Brand Loyalty as a Strategy for the Competition with Generic Drugs:Physicians Perspective

Abstract

Like in other industries, the competition among companies in the pharma industry is high. Therefore, pharmaceutical companies have to design their strategies in order to achieve competitive advantage. Brand loyalty is a powerful tool in the development of pharmaceutical brands. Physicians play major role in the selection of drugs to consume and can also be considered as the consumer. This descriptive study examines the factors that influence physicians' choices of medication for their patients. Data was collected using a survey administered to specialists and trainees from Cardiology Department. Total 18 physicians participated in the study. Most of the respondents (85%) declared the scientific literature regarding the drug as their first priority in prescribing. Almost half of the respondents (46%) declared the published clinical trial results as a primary source of information about the launch of new drug. With respect to the inclusion of a newly launched drug in the daily prescribing routine, 85% of the respondents tended to prescribe a new drug after the publication of clinical trials. A vast majority of the participants indicated the patients' source of payment as a major factor for their preferences; meanwhile 92% of them also emphasized the therapeutic equivalency of the drug for their preferences. More than half of the participants (>70%) tended to prescribe original drugs to patients having chronic disease/comorbidity and special insurance coverage and/or self-payment. Regarding the physicians' familiarity to the original proprietary names, more than half of the respondents correctly predicted the original proprietary names. This study reflects the physician's perspective for the establishment of brand loyalty. From the physicians' standpoint belief in brand is crucial for the creation of brand loyalty and the key for building up trust is the scientific data regarding the effectiveness and safety of the drug obtained from large-scale clinical trials.

Sub-Standard Pharmaceutical Services in Private Healthcare Facilities Serving Low-Income Settlements in Nairobi County, Kenya

“…Prescription substitution as encountered during the study is most likely a shielding mechanism to keep customers from competitors. This practice has been a point of conflict between prescribers, dispensing personnel and the patient which highlights the ethical issues surrounding the practice [25,[30][31][32].…”

Impact of Medical Representatives on Acceptance of High Priced Prescription Drugs by Doctors: A Study

“…According to Macit et al (2016) who conducted a study on brand loyalty wherein their findings were as follows. "85 percent of the 18 physicians from the Cardiology department felt that scientific literature regarding the drug as their first priority while prescribing and another 45 percent declared that clinical trials resulted as a primary source of information".…”