Being involved in HealthCare Social Media is a “feel good activity” as any of you who are in it will know. As we approach 2nd edition of Doctors 2.0 & You, we’d like to create another feel good moment and congratulate some of our winners, as I tell you a bit about them:

CAUSES

Denise Silber: Pedro – can you tell us how Take The Wind got started and how you chose this lovely name?

Pedro Pinto: Take The Wind started from the initiative of two persons (me and my wife Teresa) who found out that there was a lot to do in science and health communication innovation.

Why not use the best of technologies to make the most of the scientific message, in order to get the highest attention and involvement from different publics?

The first work we made was a film for the Portuguese Society for Neuroscience and the results confirmed we were on the right way.

“Take The Wind” was the name we chose because it was directly related to what we do: let the new winds of innovation lead the way!

DS: Today, what are the services you provide which make a difference for your clients? Is it difficult to get clients to try new things?

PP: Take The Wind develops different services and products, according to our client’s needs and expectations: 3D animation movies, software applications, mobile, web… With our solutions, our clients can improve their communication with their own clients and addressees.

Our clients are also looking for new things, looking forward to produce a “waw” effect in their communication processes.
We are here to help them find the right way for each purpose, based on creativity, accuracy, innovation.

DS: What is, in your opinion, the role of 3D in healthcare communication? Do you see a difference between professionals and consumers?

PP: In our products and services, we communicate with both: the citizen and the health professional.

3D movies and software applications can help the citizen to better understand his own health or disease, monitor his personal data, improve a clearer treatment concordance.

The ideia is not to separate citizens and doctors or hospitals. On the contrary, the more informed and aware the citizen is, the more efficient consultation will become.

For health professionals, our products and services can help to simulate clinical practice, clear doubts and to support communication with the patient.

DS: You’ve also created your own website for patients that you manage. Can you tell us about this?

PP: More and more we have well informed citizens, more aware of their own conditions, curious and worried about their well being. New technologies like smart phones, mobile applications, web, are increasingly accessible and allow wonderful things like quick and easy insertion of data, visualization of content, sharing with social networks.

Vita Salutis is a platform to help each citizen to know himself better; to understand what happens with him, to better communicate with his doctor or hospital, to improve his well being through useful tips and challenges. We are working now on a 2.0 version which will be launched in June 2012.

DS: You have won a prize at Cebit2012. Can you remind us about this conference and also tell us about your prize.

PP: Cebit has been a great reference in the world of IT. The best and most innovative solutions have always been presented at the event. Receiving a remarkable award such as The European Seal of e-Excellence in digital media (platinium) at Cebit 2012 was a great great pleasure and honor. It means the recognition of our work and the talent of our team. We have also received congratulations from a lot of friends, clients, partners and the prize was also highlighted in the national media (T, newspapers, web)

DS: How do you find digital needs differing in Europe and the US? You work with the Mayo Clinic in the US, whom you met at Doctors 2.0 & You.

PP: Working with several countries and cultures is an amazing challenge. We give our best to satisfied their particular needs and goals. Working with Mayo Clinic is a wonderful experience. It is a win-win relationship in which we learn a lot also.

Communication with patients is different in the USA and in Europe. In the USA, patients are more autonomous, they can participate more actively in the decisions related to their own health. Therefore, our products and foster this empowerment. In Europe, the patient depends more exclusively in the doctor’s decision. So what we can do it to help the patient do understand it and to assure total treatment concordance.

DS: Thank you Pedro for taking the time to speak with us! See you in May!

Denise Silber: Joan, can you tell us about your publication, its goals, and readership?

Joan Justice: HealthWorks Collective is targeted towards the healthcare professional.   We strive to offer to our contributors and readers a true community where professionals can come together to talk and learn about the latest advances in healthcare.  Our greatest assest is our group of contributors.  We have wonderful, interested, intelligent contributors who write about all facets of healthcare, be it policy, technology, HIT, social media, etc.  Our site has grown and flourished because of them. 

We are editorially independent and all posts and comments are moderated.  We are an aggregated site, but we also publish many exclusive posts from our regular contributors as well as guest contributors. We also have regular webinars on various healthcare topics.

