Engaging Central Nervous System (CNS) Patients across Medical Affairs Activities and Functions

Industries Profiled:
Pharmaceutical; Service; Consulting; Health Care; Biotech; Biopharmaceutical; Clinical Research; Laboratories; Communications


Companies Profiled:
AbbVie; Boehringer Ingelheim; EVERSANA; Kyowa Kirin; MEDiSTRAVA; Merck; NextGen Healthcare; Sanofi; Sunovion; Supernus; Takeda Pharmaceuticals; The Medicine Group

Study Snapshot

Best Practices, LLC engaged 12 Medical leaders from 12 CNS-focused pharma companies through a benchmarking survey. Deep-dive interviews with select participants were conducted to provide deeper insights. Data in this report are segmented by respondents’ description of their Medical team’s effectiveness in CNS patient engagement – highly effective vs. less effective.

Key topics covered in this report include:

• Medical Affairs and CNS Patient Engagement – An Overview
• Representing the CNS Patient Voice
• Strategies for Early-Stage and Late-Stage CNS Patient Support
• Medical Affairs’ Roles and Responsibilities in CNS Patient Engagement
• Internal and External Collaboration for CNS Patient Engagement
• Lessons Learned and Pitfalls

• Collecting the Patient Voice During Launch: To capture the CNS patient voice during launch, Medical Affairs teams rely on real-world outcomes data, partnerships with treatment teams, and advocacy insights. These strategies enhance patient-centric decision-making and optimize engagement efforts.

• Lessons Learned: Success in CNS patient engagement requires early involvement, strategic alignment of patient & organizational goals, and precise communication. Engaging patients pre-launch builds trust, while clear messaging ensures effective advocacy and reduces misinformation risks.

• Evolution of CNS patient engagement in Medical Affairs: A maturity curve
• Narrative on what makes medical team’s CNS-focused patient engagement efforts effective
• Narrative on how pharma advocacy groups represent the voice of CNS patients
• Narrative on how Medical Affairs can enhance the effectiveness of a CNS patient engagement program
• Product phases where Medical Affairs teams are actively engaged in CNS patient initiatives

• Placing the priorities of CNS patients at the center of medical activities
• Effectiveness of Medical Affairs teams in representing the voice of Central Nervous System patients
• Narrative on what Medical Affairs needs to do to make CNS patient engagement meaningful
• Highly effective tools and strategies used by Medical Affairs teams to collect CNS patient insights during pre-launch and launch phases
• Narrative on how the structure of CNS-focused patient advocacy groups impacts effectiveness
• Effective methods for gathering Central Nervous System patient insights in the pre-launch phase
• Effective methods for gathering CNS patient insights in the early launch phase
• Comparison of strategies for collecting insights regarding the CNS patient voice – Medical groups highly effective at patient voice representation vs. those less effective

• Highly effective and frequently used strategies for early-stage and late-stage CNS patient support
• Best approaches for supporting patients in the early stages of CNS conditions
• Narrative on the optimal timing for capturing the voice of Central Nervous System patients
• Best approaches for supporting patients in the late stages of CNS conditions
• Narrative on Medical Affairs’ direct engagement with CNS patient advocacy groups
• Strategies for early-stage and late-stage CNS patient support – Medical groups highly effective at patient voice representation vs. those less effective
• Narrative on fostering strong partnerships with CNS patient advocacy organizations
• Medical Affairs’ collaborative relationship with CNS patient advocacy groups
• Collaborative effectiveness of Medical Affairs with CNS patient advocacy groups – Medical groups highly effective at patient voice representation vs. those less effective

• Narrative on SOPs defining Medical Affairs’ roles and responsibilities in CNS engagement
• Medical Affairs’ role in CNS patient engagement programs
• Comparison of Medical Affairs’ roles in CNS engagement – Highly effective groups vs. less effective groups
• Most effective CNS patient education activities led by Medical Affairs
• Medical Affairs’ involvement in different CNS patient education initiatives
• Key activities for developing a successful CNS patient education program
• Comparison of CNS patient education strategies – Highly effective groups vs. less effective groups
• Most effective CNS patient advocacy activities led by Medical Affairs
• Medical Affairs’ role in various CNS patient advocacy efforts
• Best practices for building a high-impact CNS patient advocacy program
• Narrative on aligning organizational objectives with CNS patient advocacy group goals
• Comparison of CNS patient advocacy strategies – Highly effective groups vs. less effective groups
• Most effective CNS patient medication adherence programs led by Medical Affairs
• Medical Affairs’ involvement in CNS patient medication adherence initiatives
• Best practices for developing an effective CNS patient medication adherence program
• Most impactful CNS patient health outcomes initiatives led by Medical Affairs
• Narrative on collaboration between Medical Affairs and CNS patient health outcomes programs
• Medical Affairs’ role in different CNS patient health outcomes activities
• Best practices for improving CNS patient health outcomes through Medical Affairs initiatives
• Narrative on optimizing communication with Central Nervous System patients
• Comparison of CNS patient health outcomes strategies – Highly effective groups vs. less effective groups

• Effectiveness of collaboration between Medical Affairs and internal teams on CNS patient engagement
• Comparison of internal collaboration effectiveness – Highly effective groups vs. less effective groups
• Narrative on Medical Affairs’ role in amplifying the voice of CNS patients
• Effectiveness of collaboration between Medical Affairs and external stakeholders in CNS patient engagement
• Comparison of external collaboration effectiveness – Highly effective groups vs. less effective groups
• Involvement of Medical Affairs sub-functions in CNS patient engagement initiatives
• Comparison of sub-function involvement – Highly effective groups vs. less effective groups
• Frequency of Medical Affairs collaboration with internal teams on CNS patient engagement activities
• Frequency of Medical Affairs collaboration with external partners in CNS patient engagement initiatives
• Frequency of Medical Affairs collaboration with internal teams – Highly effective groups vs. less effective groups
• Frequency of Medical Affairs collaboration with external teams – Highly effective groups vs. less effective groups
• Key lessons learned from representing CNS patient voice in Medical Affairs
• Common challenges and barriers in capturing and representing CNS patient voice in Medical Affairs

• Geographic distribution of Medical Affairs teams participating in CNS patient engagement activities
• Product lifecycle phases where benchmarked Medical Affairs organizations engage with CNS patients