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PHARMED OUT
Overcoming prescribers’ sense of immunity to pharmaceutical marketing influence
Problem
Pharmaceutical and medical device companies wield significant influence over prescriber behavior through sophisticated marketing strategies, often in ways that go unnoticed by healthcare professionals. While there is increasing evidence that these tactics can contribute to overdiagnosis, overtreatment, and even patient harm, many physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants believe they are immune to such manipulation. To address this, PharmedOut, an initiative at Georgetown University Medical Center, sought to expose these subtle influences and educate prescribers on the potential risks they present.
Strategy
Our strategy was to develop a series of digital ads that would directly challenge prescribers’ assumptions about their immunity to pharmaceutical influence. The ads needed to be provocative and engaging, designed to make prescribers question their own susceptibility to industry manipulation. The target audience included prescribers, teaching faculty, trainees, and pharmacists. The goal was to drive these professionals to the PharmedOut website, where they could access evidence-based, pharma-free resources that counter industry bias.
Creative Solution
Once PharmedOut approved our Creative Work Plan, the RxBalance team generated an array of ad concepts aimed at highlighting the subtle yet pervasive influence of pharmaceutical companies on prescribing. These ads were designed to be edgy, rebellious, and provocative, aligning with PharmedOut’s mission to challenge the status quo and empower prescribers to think critically about the sources of their clinical information.
Results
These digital ads effectively captured the attention of our intended target audience. Both prescribers and their academic colleagues responded positively to the bold, questioning tone of the campaign. As a result, the campaign is now being considered for a broader rollout, as part of a bus stop campaign in the Washington DC Metro Transit system. This expansion underscores the impact and potential reach of the creative work RxBalance produces.
“Lydia Green and her [RxBalance] team were a joy to work with: professional, creative, responsive, and fun. They created beautiful on-the-nose concepts—it was hard to choose among an embarrassment of riches.”
—Adriane Fugh-Berman, MD, Department of Family Medicine at Georgetown University Medical Center