We launched in May 2011 (We are almost a year old)!  We are part of the Social Media Today network of 10 B2B websites.  Social Media Today in total has quite a large reach, with more than 100,000 Twitter followers,  about 650,000 monthly visitors, about 1200 Contributors, 75,000 members and 90,000 newsletter recipients.

DS: What attracted you and your publication to collaborate with Doctors 2.0 & You conference?

JJ: HealthWorks Collective has a great focus on Health 2.0.  We publish a lot of posts on social media, social networking, mHealth, HIT, and other technologies.  It makes sense to partner with other organizations and conferences that are doing the same.

We are also very interested in having a global site.  We want to collaborate with healthcare professionals all over the world, not just the United States.  Other countries and cultures can offer different perspectives and different ideas that will greatly contribute to a better understanding of healthcare in general.  We want to hear that and pay attention.

Doctors 2.0 is a very big conference that we are very interested in.  The speakers are from all over the world and are speaking on topics that are of great interest to HealthWorks Collective.  It is a perfect fit for us.  And it is in Paris!  I am very partial towards Paris!

DS: You write and edit articles about all of the latest innovations in Health Care Social Media, Web 2.0, and Mobile Apps, what are some of your own thoughts about this field and where it’s going?

JJ: I must say, I am fascinated with all that is going on in the healthcare world today.  The merging of mobile technology and healthcare, has resulted in mHealth self-management tools, mobile apps for caregivers in developing nations and telehealth doctor visits with remote monitoring capabilities.  All this will result in a world that is infinitely more connected than ever.  I can see telehealth being the way of the future.  Patients will have to self-manage more and more, or have caregivers help them self-manage.  Doctors and nurses will be there in case of emergencies, but monitoring during remote visits and communication through patient portals or social networking sites will become the norm.  The cost savings and efficiencies will be too tough to beat.  And when all the monitoring devices and data can be directly transferred to a patient’s EHR and uploaded to the doctor or care team, patients can benefit from all their information being in one place and able to be accessed in the blink of an eye.

Doctors 2.0 & You is proud to announce our conference partnership with Doctorpreneurs – “Doctorpreneurs highlights inspiring examples of healthcare innovation and entrepreneurship. We champion the medics, inventors and entrepreneurs who are transforming healthcare through fresh ideas and approaches.”

To enter the contest to win a free place at the Doctors 2.0 & You conference,  you must be a healthcare professional currently practicing (or retired), submit a short essay, up to 400 words, explaining how you see Web 2.0/social media affecting the practice of medicine over the next 5-10 years. What do you see as the greatest potential benefits of these technologies, how are you currently using them, and why would you like to be awarded a free entry place at the Doctors 2.0 and You meeting?

Good luck and see you in May!

cforms contact form by delicious:days

“A conversation with Denise Silber, CEO of Basil Strategies and Founder of the Doctors 2.0 & You conference, and Dr. Frank Antwerpes, President, DocCheck Medical, about the use of Web 2.0 and social media such as Twitter for improving patient care.

They’ll be giving their international perspective on the uptake of Web 2.0 and Social Media, the advantages and disadvantages from the physician and patient perspective, and how the ever-evolving landscape of tools and devices are impacting things.

Aired LIVE on: Wednesday, March 14, 2012”

Denise Silber: Felix,  you are returning to Doctors 2.0 & You as an Ambassador for the UK and as a workshop manager. What are you looking forward to at the conference?

Felix Jackson: I have to say that the best thing I am looking forward to is seeing everyone again. I don’t know any other conference that brings together so many amazing people. Real thought leaders, people who are really changing healthcare. I especially like the fact that the attendees will cross over from lab bench to the bedside bringing everyone involved in healthcare together to think about the fast changing world of digital technologies. This is important to me as I now work mostly with Industry so being able to get in touch with patients and the clinical world is very important to me.

DS:  You’re going to be wearing your regulatory consultant’s hat at Doctors 2.0 & You, when you run your workshop on May 23rd. Can you tell us what are today’s major regulatory issues for pharma managers doing digital marketing or trying to use digital to support R&D activities? How are they different on different continents?

FJ: The regulatory issues almost entirely come from a lack of clear regulation or guidance. The current rules and regulations were written for a world of printed materials and sales representatives but now things are very different!

There are many great examples of guidance that help us understand how regulators are thinking and how they would like us to be using digital as a healthcare and business tool, the PMCPA Digital Communications Guidance being a great example.

