Can Pharma Use Twitter?

Since the emergence of the UK guidelines on Social Media for Pharma, there has been yet more speculation and hesitation of the Pharma companies to get involved.

One of the main pharma questions I get asked is, but what if someone starts posting negative comments all over my page? My answer is always the same- twitter is not bebo or Facebook. Yes you have a profile page but people cannot add to that. Yes, people can tweet about you but the chances are they’d be doing that even if you weren’t on Social Media sites. Pharma companies can also be worried about talking to the wrong people on twitter- so there is a safeguard- you can set up privacy settings so that you have to screen users. This can insure that only healthcare professionals (not patients) are seeing the information. Of course somebody can pose as a manager and not actually be one but these circumstances will always be out of our control- let’s face it if a person is determined to find a piece of information they’re going to find it.

Historically, issues with AE (Adverse Events) and Off-Label promotion have been the catalyst of hesitation for pharma companies to engage in social media.

AE or ADR (Adverse Drug Reactions) on Twitter generally comes in the form of- what if someone posts about a side-effect of one of our drugs? The thing about twitter is unless this stranger posts it directly at you using the ‘@’ Medium- you’ll probably never see it. Secondly, you may not be able to find out who this person is (for all we know It’s a competitor) and therefore the report will not be valid. And thirdly, if you happen to stumble by a tweet it may be completely out of context and may not actually be about your drug. For example, searching for any drug name and typically you’ll find only 1% are about the actual drug. According to Neilson, only 0.2% (1/500) of side effects commented on social networking sites can have enough information to report an AE.

What if one of our employees posts about off-label promotion? Well there are a few safeguards. Firstly, employees should have a disclaimer saying the view expressed is my own and not that of my employers. And secondly, employees have to be told they cannot do this. So do up a quick set of guidelines (in plain English) to your employees saying what they can’t talk about. Give them routine responses to difficult questions – e.g. If someone asks the question for example ‘@pharmacompany I’ve got insomnia, can I use your anti-histamine to help me sleep?’, the tweeter should send back a pre-agreed tweet such as ‘ @person, please contact our drug helpline to answer your query’ (preferably in a private message).

Can my employees join in the #Hashtag conferences? #Hashtag conferences are a great medium for discussing current issues in Pharma- such as social media in Pharma or CME etc. The UK Social Media guidelines have addressed this – and so has common sense. Yes you can partake, but no you cannot promote. As you will see at the beginning or end of every pharma #Hashtag meeting/ conference the moderator will tweet something along the lines of ‘All Tweets are expected to be your own opinion and not that of your employer’. The moderator will also be there to monitor the tweets and will not accept any self-promotion. In fact even if you want to promote an article you wrote, it is proper twitter etiquette to declare that you are plugging your own article.

Pharma companies must always be vigilant when using social media NOT to promote. Pharma companies, particularly in the UK have come under scrutiny on this issue. Most companies “tweet ‘disease awareness’ or healthcare news from the mainstream press” - allowing themselves to engage in their industry not sell to their industry.

Now that you know that your fears may have been eased, you’re left with the question that with all these restrictions, what’s the point? Quite simply, your industry is there! Barack Obama’s social media consultant in the first election said that using social media is the same as going to malls with promotional material- you’re target market is already there. One important or relevant tweet from a healthcare professional is one more than you would have had without it. Pharma companies spend so much time driving traffic to websites and seminars- when you could just join the conversation online. Webinars are becoming increasingly popular online also. Another hugely relevant point is that Social Media is global- some of my most interesting tweets come from people in the US, the UK which opens up your target demographic- the phrase ‘The Wisdom of Crowds’ comes to mind.

With 260,000 new users on Twitter daily, do you really think you can afford not to be there?

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Combined Media is a leading independent interactive agency that specialises in web design and development. We create websites, e-learning tools, interactive presentations, applications and all things digital. Founded in 1992, Combined Media has developed processes that combine the best aspects of user-centred design and technology. Our aim is to produce products that look great and are easy to use. Our work is created using excellent project management for our clients. Based in Dublin, clients include VHI healthcare, Roche Products, Novartis, ESBIE Independent Energy, Barnardos and World Vision.

Can Pharma Use Twitter?

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