Patient empowerment is key for younger specialist physicians
By Mary Dominiecki, SVP, US Country Lead
June 27, 2023
According to our recent research among physician specialists, the younger generation is more concerned with patient empowerment and support than the older generation.
Although almost all specialists believe patients should be more directly involved in their care (96% Younger vs. 92% Older), there are some generational gaps around attitudes toward patient support, treatment decisions and information.
The top two day-to-day challenges are the same for Younger and Older specialists. However, for Younger specialists, their number one challenge, lack of patient support to enable patients to play more of a self-management role (85%), stands out far above their number two, lack of coverage for best treatment options (63%); for Older specialists, these two items are equally challenging (73% and 77%, respectively). Furthermore, Younger specialists are much less satisfied with manufacturer patient support programs (PSPs) than their older counterparts (Younger 65% vs. Older 86%).
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When it comes to treatment decisions, specialists of both groups are most likely to present treatment options to their patients and make a joint decision (Younger 42% vs. Older 48%). However, one-third (29%) of Younger specialists say they let patients make the final decision – significantly more than Older specialists (8%).
Half of Younger specialists (52%) believe that patients have misconceptions about their condition due to non-HCP sources such as the Internet, friends and family, compared to two-fifths (40%) of Older specialists. Although they are more likely to see patients coming in with misinformation, Younger specialists also are significantly more likely to say it’s a good thing for patients to have access to this information (Younger 25% vs. Older 8%). Younger specialists are also twice as supportive of direct-to-consumer advertising campaigns (Younger 23% vs. Older 12%).
It appears that pharmaceutical companies will need to consider these generational differences and understand how to support patients in a way that helps and satisfies Younger specialists achieve their goals of patient empowerment.
Infographics may contain select findings from our Independent Studies. Contact us to find out if your organization qualifies for a complimentary presentation with access to the full report.
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