However, it hasn’t all been worked out yet, so pharma people find that they quickly move into areas of uncertainty where neither the regulations or the guidance can help them. Pharma companies don’t like operating in areas of uncertainty so often projects fail simply because they can’t get approval, or by the time they get approval the project has been cut right down from the great idea the started out.

DS: And finally, what made you want to do this workshop? Isn’t “regulatory” the most challenging element of “e marketing”?

FJ: I think the regulatory aspects aren’t actually that challenging, they just need to be thought of in a different way. Don’t look for clear rules to apply to specific situations because these don’t exist yet. You need to think through what you’re doing and make sure that is sensible and within the spirit of the regulations.

For a couple of years now, I have been running a series of workshops focused on helping pharma companies and their agencies understand how to do digital and remain compliant with the complex codes and regulations. I now have a global perspective that spans commercial pharma and R&D so I can talk about many different projects and how to do them appropriately. My workshop tries to bring a practical perspective to help people apply the main principles without getting lost in the detail. Participants are welcome to contribute their own expertise to help shape our thinking or just sit back, learn and take notes. I hope to see you all there!

Denise Silber : You have been head of digital services in various Pharmaceutical Companies over the past 10-15 years. What has changed in this period?

Dr Vincent Varlet : Since the first html website in 1997 and the first mobile applications on the “PDA” in 1999, technology has definitely evolved, but so have the expectations of patients and healthcare professionals. We are a very conservative industry with lots of unjustified fears, and we often create our own barriers that are bigger than the regulatory hurdles.  Sometimes we have to remind ourselves that digital cannot solve all the problems of the pre-technology world.  It’s still very difficult to develop companywide strategies, especially content strategies, in a world of silos. Long-term continuity is difficult to achieve, but that’s just what the user expects.

It is still very difficult to develop transversal strategies, especially content strategies, in a world of silos. Long-term continuity is difficult to achieve, but that’s just what the user expects.

Furthermore, the regulatory hurdles that are imposed on us are unknown to the users who, in turn, interpret our lack of reactivity and communication –that are in fact due to our internal validation processes–  as a lack of transparency.

DS : What changes do you see now in 2012 with respect to digital use in Pharma?

VV : Some big companies think that with a click of a mouse, you can create, maintain and update your website, your new customer services and your new  mobile application without a strategy,  and without a budget. Other companies invest in global programs with no regard to local needs. Some big companies still think that “digital” means IT and not Communications.

Some big companies still think that “digital” means IT, and not  Communications

The digital footprint is very different from one company to another and it is difficult to catch-up from behind when the investment, both in people and in budget, is not forthcoming. In times of budget cuts and redundancies, some companies wrongly decide to end digital services that have worked for years, — digital is a channel for developing reputation and image and  an opportunity for the sales representatives.

The divide is going to widen more and more, and the gap will impact our relationship with patients, professionals and other healthcare stakeholders.

And since Nature doesn’t like a vacuum, others will respond to this gap in the market. If it’s not Pharma, it will be others like Insurers or Service Providers (eg: the telecomm industry) and they will be “paid” services. We should not forget that Pharma has always offered information for free.

DS : Where is the biggest potential for Pharma in digital?

VV : Most importantly, it is to make better use of all the existing communication channels so that we can better relay relevant information that was created on other  platforms. Digital helps us spread best practices in health care, thanks to reliable automatization of information. Various scienetific publications have proven that the use of Digital makes processes more reliable, increases compliance and not just with drugs, helps diagnosis and improves patient monitoring. There is still lots of innovation to come.

Unfortunately, the many restrictions and interpretations reduce our possibilities for communicating with the patient, in particular, as concerns online communities. We can no longer help new initiatives as we are still waiting on clarification of the Bertrand Law and whether or we can financially support projects proposed by patient associations.

However, all of the possibilities have not been explored yet, and there is still room for new initiatives.

DS : Why would you recommend Doctors 2.0 & You to your colleagues?

VV : For our decision-makers, the conference is there to show and talk about the changes happening around the world, to express their needs, to hear from users (patients, carers, developers). And of course, to meet potential partners! It is a great Think Tank to exchange ideas, to show that it’s possible, and to discover amazing initiatives. And it all works.

It is a great Think Tank to exchange ideas, to show that it’s possible and to discover amazing initiatives. And it all works!