Including the caregiver in access submissions

While pharma now understands the merit of placing the patient at the centre of all it does, the industry typically gives too little consideration to another important stakeholder - the caregiver. Better products and outcomes are two benefits of doing so. Another is the potential to make a stronger case for a therapy with payers. Because caregivers often prescribe or administer a medicine, they can provide valuable insights to strengthen evidence in access submissions.   “Often, in rare diseases the patient’s abilities are compromised,” says Raquel Cabo, VP of market access and patient services at Ovid Therapeutics, a biotech company that develops drugs for rare neurological conditions. “They may have intellectual or development disabilities so we really rel y on the caregiver to advocate for them and give insights into the patient experience.”  It is the caregiver, according to Cabo, who can really help provide a true understanding of what the unmet needs are, what the burden of the condition is on the patient and on the wider family, to build a greater understanding of the true benefits of a new therapy. “Really focusing on understanding those experiences in a holistic way from early diagnosis is crucial,” she says.  But identifying opportunities to capture data outside of traditional endpoints in clinical trials is often tricky given how difficult it is to demonstrate outcomes such as adherence and patient wellness within the framework of a clinical tr...
Source: EyeForPharma - Category: Pharmaceuticals Authors: Source Type: news