The integration of digital technology is improving healthcare organizations outcomes and reshaping the relationship between physicians, patients and the healthcare system. By connecting patients and healthcare providers through mobile technology, treatment efficiency can be improved by increasing the accessibility of existing or real-time data. Quick availability of such information to healthcare providers helps them take immediate action if necessary. This will prevent conditions from worsening, and therefore, improve the quality of life of patients.
Patient expectations and needs toward the healthcare organizations are evolving over time. Digital access to treatment options, medical research and provider reviews have created a new generation of empowered consumers. Patients want to remain informed, engaged, and connected to all stakeholders within the healthcare organizations to become an expert in their treatment pathway and remain at the center of their medical journey.
According to a New York Times article on a recently released report from Forrester, today’s marketers have more data about their customers than ever before. Yet, due in large part to the deluge of online advertising, those same customers also have less tolerance for being sold to than ever.
In addition, the report’s lead author, Jay Pattisall, says that communication channels—and the costs associated with them—have “exponentially exploded” while it’s become harder to reach audiences. Indeed, recent research from Google shows that it takes 50 to 500 touchpoints for a consumer to make a purchase. At the same time, the greater focus on rare and chronic diseases in biopharma is shifting efforts toward local-level marketing through micro-targeting and micro-influences such as specialists, caregivers, patient advocates, and patients themselves.
This changing customer journey will have a profound effect on every facet of our dynamic and uncertain health ecosystem, including healthcare marketing and engagement.
Amazon.com Inc. has global aspirations for its medical-supplies marketplace, according to a job listing posted on its website, highlighting the e-commerce giant’s sweeping ambitions to disrupt healthcare by selling products to hospitals, doctors and dentists and offering prescription drugs.
The world’s biggest online retailer is looking to hire someone to lead outreach to medical-products manufacturers and service providers, who will focus on building the business in the US and then expanding it globally, according to a new job post. Amazon started the Amazon Business marketplace in 2015, with health care among the industries it listed as potential customers — along with factories, offices and universities. The new job posting emphasizes that what works for most businesses isn’t working for medical-industry clients.
For the past few years, pharmacy has been a topic at Amazon’s annual meeting. This year, Amazon began selling prescriptions in Japan and distributing medical supplies in the U.S. If Amazon can comply with U.S. pharmaceutical regulations, including specialized supply chain rules for controlled substances, and navigate healthcare’s complex payment model, it can change the industry. Amazon could make it easier for physicians to order prescriptions and allow patients to fill prescriptions at a convenient time and place.
Alexa or Echo could save physicians’ time in ordering prescriptions by allowing them to simply speak orders rather than typing them up. Amazon’s extensive supply chain network could allow patients to access their prescription in various ways, including traditional mail order, two-day mail order delivery for Prime members, Prime Now two-hour delivery in select cities, and instant pickup points at Amazon Lockers or at Whole Foods stores — if pharmacies are installed. In addition, Amazon’s existing Subscribe and Save feature could be used to automate refills. Prescription data can be aggregated into Amazon profiles, giving the retailer more customer data as it looks to identify trends between purchases and health conditions.
