Patient Level Data: Consider the Source

This is the second installment of a three-part series examining patient level data as a valuable market research and brand management tool. Your April e-Tip! weighs the importance of evaluating sources before purchasing patient data for your next analysis.

Pharmaceutical companies recognize secondary patient level data as a reliable information resource for analyzing their products' performance in the market. Yet, the consequences of using data not suited for specific business challenges compel users to choose their sources wisely.

Once data have been stripped of identifiable markers to comply with Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) rules, data suppliers can provide a demographic profile based on patient gender and ages. Also included are data of the therapy patients were on before taking a medication, within a certain timeframe. This information provides the basis for longitudinal analysis-tracking changes in patient therapy over time. Standard metrics include: projected new therapy starts, switches, direction of the switch (to or from), add-ons, and dosing changes.

Naturally, data suppliers like to differentiate themselves by the specificity and timeliness of the information they provide. In addition to measuring patient drug utilization, some sources can link dispensed drugs with medical information. Integrating this information allows marketers to gauge the cost effectiveness and clinical impact of a medication. Further insights can be gained by tracking market share within a diagnosis and by payer type.

Knowing where data originate and the strengths and biases of each are vitally important since it will have a bearing on your analysis. Patient level data are drawn from three sources:

Pharmacies
Data suppliers offering detailed prescription data mine their information from pharmacy chains. An advantage of this data type is the ability to view the market by all payer types-cash, third party insurance and Medicaid. Unfortunately, when a patient switches pharmacies, the patient may surface in the records as a new patient, when they're actually only refilling a prescription at a different pharmacy not included in the vendor's database.

Managed Care Plans
The second type of patient-level data is generated from prescription and medical claims processed by managed care organizations. Purchasers of this information obtain prescription and medical information linked via the ICD-9 codes* used exclusively by managed care plans. Data may include patient demographics, diagnoses, authorized medical services, and health plan enrollment dates.

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