Hill+Knowlton Strategies

A few weeks ago, this blog talked about how the rise of healthcare apps may have been cemented by the news that Apple were creating lists of the best apps for healthcare professionals. Now, the NHS has launched their own library of apps to help people manage their health. There are already around 70 apps in the library, which have been reviewed to ensure they are clinically safe and relevant to people in the UK. This process involves checking that all apps submitted comply with data protection laws and with trusted sources of information, such as NHS Choices, which are both minimum requirements. Apps that meet these minimum requirements will then be reviewed to see whether they could potentially cause harm to a person’s health or condition, and a clinical assurance team made up of doctors, nurses and safety specialists, will potentially work with app developers to make sure an app adheres to the required safety standards.

Of course, the NHS library could become a sort of stamp of approval for health apps in the UK, although with 70 apps already featured and seemingly minimal entry requirements, it will be interesting to see how they ensure people are being directed to the most useful and relevant apps for them. One consideration is that the scale of apps included could become overwhelming, while the quality and effectiveness of an app in itself will not necessarily be guaranteed provided it is not unsafe. The website does state that the review process will be updated and improved over time though, and this is still an important development for the industry.

In a similar vein, this post on The Health Care Blog by Leslie Kernisan, who practices in geriatrics, provides some excellent insight into how and why health apps should, if at all, be prescribed. Kernisan suggests that while many digital health enthusiasts expect that apps will become routinely used tools in healthcare, clinicians need be more thoughtful when recommending apps, basing their recommendation on medical rather than marketing considerations.

The article is an absolute must-read for people with an interest in digital within the health industry. It is really interesting to see someone take a step back from all the noise there is about apps and provide some genuine insight. Although the post focuses on the attitudes of healthcare professionals, there’s a lesson in there for communications professionals and the industry too. While it might be tempting to develop an app or some other creative digital tool every time you are handed a brief, it is worth taking a step back and assessing how appropriate and valuable this will actually be on a case-by-case basis.

Finally, it is worth reading this from the social media team at Intouch Solutions. On March 7, Facebook announced a major redesign to its News Feed and this article looks specifically at the implications the design change will have on pharma Facebook pages. If you or a client you work with community manage any pharma Facebook pages this is absolutely essential reading.

In the past week, there have been a number of interesting healthcare stories that have been making noise in the digital world.

As we’ve seen on this blog, the number of healthcare apps are ever increasing and now this growth has been truly cemented and recognised by none other than Apple. For a while, Apple has been creating lists of its favourite apps for specific demographics, including children, parents and film lovers. The new Healthcare Professional (HCP) list categorises apps that HCPs can use for reference, medical education, imaging, patient education, personal care and patient monitoring. Although iTunes have only made these available in the US, what’s interesting is that the list includes apps from pharmaceutical companies, including Novartis and Medtronic. Understanding and keeping track of how to get onto the list could be crucial for pharma companies to gain more visibility for their apps and help bring greater HCP engagement to mainstream attention.

Another story that garnered significant attention was that of the world’s first live-tweeted C-section. The Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston tweeted the whole C-section surgical procedure from beginning to end, with followers able to see the process in real time. Essentially an educational procedure, this garnered a large amount of traction, with an estimated 72,000 people watching the C-section live on Twitter and an additional 11,000 viewing it in another format. This is not the first time a surgical procedure has been live-tweeted, with the same hospital carrying out a live brain surgery and live heart surgery last year. The popularity of this is a clear sign of  the educational value this type of digital format offers as well as perhaps whetting the (somewhat gory) appetite of many online.

As communicators, when creating campaigns we know how important it is to target the right audience with the right message. Previously, studies have shown women to be the influencers and decision makers in the household, and the results of recent survey have now shown that women are more likely than men to search for health information and advice online. According to a survey from the Pew Research Centre, 79% of female internet users vs 65% of male internet users went online to look for health information. These percentages overall are quite high, proving the potential reach an online campaign can have. This also demonstrates that when considering a digital campaign, it is important to think about whether it is right for your target audience, and the stats below, although US focused, provide a useful breakdown of which demographics are most likely to engage in the online space.

Since starting ‘An Apple a Day’, we’ve talked a lot about the rise of mobile technology, and with the healthcare industry increasingly viewing apps as worthwhile investments, we’ve seen plenty of examples, which cater to both healthcare professionals and patients.

In the last week, it has been interesting to see a number of new apps emerging aimed specifically at children. Take, for example, the new free iPhone app from Healthline Networks, as part of their “Big Shots Get Shots” campaign. The app is intended to help children overcome their fear of needles ahead of flu season, using an interactive storybook to distract them while they are on the examining table. The campaign also encourages parents to take an online pledge to end needle phobia.

Brush DJ is an award-winning app for improving children’s dental health by making brushing teeth both fun and effective. The app plays two minutes of music randomly selected from the child’s phone to encourage brushing for an effective length of time. It also allows them to set reminders to brush twice a day, floss, and prompts them about when next to see their dentist. Parents who are used to the daily hassle of getting their kids to brush properly will no doubt welcome this app!

In the US, the Apps for Healthy Kids competition, backed by Michelle Obama, challenged developers to come up with fun and engaging ways to get children to eat better and be more physically active. The winner, Smash Your Food, provides a fun, mess-free way for kids to “play” with their food whilst learning about nutrition. A multi-user game, the app asks players to enter their age, gender and level of physical activity. The app then tells the player what their maximum levels of consumption should be for sugar, salt and oil per meal.

What is particularly interesting about health apps for children is the potential to engage both them and their parents. There is arguably no harsher judge than a child, if content is not fun and engaging they simply will not use it, no matter what the health benefits may be. Children today are also among the first generation for which smartphones are the norm and social media is second nature, while parents are arguably more likely to engage in something in the digital sphere if they think it is going to benefit their little ones. Beyond this, somewhat blurring traditional ideas around target audiences and aiming apps at other family members, particularly those more likely to be using this type of technology, is certainly worth exploring. This could include apps for younger adults that provide info about their parents’ health or even apps for women about men’s health, which they can use with their partners. It will be interesting to see if this trend grows as the mobile health industry continues to evolve.

So we near the end of the first month of 2012 – WELL DONE US. Except that Italian captain. And Tom Watson’s intern. And all those naive enough to believe that the SOPA/PIPA thing has gone away (if those words mean nothing to you then read this). And Snickers. And unwitting singers at American churches. And the Russian police. And Bayern Munich. And Uzbekistan. Everyone else, though, pat yourselves on the back – especially me, who found my very own doppelganger last week! We survived the most depressing day of the year, and from hereon in everything will be just peachy.

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