Communications Ethics in the Medical Industry

Mackintosh, Alasdair (2004). "Marketing Strategy, Innovation in the pharmaceutical marketing strategy: How to overcome the 30-second detailing dilemma". International Journal of Medical Marketing 4 (1): 15–17.

Another key area that bioethicists look at in the medical arena is communications marketing strategies. After studying the article above, the difficulties of marrying business with science become even more apparent. This is a battle and struggle faced every day in the medical device or pharmaceutical industries. A company is designing, manufacturing, and distributing a product just like any other company would, but how do you find the ethical balance of claiming what your product will do with the evidence that science has given? And how do you do all of this in the 30 seconds a tv commercial or doctor will allow? It's a very difficult question that many companies are still trying to figure out.

We've seen the results of what happens when a company disregards science and starts making claims that aren't supported or proven. The likes of Pfizer and AstraZeneca have faced multimillion dollar lawsuits because of their unsupported claims the FDA became aware of. This is why regulatory scientists are so important (or bioethicists for that matter), because they play policeman for the company and the marketing teams, keeping them out of trouble. The article above spoke of three ways the medical industry can help fix this ethical dillemma.

First, companies can participate in segmentation. Segmenting means only marketing to doctors and hospitals that have similar attitudes towards treatments and health economics. Instead of sending out a message or a sales force as one giant catch-all, tailor the message to match the receiver. This can create a better dialogue and a greater understanding of what your product is really claiming to do. Sales forces won't feel so pressured into stretching their claims into something the FDA has not approved their product to be or do.

Second, personalization can be used by building up three dimensional profiles of the doctors and hospitals that will be marketed to. If a company is segmenting properly, that will better allow them to analyze who these people and hospitals really are, what they care about, and how your product can benefit their goals most. A more personable feeling while communicating product value will lead to greater trust in the product and its legal claims.

Third, training of the sales force to be scientists instead of businessmen will go a long way to smoothing over relationships with the FDA and with hospitals and doctors. This must involve weeks of intense training on the product in question--helping the sales force to understand the science behind the device so they can relay that message to doctors. Marketing and sales in the medical device and pharma world are very different from other marketing and sales tactics. They are embedded deep in a scientific, legal, and ethical world that must be understood before a sale will ever be made.

I interact with the marketing team constantly at work, reviewing their sales brochures and marketing pitches. All messages and communications must be analyzed and processed by the regulatory team to make sure claims are FDA approved and on label. It's a very delicate process, but one that is extremely important in maintaining the health and safety of the public as well as the business. It was interesting to further understand how my study plan really does involve the area of media effects in the medical industry.