Don't Let Marketing Language Mislead Patients

Marketing campaigns are routinely challenged to promote a hospital's services and capabilities without overstating the benefits or understating the risks. When the manufacturer's materials are being used to market a product or service, patient education is at risk.

We've all chuckled over the litany of negative health consequences speedily read at the end of drug ads on TV, over a backdrop of incongruously positive visuals. Are marketers telling patients what they want to hear while effectively communicating the possible negative consequences?

A study from Johns Hopkins Journal for Healthcare Quality reports that hospital websites promoting robotic surgery largely ignore the risks associated with the procedures.

About four in 10 hospital websites in the U.S. promote the use of robotic surgery "touting its clinical superiority despite a lack of scientific evidence that robotic surgery is any better than conventional operations," the study states.

Here's the kicker: 73% of the reviewed websites used manufacturer-provided materials to promote robotic surgery. Many hospital websites even link directly to the manufacturer's website.

"This is a really scary trend," said Marty Makary, MD, associate professor of surgery at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, in a statement. "We're allowing the industry to speak on behalf of hospitals and make unsubstantiated claims."

We often hear about the positive effects of robotic surgery, which Johns Hopkins researchers call into question:

• Better cancer outcomes
• Shorter recovery
• Less pain
• Superiority --- Superior to what? The answer is undefined, Makary says. The marketing does not specify if robotic surgery is being compared to the standard of care, which is laparoscopic surgery, or to open surgery.

Laura Harner, Marketing Manager for Lehigh Valley Health Network says that using terminology such as "best" or "superior" is insufficient and should to be supported by evidence. Lehigh Valley Health Network uses marketing phrases such as the words "best" and "first" around specific claims, then backs them up:

• "Best Heart Attack Survival Rate" -- substantiated by CMS data that points to Lehigh Valley Health Network's lowest mortality rate in the state

• "Pennsylvania's first and the region's largest trauma center" --- supported by statewide trauma volumes reported to the independent state agency, the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council.

"When we make a claim, we also give the consumer a "proof" point to support it. Before we make any claim, we make sure it is a fact that can verified by an outside source and something we can provide documentation on," said Harner.

Two years ago, Lehigh Valley Health Network rebranded with a new tagline: A Passion for Better Medicine. The word "better" was chosen because it shows a journey to improved care. Consumers were shown to appreciate the word "better" because it was more believable, aspirational, and approachable.

Lehigh Valley Health Network does not use manufacturer-provided materials on their website, and instead aligns marketing information based on individual needs of the facility.

"As it becomes more and more difficult to differentiate services in highly competitive markets, it becomes even more important to make sure marketers hold their organizations accountable for what they say in their marketing messages and the level of care actually provided by supporting claims with facts and data generated by a reputable, outside sources," Harner added.

Using outside sources to validate material is another method to ensure accurate and balanced information. If clinicians or providers do not have time to review marketing materials, marketers can use third-party accredited sources to validate information, advises Elizabeth L. Scott, Principal Stategist for Raven New Media. The third-party option also helps marketers keep their materials fresh as the industry changes and new medical information becomes available.

"This information usually comes bundled in a health information encyclopedia, health risk assessments or service line information. If fed into your website dynamically, the information should be current and refreshed as needed by the source," Scott explained.

Marketers do not need reminders to point out the positives of a particular service. Keeping accurate information in check is also important, even if it means telling the potential patient the risks. In terms of the robotic surgery marketing information that is on many hospital websites, perhaps there should be an added disclaimer such as the one listed at the bottom of the Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital website:

As with any surgical procedure, individual results may vary. Benefits of minimally invasive surgery cannot be guaranteed as surgery is both patient and procedure specific.