UK Switches onto Health Engagement

Survey Shows Companies and Organisations in Health Must Build Trust to Succeed.

More than half of adults (55%) in the UK are becoming more actively engaged in health issues, with conversations about health more important to them now than in the past, according to a study of 1,000 people released today by Edelman.  

Approximately one in three people (33%) feel that conversing with their doctor is more important now than it used to be and over a quarter feel that resources such as Web MD (27%) and Google (28%) are more important health sources than before.

Many people are becoming more actively engaged with health; the survey highlighted that a high proportion more frequently read or gather information on health (41% on a weekly basis or more often) or share information about health with others (38% on a weekly basis or more often).

According to the study – the Edelman Health Engagement Barometer – companies and organisations involved in health are not widely trusted, only 8% of respondents strongly agreed that they trust what they hear from these sources. In addition, 70% of respondents stated that trust is the most important factor when thinking about engaging with companies and organisations involved in health – so how can companies help to build this trust?

The Edelman Health Engagement Barometer shows that the answer could be found in effective engagement.  The most actively engaged group – the ‘Health Info-entials’ (those who are involved in health issues and who gather and share information about health) are more trusting of companies and organisations involved in health than the general population (60% vs. 53%). These individuals are also more likely to be a positive advocate for a company or organisation in health than the general population (68% vs 48%). 

“These results show that many health companies – including the pharmaceutical industry – must be braver in their communications with the health engaged community,” said Mike Kan, Head of Health, Europe at Edelman.  “While regulatory and resource constraints are very real, there is scope for companies to further prioritise engagement and build trust to secure continued permission to operate.”

“We're seeing the democratisation of communications," said Richard Edelman, President and CEO, Edelman. “The new Health Info-entials have a voice based on their personal experience and willingness to share their points of view with friends and the broader community.”

New Rules of Health Engagement: According to the study, health info-entials indicated that they want personal, honest engagement and dialogue on the health issues that affect them personally (54%).  And the higher the personal stake in the issue, the higher the desire for engagement. The study also found tight alignment among people’s personal health and public health priorities, and the priorities people expect companies involved in health to have (i.e., provide access to affordable healthcare, solve chronic health problems and prevent disease were among the top priorities).

Health expertise is key: The most credible source for health information is “my doctor or healthcare professional” (94%). Yet even for the most credible source, the Health Info-entials turn to other sources to validate information they get from their doctors (78%).

My health and well-being come first: Above all, the study shows Health Info-entials care most about protecting and maintaining their own health: “maintain health and well-being” (96%), “prevent disease” (94%) and “solve chronic health problems” (91%). Health Info-entials reported that these personal health concerns are more important for health companies to address than other issues such as protecting privacy (79%), fostering innovation (75%), and addressing environmental impact on health (72%). People also defined their health and well-being holistically (e.g., personal appearance, financial health and social connections with others.

Interact everywhere. Health influence happens across all channels. No one channel, or set of channels, is turned to more than others for credible health information. The channel named most frequently for companies and organisations to communicate with people -- “through my doctor or healthcare provider” -- is only 32 percent. For a company or organisation in health, this means it is not a matter of whether it should be “in” interactive channels or not, but a mandate to contribute to the conversation before it gets defined by others.

Engage with Health Info-entials.  With their high influence and vanguard position, Health Info-entials are leading the conversation about health issues, companies, organisations and brands, and they illuminate the future channels, topics and sources that will wield the most health influence.

 “This group of individuals is a critical audience for companies and organization involved in health to understand,” said Jane Sarasohn-Kahn, Founder, THINK-Health and an advisor to the Health 2.0 Conference. “The imperative is to communicate with them across multiple channels with health expertise and personally relevant content.”

About the study: The Edelman Health Engagement Barometer surveyed a total of 5,000 adults age 18-75 in five countries (China, Germany, Russia, UK, and US; 1,000 from each country) and explored the concept of engagement along three dimensions: emerging topics that are most important to health stakeholders; emerging influentials who are participating in conversations and activities related to those topics; and emerging channels through which communications on these topics is most effective. Additional in-depth interviews with nearly 50 traditional health influencers also occurred concurrently.  The study was designed by StrategyOne and fielded by them in August through September 2008. 
 
For more information visit: EngageInHealth.com.

For more information contact: Richard Oakley: richard.oakley@edelman.com or on +44 203 047 2376