Introducing a new medication to the market is always an effort because of the number of rules in place. However, there is certainly a right and wrong way to go about it.
Here’s what you should know:
Do Prioritise Transparent Communication
You’ll want to start by prioritizing transparent communication. Everyone who matters should understand your corporate objectives and how you want to achieve them. They should also know about what goes into the medicine and the potential side effects.
As you go about this process, you’ll want to produce documents and brochures that explain what you’re trying to do. These can be helpful for conveying messaging about how the medicine works and what you’d like it to achieve.
Don’t Promise What You Can’t Deliver
At the same time, you want to be careful about promising what you can’t deliver. Unlike tech products, medicines aren’t something you can hype and get away with it.
If you are honest about the limitations of your medicine, that’s valuable. It can also be helpful if you can refrain from calling it a “cure.” Most medical professionals don’t like that.
Do Involve Expert Panels
If you can involve expert panels in the process, that can help, too. These can provide you with intellectual clout and ensure that the research makes sense.
A Delphi panel is the most popular, but, of course, there are others.
Don’t Ignore Feedback
If you have any feedback on your new medicine, don’t ignore it. Take it onboard and try to learn from it where possible. Often, patients will raise their concerns about the drug, which can then inform your formulation or the risk profile it has.
If you get a criticism, respond to it objectively. Try to figure out whether you could improve the medication in some way that isn’t currently clear or obvious.
Do Educate Healthcare Providers
Obviously, if you’re seeking acceptance for a new medicine, it also pays to educate healthcare providers. This route allows you to insert your ideas into their minds and get them carry them going forward.
Don’t Ignore Cultural Sensitivities
Whenever you go into a new market, you also want to avoid cultural sensitivities. You don’t want a situation where the new medication goes against the sensibilities of the people.
This is risky if you’re planning on introducing a new drug to a religious or conservative market. The more the eventual patients embody this approach to life, the less likely they are to accept the medication.
Do Use Evidence
Finally, if you are trying to introduce a new medication to the market, it pays to collect and share your studies and real-world data. These allow you to prove that the drug is effective and can help people.
The goal here is to partner with institutions and academic research organizations. If you can get third-party support for what you do and the evidence is generated independently, there’s almost no limit on what you can achieve in this space. Third-party validation is exceptionally powerful.
