I do believe your drug treats my disease. But I need more. Correction, I would be delighted to receive more from you. Without me having to ask. Things you know I need, because patients are really top of mind. Hence you can anticipate their needs. To delight. To enchant. Therefore, we will introduce new ways to think. On how you can co-create with your end-users, now often neglected patients. Reducing frictions in their lives, or the lives of their loved ones.
We will leave you with actionable ideas for your marketing, medical affairs & market access teams, actually for any team in the organisation, and delightful ways to start executing beyond the pill. A few, simple examples for starters.
Uncouple the infuse from the hospital
In the US, IVX Health operates a national footprint of infusion centers which care for patients with complex chronic conditions.
IVX Health redefines the care experience with unique amenities such as guaranteed private suites, weekend appointments, and more. How will that look like in your country, your healthcare system? Who could you organise this with for your patients for instance? Their travel provider, the hotel they have booked? We’re currently exploring some novel solutions, we’re happy to share with your market access team.
Here is Before The Pill: the fitter in, the fitter out.
Prehabilitation (prehab) means getting ready for cancer treatment in whatever time you have before it starts. It is a programme of support and advice that some hospitals have been implementing. It covers three particular parts of a patient’s health
· what you’re eating and your weight
· physical activity or exercise
· mental wellbeing
Here is a great read into the topic, developed by the NHS in the UK.
Plenty of data is becoming available to show that an inexpensive program to help surgery patients get physically and mentally ready for their upcoming operation may help reduce overall costs and get them home faster. Here is for instance new research involving hundreds of patients in 21 hospitals in Michigan, US.
Likewise, Fit4Surgery is a Dutch program for patients undergoing surgery. It aims to improve the patient’s condition, so that someone is more resistant to the operation. The program consists of physical training, improving nutrition, mental counseling, treating specific diseases or vulnerabilities and stopping smoking and drinking alcohol. Even in the short elapsed time between diagnosis and surgery, the condition can be significantly improved. This results in fewer complications, shorter hospital stay and faster recovery.
We’re currently scouting novel players entering the field. We spend quite some energy, some prehab, in defining what to take into account as a pharma company to become the first one offering me such service for a cancer drug. Not Beyond the pill. But Before the Pill.
How to design a chemotherapy companion?
As a matter of inspiration, here is the design trajectory for a novel chemotherapy companion App.
Designed by the team at Modus, the team lead being a former cancer patient himself, KeyMoment is a mobile app designed for people going through chemotherapy. It connects family, friends, patients, and care teams so that everyone can be aware of where the patient is in the cycle — and even predict when they might be at risk.
Our team is constantly evaluating novel digital companion Apps, across any disease area, to collect do’s and don’ts, learnings and insights to apply in your specific use case. Please reach-out when relevant. One of these companions is Jasper, representing a new breed of cancer companion Apps.
Your cancer agenda scheduler 3.0
On a good day, dealing with cancer is complicated. On a bad day, it can feel impossible. For every day, the novel Jasper companion App is there to help. Organize your schedule, needs, and support – all in one place. We believe this well designed App will soon provide additional applications and services like onion layers on top.
Obviously, Jasper is part of our most comprehensive catalog of cancer Apps.
Some of these Apps are already certified, and therefore are part as well of our database of certified health Apps. A great example is Kaiku The App, recently acquired by Elektra, a leader in precision radiation medicine, allows for digital symptom management and is shown to improve patients’ overall survival and quality of life.
We welcome any request, also from emerging developers, where we can facilitate adoption, market access or simply deal making.
Dealing with fatigue
Sending your patient home, no longer with only a cancer drug, but with an App as well. One which helps the patient deal with fatigue. Here is one doing the job in a delightful fashion. Kudos to Untire (from TiredofCancer in the Netherlands) for having a tremendous impact into the life of cancer patients.
Untire is part of our most comprehensive catalog of Digital therapeutics (DTx).
If you question how mobile health solutions could benefit your business, or, maybe more confronting, how emerging digital therapeutics might affect your future drug pipeline, we’re obviously happy to help.
And lastly, as a cancer patient I keep strong. But please can you consider the mental wellbeing of my partner as well. Take care for her concerns, doubts, … That would delight me.
