Posted by Dan Stempel
The process of bringing a drug to market can be a very long journey. According to the American Cancer Society, it takes about eight years on average for a cancer drug to make the journey from clinical trials to FDA approval.
Keeping patients engaged during this long process is an ongoing challenge for clinical trial marketers. While patients may be hopeful and enthusiastic at the beginning of a trial, interest can wane as months and years pass.
Every clinical marketer knows how valuable every patient is to a clinical trial. Attracting patients is a huge challenge, so it is critical not to lose participants through disinterest or isolation. Fortunately, the digital age provides marketers with more tools than ever to keep patients engaged during a long-term clinical trial, and they should be utilized whenever possible.
1. Website
The key to keeping patients engaged during a long-term study is to provide them with information that is relevant to them. Just as marketers use physician and hospital websites to retain patients between visits, clinical marketers should use this valuable resource to provide participants with information that is centered on them.
Information on the website should be focused on educating participants. Clinical trials can be highly technical in nature, and often patients are confronted with information that is not easily digestible by a layman. The National Institutes of Health and the Moffitt Cancer Center both have excellent examples of websites geared toward participants of clinical trials that features information that is readily understandable by anyone.
Patient-centric content may include:
- Frequently asked questions
- Personal stories
- Questions to ask doctors
- Basic information about clinical trials in general
- Benefits statement
