ePharma Physicians Seeing Reps with iPads Doubles
According to the new ePharma Physician 2012 study conducted by Manhattan Research, 65% of ePharma physicians (physicians who use digital channels for pharma resources and engage with reps) have seen a pharma sales rep use an iPad, up from 30% in 2011. The study, which surveyed 1,819 U.S. practicing physicians online earlier this year, also revealed that 35% of ePharma physicians are more likely to request a sample, and 29% are more likely to prescribe a drug from a rep using an iPad.
Precision Health Media Partners to Launch ConditionMatch
MobileConditionMatch Mobile (CMM), a proprietary health app and mobile ad network, analyzes content from millions of health-related pages to bring brands together to provide targeted information to consumers engaged in seeking specific content about physician-diagnosed conditions. Precision Health President and CEO Bill Jennings believes that with CMM, the company can help pharma marketers connect with information-seeking patients on a deeper level.
Catalina Health to Disseminate PMI to Patients at Participating Pharmacies
This initiative came out of workshop discussions attended by pharma, academia, and the FDA that revealed that more evidence is needed to develop a standardized patient medication information (PMI) document that would be provided to patients at the time of their prescription pick-ups. Catalina Health will disseminate the PMI beginning early August and survey patients as to whether they received it, their preferred method of delivery, and assess whether they found the information useful.
NiH to Collaborate with Pharma to Explore New Medicines
Under the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences initiative (NCATS), National Institutes of Health will work with Abbott, AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Eli Lilly, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen, Pfizer and Sanofi, all of which have agreed to make a number of their compounds available for pilot phase research. NCATS will fund up to $20 million for two to three years of the initial pilot phase.
Luqa Pharma Enters into Agreement to Sell Strataderm in China
Strataderm, developed by Swiss company Stratpharma AG, is a rapidly drying, non-sticky, and transparent topical silicone gel used to treat old and new hypertrophic scars. According to Luqa’s CEO, Robert Braithwaite, licensing of Strataderm helps expand their therapeutic area and accelerate commercialization, while bringing innovative medicines to patients in China. The drug is already approved in China, and Luqa plans to begin marketing efforts later this year.
Pfizer signs Deal with AstraZeneca for Nexium OTC
Pfizer, agreeing to pay $250 million, will have exclusive global rights to market the drug for its approved over-the-counter indications in places such as the U.S. and Europe. Pfizer’s targeted launch date for Nexium OTC in the U.S. is 2014, subject to regulatory approval. Upon approval, AstraZeneca will be eligible to receive royalties from product sales.
Core-Create rebrands as Brandkarma
On August 1, Brandkarma and Core-Create, sister healthcare marketing communications companies, merged under the Brandkarma umbrella. According to Core-Create President and CEO Ken Ribotsky, parent company Core Nation saw the need to streamline both companies and create a unified business model and corporate culture under Brandkarma’s more compelling identity. Brandkarma will keep both offices in Somerset, NJ, and Irvine, CA.
RAPs Study Reveals Rising Compensation for Healthcare Regulatory Pros
A 2012 study conducted by the Regulatory Affairs Professionals Society (RAPS) revealed that regulatory professionals are considered indispensable commodities in the life sciences and healthcare products industry, and thus are receiving higher wages. Despite the global recession and employee cutbacks, base salaries have increased by 2% and total compensation by 17% for regulatory professionals in the U.S. and Canada. The RAPS study garnered 2,750 responses from regulatory professionals in 58 countries.
