3 best practices for ethical healthcare marketing

According to a Doctor.com survey, 52% of respondents said they relied on brand websites to research prescription information in the past year.

Patients and doctors alike look to medical marketers to help them explore treatment options. Considering how far good treatment can go toward enhancing a patient's quality of life, it is exceptionally important that marketing ethics are viewed as paramount by brand managers in healthcare. Consumer confidence demands ethical practice.

When medical devices and pharmaceuticals are ethically marketed, patients and doctors are adequately informed about treatment options, and they're able to make knowledgeable decisions about their next course of action.

Here are three keystones of ethical healthcare marketing. It's not an exhaustive list, but these are all essential guidelines to measure your outreach against.

Ethical healthcare marketing, to consumers and physicians, builds trust.

1. Tell the whole truth

Honesty is a basic tenet of any ethical engagement, but it's doubly important in healthcare marketing. Straying at all from what's demonstrable could be construed as unscientific, and it will have negative consequences for patients and caretakers.

To make sure that your marketing efforts are as truthful as possible, only make claims that are backed by solid research.

In addition, carefully consider the images you use, especially photos. They should never be altered in a way that overinflates the purported benefits of the drug or treatment.

2. Focus on education

Think back to that stat we mentioned at the start of this article. The 52% of respondents who visited brand websites to research prescriptions were looking for information.

Healthcare marketers should focus on educating their audience, not pressing them on their medical pain points or hyping up solutions.

Along with thoroughly explaining products and services, ethical healthcare marketing also entails a direct and complete explanation of any side effects or risks. This is true for both direct-to-consumer and direct-to-physician marketing.

Testimonials can be a moving form of marketing, but in the medical world they distract from the kind of evidence-based messaging you could actually provide to your audiences. Physicians know that anecdotal claims are not useful when they're filling out a prescription and assessing treatment options for a patient's care, and relying on testimonials for direct-to-consumer marketing can give patients an inaccurate sense of what to reasonably expect from the treatment.

Focus on real substantial claims that are backed by clinical trials. This is the most compelling proof point you can offer any audience, and they'll trust your brand more for telling it straight.

3. Respect patients' privacy

In 1996, Congress passed the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Along with other stipulations, this law establishes protections for patient privacy rights, and they have specific applications for marketing.

Patients must normally provide written consent for their personal protected information to be used for marketing purposes.

While HIPAA makes narrow distinctions between marketing and communications that are necessary for the patient's treatment, this generally means that marketers cannot purchase lists of patients who have certain medical conditions in an attempt to market to them directly unless those patients have authorized such disclosures.

Complying with HIPAA patient privacy guidelines as they pertain to marketing is the law. Respecting patients' privacy is a best practice for ethical healthcare marketing.

This is a core principle of marketing in general, too. If you provide quality information, good content and resources that your target audience actually wants and finds valuable, they will discover your resources, and you'll build trust with them. Once they opt in for other communications, continue to provide them with worthwhile, educational resources.

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