Pharma Can Fill This Order

It is no secret that physicians worldwide have demanding schedules round the clock. They often have limited time since they have to first see their patients who come to their offices, make rounds in hospitals and stay abreast of medical information that makes them competent. Of course, there are many other tasks to accomplish for this complicated role in medicine.

This leaves little room for digital communication with their patients who need to know more about their illness or medication. Not only is this a patient need, it has become a craving for patients throughout the world. A recent study conducted by MedTera revealed that 95% of patients require more comprehensive information to manage their disease, learn about their illness or manage their medication. New studies are underway to determine useful tools to help patients. In the meantime, this is an opportunity for pharma to fill the void by providing valuable information particularly for the global patient who has additional needs related to language and culture.

All patients have unique concerns about their individual health. If they are not managing their disease or learning about an illness, they are working on prevention efforts such as altering their lifestyle and learning how to live a more healthy life. The global patient profile is a patient that speaks another language and requires information in a culturally sensitive manner so that it makes sense, is useful and makes an impact right away. Yes, one has to take time to figure out effective means of communication with the global patient. Pharma already has a strong knowledge base about comprehensive health information to meet the global patients’ needs. Furthermore, they have the resources at their fingertips to translate materials in a culturally appropriate way. If patients are hungry for more, who says that pharma cannot fill this order?

(MUR)

Social Networks for Medicine Require Extra Caution

How do patients determine reliable social networks to help them make good life choices about their health? The answer is complex because there seems to be no warning when it comes to medicine and social networks. Therefore, patients who access social networks for medicine would be well-advised to proceed with extra caution. The endless worldwide web of medical information could be misleading especially for patients who place trust in social networking. More importantly, patients who speak other languages are at greater risk for trusting online information that may be false or misleading. There is more reason to be cautious.

A study underwritten by CVS Caremark and published online in the Journal of General Internal Medicine determined that the fifteen (15) largest Facebook communities for diabetes patients and caregivers promoted clinical studies of unapproved products. The reported rate of 25% shows that not all sources are trustworthy. Patients who speak other languages suffering from pain or an illness may fall prey to such sites. In addition, these sites had unconfirmed identities, which raises serious red flags. This may be only somewhat evident for English speakers who navigate social networks frequently. However, non-English speaking patients searching for online social support are even more vulnerable. They are hopeful they will find relief via support systems who share similarities even across language barriers. Online stumbles upon less than reliable sources may expose these patients to potential harm.

It is already a challenge for patients to decipher endless volumes of online information. It is crucial to caution patients who speak other languages to ensure social network medicine sites have validity and can be trusted. We need to spread the word in other languages to raise awareness that all sites may not hold the patients’ best interest in mind nor do they all necessarily provide the best medicinal support. How does a patient know what is safe? Who sets the standards? Where is the warning label?

MUR