A healthcare communication evolution in response to COVID-19

The way we communicate has been transformed by the COVID-19 crisis. From the endless video calls with friends and relatives, to the joys of getting an online shopping delivery slot, we have all reached out for digital solutions to combat restrictions imposed by the lockdown. 

As the lockdown begins to lift and something resembling normality starts to re-emerge, we should not assume these communication trends are temporary or fleeting. Digital by default communication has become normalised during the lockdown, and part of our everyday working lives as never before. 

In the healthcare sector this will have ongoing ramifications for our clients and their business. This will fundamentally alter not only the way services are delivered, but the way healthcare information is communicated and consumed.  

Whilst the digital revolution has already begun to reshape the sector in recent years, the COVID-19 crisis has accelerated the pace of change.   

As a result, the healthcare and pharma sectors will need to get increasingly digitally savvy to stay ahead of the curve. Businesses will need to engage with their key target audiences in a radically different way. 

This is not merely about developing an online replacement or substitute for traditional face to face communication, as bringing the offline online will only take you so far. 

To do this effectively will need to offer audiences a different kind of digital experience; one with enhanced engagement, increased interactivity in a richer more immersive environment.  

That is why we are launching a new Interactive Learning Environment to give healthcare and pharmaceutical organisations a state-of-the-art alternative to educate and engage with their customers. 

Developed in collaboration with Teesside based Animmersion, the Interactive Learning Environment (ILE) uses cutting edge digital technology in the form of 3D pitching software, virtual and augmented reality techniques to offer a new kind of digital experience.  

At a time when face to face conferences and events are being postponed and cancelled due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the Interactive Learning Environment provides a unique immersive digital experience as an alternative. 

It provides all the features of tradition offline engagement in an integrated virtual platform. This includes conference presentations, medical education programmes, product demonstrations, product information briefings, sales and medical information conversations, access to expert opinion, participatory working groups, advisory boards and much more. 

Unlike traditional limitations of conference and events stands, it offers users a limitless digital space that users can constantly improve and add to, accessible worldwide at all times with the potential to reach a global audience. 

With access to healthcare professionals heavily restricted and international travel limited, we are offering a long-term digital solution to bridge the communication gap in the sector. We feel this has the potential to transform engagement with healthcare professionals during and after the COVID-19 crisis. 

This is not simply a case of keeping up to speed with the changing times, this goes beyond “the new normal” by taking healthcare communications to the next level.  

We are due to formally launch our exciting new venture in the coming weeks, so watch this space for further updates. Get in touch with us if you would like to find out more.