A patient support programme can be one of the best things a company does.
A nurse who shows a patient how to use a device. A call that helps someone stay on treatment. Real help, where the system has gaps.
It can also quietly turn into something else. That is where I think a country leader has to be strict.
The questions I ask of any programme:
Does it start from a genuine patient need? Adherence, training on a device, something a patient actually struggles with.
Who owns it? Medical and compliance design and approve it, with a clear written protocol. Not sales.
Is there any link to prescribing? It is never offered to a doctor in return for prescriptions.
Is it a sales tool in disguise? Reps do not use it to open doors or to target prescribers.
Is patient data protected? Consent first, and the data stays with the programme, never with the field team.
Is safety reported? Every adverse event heard in the programme is reported, every time.
And one simple test: would the programme still make sense if it sold nothing?
If the answer is yes, it is support. If the honest answer is no, it is promotion, whatever the slide calls it.
“A support programme serves the patient. Built for the sales plan, it becomes promotion.”
Lesson 10 of 17 in Step 4: Distributors and market access, with the full guide and a checklist for this week.