BLOG POST
Point-of-care messaging turns moments of uncertainty in specialty care into opportunities for informed, shared decision making.
As a hospitalist, I cared for patients who were navigating some of the most complex and critical decisions of their lives while being admitted to the hospital. I was the physician coordinating my patients’ treatment plans with the relevant specialists, surgeons and ancillary services, and I was intimately aware that specialty care introduces patients and their families to therapy options that can be intricate, unfamiliar and often deeply personal.
The challenge: Complexity, choice and communication barriers in specialty care
Regardless of the specialty, treatment decisions in specialty care frequently involve multiple options, each with distinct trade offs. These choices are rarely straightforward. They require patient understanding, alignment with personal values and sustained engagement.
Yet that’s precisely where many specialty-care journeys begin to break down.
Whether they are engaging with specialty care in the hospital or in the clinic, patients often approach specialty care feeling:
- Overwhelmed by the sheer volume of new terminology and treatment options
- Underinformed about risks, benefits and lifestyle implications
- Unprepared to ask the questions that would support a collaborative decision
And providers—despite our commitment to shared decision making—may struggle to bridge that gap in a hospital encounter or clinic visit, particularly when facing administrative burden, clinical complexity or limited time.
This disconnect creates a missed opportunity. Without adequate preparation and support, patients may defer decisions, disengage or default to less optimal care trajectories.
But the problem isn’t willingness, it’s readiness. And improving readiness is where point-of-care (POC) messaging becomes transformative.
The solution: Preparation drives informed, collaborative patient-provider conversations
POC messaging is uniquely positioned to strengthen shared decision making in specialty care by ensuring that patients receive timely, tailored information at the precise moment they’re preparing to engage with their provider.
Unlike traditional awareness campaigns, which reach patients long before they’re in a decision-making mindset, POC messaging reaches them as they check in for their visit or complete pre-visit workflows. This is a critical window when patients are both receptive to information and able to act on it within minutes.
1. Personalized POC education prepares patients for meaningful conversations.
When patients receive educational messages tailored to their condition, treatment options or concerns, they’re far more likely to arrive informed and ready to participate. For example:
- Endocrinology
A patient with diabetes preparing for an endocrinology follow up might receive a short, personalized campaign on insulin delivery options. This could prompt them to ask their provider whether an insulin pump or continuous glucose monitor could help them better understand options for managing their diabetes. That simple nudge can turn a passive visit into an active, collaborative conversation.
- Rheumatology
Patients evaluating biologic therapies for rheumatoid arthritis often struggle to distinguish between mechanisms of action, dosing schedules and side-effect profiles. Educational POC messaging can help them articulate their preferences, such as a desire for self-injection vs. infusion center administration, making the visit more productive and aligned with their goals.
- Gastroenterology
For someone with Crohn’s disease choosing among immunomodulators, biologics or combination therapy, POC decision aids can demystify complex care pathways and prompt key questions about long-term management, side effects and monitoring.
Across therapeutic areas, the principle is the same: POC messaging allows third-party organizations—like life sciences companies, government agencies and advocacy groups—to deliver evidence-based, patient-friendly information that boosts comprehension right when it matters most.
2. POC messaging bridges the awareness-to-action gap.
Even highly motivated patients need clear, digestible information to translate interest into action. This is especially true in specialty care, where:
- Symptoms may fluctuate
- Treatments may be costly or complicated
- Risks and benefits must be weighed thoughtfully
POC messaging helps narrow this gap by providing context that encourages patients to discuss options today, not in the future.
Specific messages about medication and treatment options to manage heart disease or a hard-to-treat blood cancer don’t replace clinical guidance. They prime the conversation, ensuring that shared decision making is informed not only by clinical evidence and the care team’s knowledge and experience but also the patient’s values, goals, preferences and circumstances.
3. A POC platform enables personalized, secure and scalable outreach.
From my vantage point as a medical director at Phreesia, what excites me most is the ability for life sciences companies, government agencies and advocacy groups to reach the right patients with the right message at the right time.
This is a highly effective strategy for patient engagement that prioritizes consent and privacy, draws on relevant evidence, and aims to improve communication between patients and providers.
Together, these capabilities help transform a traditionally passive waiting room experience into a moment of activation, education and empowerment.
The opportunity: Empowering and preparing patients at scale
We are at an inflection point in specialty medicine. Emerging therapies continue to be more precise, more personalized and more promising than ever before. But their success depends on something profoundly human: A patient who understands their choices and feels confident engaging in shared decision making.
For life sciences organizations and advocacy groups, POC messaging represents a strategic opportunity to:
- Improve patient preparedness
- Support more productive and collaborative clinical conversations
- Help facilitate appropriate treatment discussions between patients and their clinicians
- Advance equity by providing accessible, digestible education across diverse patient populations
And for direct-to-consumer marketers working with specialty brands the message is clear:
POC education isn’t just a tactic. It’s a catalyst for shared decision making, and shared decision making is essential in healthcare.
When patients come to their visit informed, engaged and ready to participate, everyone wins—patients, providers and the healthcare system at large.
Learn how point-of-care messaging can support shared decision making across your therapeutic areas.
Alicia Cowley, MD, MBA, is an internist and Medical Director at Phreesia.
