The Market Research Society of India (MRSI) held its fifth Wednesday Webinar of the seventh season on 21st August 2024, on the topic ‘Popping the insights pill - how does marketing and research work in the healthcare sector?’. The session was hosted by Sunder Muthuraman, Executive Vice President, IPSOS MMA; Mukul Gautam, VP & Chief Of Capacity Building, Purple Audacity; Amitabh Mishra, Head-Insights and Analytics - India, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories; and Sivakumar Somanathan, Consumer Behaviour Consultant, Curious Cat Consulting; including speakers Amitabh Mishra, Head- Insights and Analytics, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories; Dr. Sanjoy Mitra, Founder and Managing Director, SMSRC; Praful Akali, Founder & MD, Medulla Communications; and Gauri Pathak, Country Service Line Leader, Healthcare, Ipsos. The session takes a deep dive into the healthcare professional (HCP) landscape and the strategies needed for effective marketing.
Setting the context for the webinar, the host, Sunder Muthuraman, Executive Vice President, IPSOS MMA, shared his insights on the healthcare sector. He said, “The pharmaceutical industry size stands at Rs. 5.4 lakh crores and spends about Rs. 2,000 crores on marketing research. While medicines are not used every day by all of us, it's still about half, or more than half the size of FMCG, which is very, very large. The Indian healthcare market is big, double the FMCG market with a 70% share coming from hospitals, 20% from Pharma, and 10% MedTech and other industries.”
Opening the session by explaining the application of preion data-based research for the healthcare sector, Dr. Sanjoy Mitra, Founder and Managing Director, SMSRC, said, “In India, the healthcare industry is defined as a branded generics market. While the market is characterized by a limited number of patented products, it is dominated by strong, branded generic formulations. These brands often hold substantial market shares, exceeding 30-40% in preion volume. Each brand differentiates itself through unique features, creating distinct market niches and driving industry growth.”
He continued, “A preion reflects the mind of the doctor and their aspiration while treating or providing cure to the patients. In the Indian Pharmaceutical Market (IPM), preions are the primary drivers of demand generation. The formulation business, essentially, is the business of generating preions. Before any sales occur, preions are the cornerstone. Sales revenue for ethical formulations and brands is determined by multiplying the number of preions by the dosage duration, unit of preion, and product price. This collectively sets the trend for the industry as a whole.”
Dr. Mitra also provided a historical perspective on preion data research, noting the industry's shift from manual data analysis in 1977 to electronic medical records (EMR) in 1986. This transition significantly improved accuracy, granularity, and insights into physician prescribing patterns and behaviors.
Emphasizing on the importance of understanding health and treatment decisions, Gauri Pathak, Country Service Line Leader, Healthcare, Ipsos said “Contrary to old times, when healthcare used to be symptom-relief based, it is now increasingly becoming holistic. It has become more integrated. There is a shifting focus from cure to prevention. There is also a growing role of technology in terms of the way people and doctors manage health. And finally, a lot of focus on self-reliant healthcare.”
Speaking on patient journeys and treatment flow, she said, “Patient journey research and treatment flow research help pharma companies to support HCPs to have more effective conversations with their patients. It helps them to communicate with patients and position their brand in a way that makes interventions are more effective. Essentially, it helps them to get a holistic picture. Rather than simply understanding the doctor, they also understand the patient and their journey.”
Speaking on the underserved need in the diabetic management space, Amitabh Mishra, Head- Insights and Analytics, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories shared, “India has approximately 10-13 crore patients affected with diabetes and 50% people have concerns of itch. Despite this, awareness and management of the disease remain suboptimal, with concerns such as a lack of awareness, delayed consultation, increased symptom severity, and inadequate adherence to guidelines. To address these challenges, it is crucial to understand the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of healthcare providers. By conducting a KAP study involving key opinion leaders and adhering to rigorous ethical standards, we can gain valuable insights into real-world practices and identify areas for improvement in diabetes care. We found, 60% of consulting physicians thought there is no connection between diabetes and itch, 30% expressed uncertainty and only 10% acknowledged the co-existence of diabetes and itch.”
Further, Mishra highlighted a marketing campaign of Atarax. This campaign played a significant role in increasing the prescriber base and co-preions emerged, emphasizing a crucial impact on diabetic patient care by Diabetologist and Consulting Physicians.
Highlighting the power of insights-driven creative campaigns, Praful Akali, Founder & MD, Medulla Communications showcased Medulla’s campaign ‘Last Words’ and MuscleBlaze campaign ‘#Tumnahisamjhoge’. Speaking on insights to communication, addressing both the campaigns, he said, “Last Words campaign is world's top 15 campaigns released in the Gunn Report 2016, the global Indian Association of Palliative Care (IAPC) has helped establish infrastructure to provide palliative care but only 1% of the 6 million eligible Indian patients avail it. Our objective was to create awareness and increase the access of Palliative Care in India among family and friends of terminally ill patients and build its consideration among doctors, nurses and the medical faculty. We interviewed more than 200 nurses across India and the most heart-rending last words they heard became the heart of our campaign - the film. We used these real last words to start conversations on palliative care across platforms on digital, PR for Doctors and Patients.”
He added, “MuscleBlaze campaign’s central insight was rooted in the understanding that gym-goers, particularly those with significant experience, often felt misunderstood by their peers. Many were stereotyped as overly focused on their appearance, but in reality, they exercised primarily for personal well-being. To effectively communicate this message, the campaign featured real gym-goers who performed the exercises themselves. Additionally, the dialogue in the film was carefully crafted based on insights gathered from interviews with gym-goers, ensuring authenticity and resonance with the target audience. This approach demonstrates the symbiotic relationship between market research and effective communication development.”
The MRSI webinar addresses effective marketing and practical strategies to engage with healthcare professionals.
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