[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CiKjBDJhQfw]
Social media is gaining momentum in the healthcare arena. The annual Society for Healthcare Strategy & Market Development conference, SHSMD Connections, closed out this week. Plus, changes to LinkedIn are forcing healthcare industry insiders who use the platform to change their strategies.
Kate Eidam, director of marketing solutions for Breaking Media (MedCity News’ parent company), moderated a discussion on the future of digital marketing and social media. She was joined by MedCity News’ Chris Seper as well as Amanda Bury, who focuses on the healthcare sector for the digital marketing agency SIM Partners, and Ben Dillon, Chief Strategy Officer at Geonetric and a SHSMD board member.
Behavioral Health, Interoperability and eConsent: Meeting the Demands of CMS Final Rule Compliance
In a webinar on April 16 at 1pm ET, Aneesh Chopra will moderate a discussion with executives from DocuSign, Velatura, and behavioral health providers on eConsent, health information exchange and compliance with the CMS Final Rule on interoperability.
1. Understand everything about primary care or you’ll never grasp the future of medicine
Primary care is the frontline in health reform and is much bigger than physicians that see patients for their ailments and minor emergencies. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) expanded insurance coverage through expansion of state Medicaid enrollment, and tax credits offered eligible enrollees in health exchanges. It defines primary care more broadly than MDs and DOs, including advanced practice nurses and others as part of the mix. And it places a premium on accessible, effective primary care services to reduce inappropriate utilization of hospital emergency rooms and avoidable admissions. In many ways, primary care is the key to health reform. Expanding insurance coverage while improving outcomes and managing costs are a perfect storm unless access to primary care is at the center of these efforts.
2. 5 healthcare startup pitches that got it wrong (and why)
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
Too often I see startups pursuing an idea without understanding their most critical assumptions about the market, their competition or the impact of the problem they’re attempting to solve. Entrepreneurs need to be willing to accept advice and react accordingly. This can be particularly challenging among MedTech startups where so many of the participants are accomplished leaders in their field. Intelligent, successful individuals need to be willing to take missteps, recognize them as such, and pivot as necessary.
3. New LinkedIn Groups changes force its healthcare social media strategists to change up
LinkedIn Groups changes coming this week are speeding an exodus of some of the medical industry’s most engaged LinkedIn members. They’re building their own sites and rethinking their healthcare social media strategies when it comes to the biggest B2B social media site on the planet.
“LinkedIn has been, next to Comcast, the single worst customer user experience I’ve ever encountered,” said Joe Hage said, who took over Medical Device LinkedIn Group in December 2011.
4. Comcast: Build healthcare innovation on ‘reality,’ not existing system
From an employer perspective, many current wellness and healthcare “reform” programs are based on what Leavitt called three “outdated premises”: employees should be experts navigating their health coverage and healthcare systems; consumers should be accountable for their spending with the tools they have today; and healthcare beneficiaries should be incentivized to build a better system.
5. 6 things that make digital health investors go hmmm
In the past few weeks of attending digital health conferences, I’ve picked up on a few themes based on investment priorities identified by some venture capitalists and others offering startups advice. But even when investors are bullish, questions linger on the strength of their bets. I’ve outlined a few here but feel free to share your own observations in the comments section.
