Five key considerations for implementing digital technologies to support patients in China

Patient support has always been a hot topic in the life sciences sector. Healthcare providers are constantly looking for ways to improve patient care and better meet patient needs. In our previous article, we discussed how China is leveraging digital health technologies to better support its large patient population.

For life science companies operating in China, a comprehensive understanding of the market is essential before implementing or developing these innovative technologies. In this article, we will address five key considerations to help you support patients in China.

1. Content is ready

It is critical to ensure that content is presented in the local language, whether it is written directly in that language or translated from another source. Patients who can read and understand information in their native language are able to make informed health choices.

For patient-facing content, it is important to ensure that it can be easily understood by patients from all backgrounds. Content must not only be translated but also adapted to local cultural nuances to effectively engage patients. Content readiness is a prerequisite for the next few points.

2. Digital Readiness

Many life sciences companies are still playing catch-up on digital health trends. They often have to choose between updating existing content and creating entirely new digitally native content.

Here are some of the main options for companies to consider when improving their digital readiness:

website

Is your website adapted to the local language and optimized to rank well on the local market's search engines? Studies show that most users only look at the first few entries in their search results.

With an effective SEO strategy, your website can rank high for your target keywords, making it easy for your audience to find and visit your website.

video

Video is the new trend in digital health. With the widespread spread of video content on sites and social apps such as TikTok, companies must have Chinese video content to stay competitive in the market.

Medical content is often easier for patients to understand in video format. For example, pediatric patients are more likely to understand their illness and treatment options after watching a short, engaging video.

For videos produced or adapted in China, ideally the entire video should be in Chinese. However, if the existing video is in another language, adding subtitles or dubbing is also an option.

app

Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) is becoming increasingly popular in clinical trials. Do you have an app that is compatible with the patient's device? This could be a mobile phone, wearable, or other portable device.

During the development phase of your app, you should consider different device options. If your app was not originally developed in the local language, localization will be an important next step.

3. Medical information education and sharing

In addition to websites, life sciences companies have many ways to share medical information with patients. Based on insights gained from market research, companies can consider the following approaches:

• Grow your brand with TikTok videos
• Open an official WeChat account (supporting regular content and video sharing) to increase brand awareness and build brand loyalty
• Distribute content on Zhihu and other leading medical forums ( such as dxy.com or drovice.cn ) to share information about their products and services

4. Data Solutions

Life sciences companies can use a variety of data solutions to improve patient support. Chatbots trained on big data and customized for life science services and products should be considered.

This is particularly important in China, where there is a wealth of data available to improve chatbot performance. This enables life sciences companies to provide better real-time patient support.

Wearable devices are also widely used in clinical trials, making it possible to monitor patients 24 hours a day. Through data collection, annotation, machine learning, and data analysis, companies can provide personalized patient support. In addition, patients can actively manage their diseases through friendly reminders from wearable devices, thereby establishing a healthier lifestyle.

5. E-commerce

As the life sciences industry gradually adapts to the new challenges brought by the epidemic and ensures normal medical supply distribution, China's online pharmacies are rapidly developing e-commerce. This is due to the fact that more and more consumers choose to purchase medicines through online platforms such as JD Health. With the help of e-commerce platforms, life sciences companies are better able to provide remote support to patients.

There are many more ways to provide patient support. If you are interested in learning more about multilingual patient support strategies in China or other global markets, please feel free to contact us.

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