Clinical Homecare – are you tapping into the opportunities for your brand?

As the health service undergoes a period of sustained reform, there is little doubt that clinical homecare is set to play a pivotal role in the move towards a more patient-focused NHS.  This growing sector also creates the opportunity for some pharmaceutical companies to really differentiate their brands.

So what do we actually mean by the “Clinical Homecare Market”?  In fact, the breadth of Clinical Homecare  has altered significantly over time.  Whilst the market started out primarily as a logistics proposition around medicines delivery, the sector has grown considerably in the past decade.  It now involves a whole spectrum of services, skills and competencies that are designed to manage and support patients in their homes – patients that might otherwise be likely to be treated in secondary care or another clinical setting. 

What’s more, the subject of Homecare is increasingly under the microscope, especially with the DH asking Mark Hackett, CEO of Southampton University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, to undertake a comprehensive review of homecare medicines in November 2011.   This led to the publication of the report “Homecare Medicines, Towards a Vision for the Future” – which amongst other things, concluded that the industry needs to work with the NHS to invest in technology to develop the homecare medicines supply market.  

Furthermore, with the Nicholson challenge putting immense pressure on the health service to deliver efficiency savings, it is acknowledged that clinical homecare has the potential to make a huge contribution.  This market therefore creates the ideal opportunity for both the NHS and the Industry to work in partnership and realise benefits for all the key stakeholders – patients, the NHS and pharma.

For the NHS, service designs involving personalised services such as Homecare come with the additional benefits of being able to introduce services which deliver BOTH cost savings and quality improvements and may also lead to better patient compliance – whilst at the same time, also successfully addressing the capacity challenges facing many local health economies. 

From the patient perspective, the Quality of Life benefits are clear – from practical advantages such as less travel, reduction in clinic time…to ultimately greater independence.

Pharmaceutical Companies with products/portfolios in therapy areas that align well to homecare also stand to benefit.   There are clear opportunities to demonstrate true product differentiation and provide real competitive advantage – to maybe achieve accelerated product sales and more market penetration. 

So does your brand have a Value Proposition that could incorporate Homecare to help ensure patients adhere to their medication, and/or prevent hospital admissions, and/or support early discharge from hospital, and/or be more convenient for patients? 

If so, what do payers and policy makers and other key NHS stakeholders think about your homecare proposition?  In a prescribing environment rife with market access issues, can you afford to ignore this avenue?    Should you be digging deep to uncover key insights to drive your homecare strategy?