We recently attended one of the industry's most notable life sciences conferences for meeting and event professionals—Pharma Forum. While there, we sat in on insightful discussions, engaged with thought leaders in the industry, and heard from medical professionals on the future of medical meetings, compliance regulations, and contracting strategies. 

One particular discussion stood out to us: The Meeting Journey for HCPs - Design Your Meetings Around What HCPs Want - Not What You Want to Teach Them. At this seminar, we heard directly from HCP (health care professional) panelists about their perspectives on medical meetings and what drives HCP attendance. Panelists shared their best and worst meeting experiences, provided thoughtful suggestions for improvement, and revealed what factors drive their decisions to attend and speak at an HCP engagement.

Generally, healthcare professionals are invited to around 25+ meetings annually, with some receiving over 100 invitations. Of those invites, HCPs typically attend 5-8. So, how can you make your meeting stand out among the rest? We’ve compiled a list that covers everything we know and have heard from HCPs themselves. 

Pharmaceutical conventions and other types of medical events provide HCPs with the unique opportunity to meet with fellow professionals in their field. These events contribute to career development and the advancement of patient care and health outcomes. Benefits of attending can include: 

Attending a conference lends the opportunity to network with other healthcare professionals and discuss new treatment options for patients. This leads to improved patient outcomes and better healthcare services.

Pharmacists and HCPs can collaborate on research and development of new technology, while also giving them a platform to share and discuss best practices and new ideas. 

Pharmaceutical conferences provide healthcare professionals with access to both new and developmental research and treatments—giving them an opportunity to improve their knowledge and expertise in the field.

Maybe one of the greatest benefits—networking with peers. Attending allows healthcare professionals to network with colleagues from different or similar areas of expertise. This can lead to future collaborations and partnerships.

These meetings provide extensive educational opportunities, helping healthcare professionals to stay up-to-date on the latest advancements in their field.

While attending the 2023 Pharma Forum, we had the chance to hear from two key opinion leaders, Dr. Mark Rowe, and Dr. Joseph Murray. At their seminar, they explained how the best way to create a successful med event is to focus on the particular needs of the HCPs, rather than the desired outcome of the meeting itself.  

In the past, patients were largely excluded from these types of meetings by instead using simulated patients, mannequins, or virtual patients to contribute. Now, this dynamic is shifting. Patients themselves are asking for better representation, with HCPs also moving towards more patient-focused meetings. 

There’s no substitute for having real patients in attendance—it reignites the power of connection and helps HCPs to reconnect to their sense of purpose for patients. Rather than shining a spotlight on the educational aspect of a meeting, focusing on the patient journey/experience is what HCPs want to see. Stories have a power that transcends numbers–it is not just a way to learn but a way to connect on an emotional level. 

Many pharma companies fail to produce a meeting that centers around the needs of HCPs, by focusing on the needs of the industry instead. Take, for example, organizing more sit-down seminars than hands-on lunch & learns. For healthcare professionals, collaboration is crucial for providing high-quality, patient-centered care—and it’s not often they have an opportunity to do so in the same capacity as a medical meeting. 

According to Dr.’s Rowe and Murray, 50% of HCPs are experiencing burnout due to high pressure and stress. Collaboration, then, is a way for HCPs to feel more at ease and more excited about a program. On top of this, it promotes a holistic approach to patient care, improves decision-making, enhances patient outcomes, increases efficiency, and fosters professional development—making it a critical component of a successful meeting.  

Among the many benefits, which center largely around peer-to-peer education and networking, there's another, less obvious one—the chance to get away. 

Healthcare professionals often work long hours in a demanding setting. Moments for relaxation or a change of scenery are few and far between. So, when it comes to accepting your invitation, the location might be the first thing on their minds. HCPs want to go somewhere they can enjoy. Think Miami vs Minnesota. Among the fray of invites, HCPs look for a destination they can make a trip out of, maybe bring their families, and with hope, relax a little bit. This will lead to more than just an accepted invite but enhanced engagement as well. 

The location doesn't have to be a resort—but is the meeting space clean and inviting? Are there plenty of windows for natural light? Is it in a cool part of town where attendees can enjoy good, local dining options? According to Dr. Rowe and Dr. Murray, these are important marks to hit. 

So, why is it so hard to deliver value to healthcare professionals? "A contributing factor for 55% of Pharma respondents and 47% of service providers is their lack of insight into what HCPs value in terms of content, channels, formats, etc." The industry's primary focus is often on delivering what it values rather than what HCPs value. But as aforementioned, there are simple yet effective ways to correct this gap. 

When planning, “put yourself in the shoes of healthcare professionals,” says Dr. Rowe. These are people who work long hours and do important, meaningful work. They want to enjoy the atmosphere they're in, feel reinvigorated by what they learn, and be inspired by fellow industry colleagues. A simple way to do this? Dr. Rowe provides his “5 E’s” to follow when laying down the groundwork for a pharma event. If you can uphold these 5 components, you'll be sure to create an event that will attract HCPs, and end in a success for you, and the advancement of the medical industry.

Education: new research, technology, and tools.

Emotion: patient involvement.

Empower: connectivity and collaboration among colleagues. 

Experience: enjoyable, clean, and inviting atmosphere 

Environment: location and venue