Why is patient centricity important to pharma?
The shift from “Parent-Child” to “Adult-Adult” consultations. In recent years the relationship between patients and their healthcare providers has become much more balanced, with patients taking an active role in the decisions made regarding their health. I remember, as a junior doctor in the late 1990s, a patient presenting me with a printout of some research on an experimental treatment they wanted to try. At the time, this was unusual enough to be a conversation topic in the Doctor’s Mess later that day – now, it is increasingly common that patients will have researched their condition and will come to consultations armed with questions and ideas. As the fifty-plus population becomes more and more tech-savvy, conversational consultations will become the norm, with an equal exchange of ideas, thoughts and opinions. The “Parent-Child” engagement, in which a Doctor tells the patient what is best for their health is very much on the way out.
Payer Priorities
At the same time, Governments and Payers are putting much greater emphasis on the patient experience when assessing new therapies. In the UK, it is increasingly becoming standard practice that patient groups will be represented during NICE appraisal meetings.