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HCB Health opened their third office recently, in Parsippany, NJ. This will allow the independent, full-service healthcare agency to focus on serving large-scale pharma clients in the tri-state region. The office currently has 10 team members, and is expected to grow to 25 in the next year. According to the news release, they are “actively recruiting to fill positions in the NJ office in account services, creative, project management and digital.”

“We created this office to service existing local accounts and engage new clients in the tri-state region. Even in our virtual world, it's essential to be close to your clients,” stated HCB Health CEO Kerry Hilton in the announcement. HCB Health President Nancy Beesley added: “We're strategically located in the middle of the pharma belt – where talent, agencies and especially pharma and biotech companies converge.”

The NJ office joins their Austin and Chicago based locations. The agency utilizes technology to ensure “seamless collaboration and integration” across all of its team members as well as maintain it's quality and commitment to clients, regardless of location. The New Jersey team members are (listed according to hire date, earliest to most recent):

• Lee Randolph, SVP Group Account Supervisor
• Nick D’ Amore, Medical Editor
• Mark Davis, SVP Multichannel Delivery
• John Augenstein, Group Account Supervisor
• Dale Fordsman, Senior Project Manager
• Allison Musante, Senior Copywriter
• Matthew Musick, Account Supervisor
• Lysa Opfer, Art Supervisor
• Alexandra Langdon, Assistant Account Executive
• Thomas Cianci, Project Manager

A special ribbon-cutting ceremony was held on Nov. 4th for the newest office. From left to right: (front row) President Nancy Beesley, Francesco Lucarelli, Matthew Musick, Kelsi Brown, Lee Randolph, Alexandra Langdon, John Augenstein; (back row), Travis Waggoner, Lysa Opfer, Allison Musante, Brooks Bagwell, Dale Fordsman and Mark Davis.

The official Verification and Validation Guidance was released in mid-October for the Point of Care Communication Council (Poc3). The Guidance will “serve as a unified set of industry standards that will define best practices, engender trust among those who transact at the point of care, and provide a clear and standardized mechanism enabling media buyers to determine which POC media vendors are certified and adhering to the auditing requirements set by PoC3,” as per the news release.

“The PoC3 Verification and Validation Guidance is pivotal to the POC industry at large,” said PoC3 Co-Chair Larry Newman (also Chief Operating Officer of Health Media Network) in the release. “As the channel continues to grow and advance at an accelerated rate, having a unified set of checks and balances will help buyers understand POC opportunities and have confidence in program implementations and results.”

Input and insights were collected from PoC3 member companies, pharmaceutical companies, advertising agencies, and other stakeholders, as well as “public feedback collected over the summer during an open comment period” to help shape the Guidance. In addition, PoC3 will certify those in compliance with a PoC3 Certification Seal. According to the Guidance, Completed on an annual basis, the Seal “represents compliance with all areas within this document labeled as ‘requirements' and marked with an asterisk in the Table of Contents … [and] a company's Network Audit success at the 92.5% audit success criteria as part of the Overall Auditing Requirements within this guidance, as well as an aggregate of Campaign Audit success at the same 92.5% audit success criteria.”

“Ensuring that all industry stakeholders had the opportunity to contribute and provide input was critically important in developing this guidance. Our hope is that all POC media companies will strive to become PoC3 Certified. It's a high bar requiring substantial investment in external independent auditing, improved operational processes and IT reporting systems. This collective effort continues to elevate the industry, and we've been seeing ongoing momentum and energy as a result,” added PoC3 Co-Chair Mike Collette (Founder and CEO of PatientPoint).

Ethan Lindenberger made headlines this past year when, at the age of 18, he went against his parents' wishes and chose to get vaccinations. According to the news release, “Ethan grew up being told that vaccines cause autism, brain damage, and do not benefit the health and safety of society despite the fact such opinions have been debunked numerous times by the scientific community.” Through his own research, he learned about the benefits of vaccines and was able to debunk myths and misinformation. The now 19-year old has become an activist know for his “opposition to vaccine misinformation efforts” and has thus joined Unity Consortium to be featured as a member of their Voice of AYA (Adolescents and Young Adults) campaign.

Unity's Voices of AYA encourages young adults and teens to get and stay up-to-date with recommended vaccinations and helps them identify misinformation online. Outcome Health has partnered up with the non-profit organization to produce video spots featuring Ethan and Dr. Laura Offutt, an expert source and teen health advocate. Outcome Health has worked with Unity since 2018, but this is their first collaboration on a joint video campaign (video spots can be seen here and here). As part of the initiative, the videos will run on Outcome Health's doctor office screens nationwide and Unity's advocacy network, be shared through social media, and Ethan will post a number of blogs over the coming months.

