful strategy, companies will need to determine:

• Patient Audience
• Areas of Measurement
• Format of Content
• Localization Strategy
• Transcreation Methods
• Launch Plan
   

For further information on how TransPerfect can support your patient engagement strategy, visit us at http://lifesciences.transperfect.com.