Using EHR research to boost your brand strategy — ethically

Secure electronic health records (EHR) and electronic medical records (EMR) platforms, populated with HIPAA-protected patient data and further gated by doctor-patient confidentiality, are not a valid marketing channel for pharma brands. Healthcare providers have been vocal in their conviction that pharma messaging has no place in their EHR workflows.

To that end, in June 2021, the AMA updated its policy opposing direct-to-prescriber pharmaceutical and promotional content in EHRs. It cited the possibility that unscrupulous marketing could negatively impact treatment parity and patient outcomes.

And yet, as HCPs spend more and more of their clinical time using EHRs, pharma brands without EHR strategies may increasingly fall behind. The few face-to-face minutes a sales rep has with an HCP can’t compete with the hours the provider spends facing their EHR platform. So what is a brand to do?

Pharma’s most common EHR responses

Rightly concerned that interfering with EHR platforms will put them in legal and regulatory jeopardy, some pharma brands walk away entirely, quietly trusting in the same donuts-and-collateral strategies that brought success 20 years ago.

Others look for ways to cut and paste their digital strategy into the EHR space. Some are tempted by workarounds like EHR advertising to gain visibility for their brand, even though that tactic rubs HCPs the wrong way and isn’t allowed on many of the major platforms.

Unfortunately, neither of those approaches address EHR blind spots. For example, what will your brand do when:

• HCPs start telling your reps they cannot find your brand in their EHR
• Your KAM team hears that there is a flag on your product in a key EHR your target HCPs use
• You know your brand’s formulary position improved, but you aren’t seeing the lift you expect

Without an EHR strategy in place, it can be difficult to get to the root of what’s happening in scenarios like this — and even more challenging to figure out how to mitigate the issues and get your brand back on track.

Is there a way to approach the EHR question while also staying in compliance with legal, regulatory and industry requirements?

The value of an ethical EHR strategy

Smart pharma brand marketers take the time to invest in an ethical EHR strategy, incorporating it into their overall brand approach so they’re ready to address problems, spot opportunities and stay ahead of trends that could impact their brand performance. These teams often partner with consultancies to gather legitimate EHR research and work to understand the EHRs their target HCPs use, adding these insights to their strategy while being careful to stay within all relevant laws, regulations and guidelines.

An ethical EHR strategy respects the standards, but it doesn’t stop there. Beyond obeying the letter of the law, pharma brands often find that having a compliant EHR strategy helps them to build stronger HCP relationships, gain critical market insights and incorporate innovative tactics that boost their brand share.

For example, EHR research might uncover ways in which platforms allow HCPs to sort patient populations by characteristic. In this case, a pharma brand could then create instructions on how to perform that task for each EHR its target HCPs use and train its sales team to spot opportunities when an HCP says, “I don’t have any patients who fit those criteria.” With this knowledge, when a rep hears that objection, they can step in with advice on the HCP’s EHR functionality to help them uncover patients who might be a good fit for the product.

Pressed for time and eager to deliver better quality care, HCPs almost always appreciate EHR pro tips and shortcuts. Reps who offer HCPs helpful guidance on how to use their EHR to streamline workflows and connect patients to effective care more efficiently become a trusted resource. Plus, these reps are positioned to increase the likelihood that their brand will get prescribed.

That’s ethical EHR strategy in action.

Keeping EHR research compliant

So, how do ethical pharma brands build EHR optimization into their larger brand strategies?

The best way to ensure that your brand stays in compliance is to partner with organizations that have legitimate EHR research and insight and are strictly accountable to applicable laws and regulations. When choosing that partner, look for:

• Experience: How long have the organization and its leaders been in this particular field?
• Expertise: How closely have the consultants worked with EHR technology and in what context?
• Breadth: How many EHR platforms is the organization familiar with — beyond name recognition?
• Access: How and how often does the organization keep up with new updates and releases? How do they conduct their EHR research?
• Standards: How closely do the organization’s security and compliance policies match your own?
• Methods: Does the organization make questionable promises, such as being able to place ads directly in provider workflows? (This is impossible and unwelcome with major EHR platforms.) Does the organization recommend questionable practices, such as inviting pharma teams to venture too closely to ethical gray areas?

Your EHR optimization strategy is important. But your brand’s legal and ethical reputation is even more critical.