• Do you talk about going to the gym?
• Do you talk about drinking and smoking?
• Do you share pictures of food and is it healthy?
• Are you checking in at places like McDonalds or places like the park?
• Do you have an active social network?
• Are you going to the dentist and getting flu shots?

As companies like salesforce.com integrate social media through things like Radian6, can this type of tagging and data use be far behind?

The other question is whether is should get used?

One of the lessons I never forgot was about communicating.  I don’t always do it, but he used to tell me two things:

1. If you’re going to leave me a voicemail, tell me the key points in the first 30 seconds.
2. If you send me an e-mail, make sure you get to the point in the first few sentences.  I’m only going to look at what I see in the window in outlook and won’t open it.

I’d love to think about similar graphics which blend his work and the work of David Shore on trust in healthcare…how to you engage and build trust as a healthcare entity!

• There are 3B email accounts worldwide.
• Email use by seniors increased by 28% from 2009-2010 while use by teens dropped 59% in. That same time.
• The average business person sends 33 emails per day. [maybe on a day when I'm in meetings for 9 hours...that's really low]
• 89% of all emails sent are spam!
• Only 8% of emails sent are business related.
• In 2010, there were 107 trillion emails sent; 25 billion tweets; and 170 billion pieces of mail.

You go through a few basic steps to get an idea of how much you (payer) could save (with a very nice GUI). 

1. Rank the features that matter to you – net cost, compliance, shifting cost to the consumer
2. Rank the importance of different clinical programs
3. Make some trade-offs in programs (A is more important than B)
4. Enter some baseline data

Now, in reality, PBM pricing is never that simple, but what it effectively does is help articulate the savings that different decisions can create in a real-time setting.  It also forces some dialogue around issues – adhererence versus drug cost…which matters more to you?

I also think it could be a great way to help consumers understand the costs and savings associated with certain decisions.  I would also guess that the sales team at Prescription Solutions will find it helpful especially in the smaller, self-funded world.

Let’s look at a few rules:

• Don’t communicate with someone more than X times per week.
• Don’t call these people.
• Use Spanish for people with that language preference.
• Send a text message to people who have provided their mobile number and opted in to the program.
• When applicable, use a preferred method of communication for reaching out to someone.
• If a caregiver is identified and permission is on file, send the caregiver a copy of all communications to the patient.
• Call the patient if the amount being billed for their prescription is greater than $75.
• For patients between these ages, use the following messaging.
• If the patient hasn’t opened the e-mail after 48 hours, then call them.
• For clinical information, use this channel of communications.
• For John Smith, only call them on Tuesdays between 5-6 pm ET.
• For Medicare recipients, use this font in all letters.
• For Hispanic consumers, use this particular voice in all call programs.
• If the patient doesn’t respond after two attempts, send a fax to their physician.
• For patients with an e-mail on file, send them an e-mail after you leave them a voicemail.
• For patients who are supported by Nurse Smith, only call them when she is on duty and use her name in the caller ID.

I could go on. But, the point is that communications, like healthcare, is a personalized experience. We have to use data to become smarter (historical behavior, segmentation, preferences). We have to use customization to create the right experience. AND, probably the most difficult thing for lots of companies, we have to coordinate communications across modes (i.e., e-mail, direct mail, SMS, automated call, call center, web).

Ultimately, I believe consumers will get to a point where they can help set these rules themselves to create a personalized profile for what they want to know, how they want it delivered, and ultimately provide some perspective on how to frame information to best capture their attention.

To learn more, you should reach out to us at Silverlink Communications.

THE MBA OATH

As a business leader I recognize my role in society.

•  My purpose is to lead people and manage resources to create value that no single individual can create alone.

•  My decisions affect the well-being of individuals inside and outside my enterprise, today and tomorrow.

Therefore, I promise that:

•  I will manage my enterprise with loyalty and care, and will not advance my personal interests at the expense of my enterprise or society.

•  I will understand and uphold, in letter and spirit, the laws and contracts governing my conduct and that of my enterprise.

•  I will refrain from corruption, unfair competition, or business practices harmful to society.

•  I will protect the human rights and dignity of all people affected by my enterprise, and I will oppose discrimination and exploitation.

•  I will protect the right of future generations to advance their standard of living and enjoy a healthy planet.

•  I will report the performance and risks of my enterprise accurately and honestly.

•  I will invest in developing myself and others, helping the management profession continue to advance and create sustainable and inclusive prosperity.

In exercising my professional duties according to these principles, I recognize that my behavior must set an example of integrity, eliciting trust and esteem from those I serve. I will remain accountable to my peers and to society for my actions and for upholding these standards.

This oath I make freely, and upon my honor.

At the end of the day, I think there is still lots of white space for pharmacies to leverage technology to build relationships with their clients (consumers / customers / patients).  I think technology makes that scalable. 

One bias that I also have long-term is that (with the right economic model) retail pharmacies should focus on the acute drugs and new prescriptions and get compensated for the initial education and titration with the patient and the physician.  After that, maintenance drugs which are essentially just refills should be handled by the lowest cost option – kiosks, central fill, mail order.  I think that would encourage a different payment model centered around cognitive services and encourage greater collaboration between retail and the mail order pharmacies. 

In a new podcast, Dr. Jan Berger, Silverlink’s Chief Medical Officer, discusses how health plans can address this costly, growing issue affecting our healthcare system. Dr. Berger offers best practices for reducing readmissions such as:
• Expanding outreach to entire discharged population
• Reaching out within 24-72 hours of discharge
• Coordinating communications among members, physicians and care managers
• Identifying members at risk for readmissions

Download this podcast and visit our new Post Hospital Discharge Microsite to access other valuable resources on this important healthcare topic.