Going with the care-flow?
A massive R&D investment had produced a new acute coronary syndrome (ACS) drug with an "elegant" profile that was not enjoying the expected uptake. Because it was blocked from use in the coronary care unit (CCU) by more established alternatives, increasing use in the emergency department (ED) was considered essential to increasing downstream consumption. A pioneering ethnographic study in several, active ED's was designed. Teams of researchers "lived" with emergency docs and cardiologists for two shifts per day for three days at a time to closely observe and debrief numerous actual cases.
The research uncovered that the indications for the new drug did not match the actual decision-making process used by physicians in ACS cases. This meant that the new drug never came up in the list of treatment options in actual care situations even though it was always listed in the protocols. This was tragically at odds with earlier focus group feedback from some of the same physicians.
Based on the research insights, the new drug was linked to the administration of a companion drug with a trusted role in the ACS care-flow. This "coattails" strategy is evidenced by the simple, effective slogan developed for the new drug: "If you're thinking [companion drug], then think [new drug], too." This greatly simplified the physician decision-making process and properly repositioned the new drug to enter later in the ED process as the patient was "headed out the door" to the CCU. |
