Patient-Centred Ways of Working

Does your operating model turn patient focus into planning decisions?

HCPs remain a cornerstone of how pharmaceutical companies engage with healthcare systems. Evidence generation, scientific exchange, publications and medical education provide important ways to support clinical decisions and address unmet needs.

A patient-centred approach does not replace those activities. It helps teams decide which needs to prioritise, which interventions are appropriate, and how their work can address the barriers patients experience.

Yet organisations may express a commitment to patient focus while planning still starts primarily with products, HCP engagement and familiar functional activities.

Where patient needs do not consistently shape planning, leaders often see familiar patterns:

Patient experience is understood mainly through HCP perspectives and internal assumptions, without a clear assessment of where additional patient-derived evidence is needed.

The patient journey reflects the expected clinical pathway rather than the practical burdens and access differences patients experience.

One journey prototype represents patient groups whose diagnostic routes, circumstances, or support needs differ substantially.

Teams select activities before agreeing which patient needs or barriers they are intended to address, lacking cross-functional planning.

Journey maps are produced, but do not consistently guide activity selection, resource allocation or cross-functional responsibilities.

These patterns can reflect an isolated evidence or implementation gap. They can also indicate deeper friction in how patient needs enter planning, how responsibilities are shared, and how decisions are made.