According to the news announcement: “With new outbreaks in diseases, such as the measles epidemics that have hit multiple states in the US, it’s important to spread the word about the importance of vaccinations. A Unity survey conducted by Harris poll found that 4 in 10 parents and nearly 6 in 10 teens believe teens should only see a doctor for an illness, which likely reduces opportunities for physicians to discuss preventive health measures, such as vaccination. Similarly, the survey showed that 1 in 4 parents and teens believe that vaccines are for babies and not as important for teens.”

PatientConnect Video was launched by Healthgrades earlier this month to provide not only education video programming about specific health conditions, but to then connect patients with qualified, local specialists. According to the news release, “PatientConnect Video eliminates the uncertainty for patients who don't know where to access care.”

Coupling proprietary AI technology with their innovative solution suite, this online video solution provides content along with relevant healthcare provider information. “For example, patients watching video content about rheumatoid arthritis are dynamically provided with listings of rheumatologists closest to their location along with the physicians’ accepted insurance, patient reviews, contact information and more.”

According to John Mangano, Senior Vice President, Business Intelligence for Healthgrades, this takes things a step further than the usual ‘ask your doctor for more information' instruction typically found in ads by actually “helping the patient find their doctor. After viewing an ad online, Healthgrades delivers individually localized contact information, along with patient reviews of the provider, so each patient can connect with the right practitioner.”

In its ongoing commitment to raising awareness of mental health conditions and treatments and to help the millions of suffering adults, Allergan launched a new campaign for VRAYLAR earlier this month. To represent the ups and downs of mood swings associated with bipolar I disorder, the campaign showcases a woman viewing various episodes of her life as she rides up and down in a shaky elevator.

In “The Ups and Downs Campaign,” upon entering the elevator and pressing the button to her floor, all of the button lights begin to flicker rapidly. The elevator plummets down, with the doors then opening to show her crying on the edge of her bed, before surging back up high, where the doors open on a scene of her arguing with a man. The elevator screen then shows the arrows pointing in both directions, as the doors open to reveal her clothes shopping in a panicked state. After taking VRAYLAR, the elevator ride steadies before stopping in her current life moment where she cleans up the mess in her bedroom, and then takes a smooth elevator ride to meet her date in the lobby.

The creative was shaped by “insights and anecdotes shared by” bipolar I disorder patients, according to the public relations team. “Using physical metaphors taken from how patients describe the condition,” this illustration helps describe the mood episodes as well as the transitions between, covering the full spectrum of bipolar I symptoms: depression, mixed episodes, and mania. The next stage of this campaign will introduce another visual, “inspired by real analogies real patients made about how the ups and downs of bipolar can feel. The intention is to help more people who may be living with the condition recognize the symptoms, and talk to their doctors to see appropriate treatment.”

The campaign includes in-network and cable spots, running in all time periods of the day but with a particular attention to specific shows. Print and newly designed website companion elements launched mid-month. BBDO created the ad; BCW supports the PR and strategic communications efforts for the brand.

The custom campaign, In These Rooms, launched this month to help transform the point of care space to a more empathetic “moments of care” image. Created by Outcome Health, a 90-second video was released which portrayed life-changing moments that patients and caregivers experience in waiting rooms and exam rooms. According to a news release, In These Rooms depicts “raw, authentic emotion” to create a shift in mindset when it comes to healthcare content in these locations and channels. The long-form video will be complemented by shorter spots – distributed via selected healthcare trade support – as well as a social media campaign.

To provide a well-rounded representation of potential patient and caregiver experiences with their healthcare professionals, the creative includes: “a waiting room, a pediatrician visit for an asthma check-up, an OB-GYN ultrasound room to hear a baby’s first heartbeat, a standard exam room for a long-overdue physical, and a doctor’s office to learn about treatment results.”

Matt McNally, CEO of Outcome Health and DTC Innovator honoree, stated in the news release: “In These Rooms challenges all pharma marketers and their agency partners to think differently about point of care and is the first step in our commitment to the ongoing understanding of the needs in this space. Today, we call on our industry to create content and experiences that wrap patients with empathy, education and support at the ‘moments of care’ when they are most vulnerable and need it most.”