FAQ

FAQ

  • Will people really trust a digital human?

    Research shows us that the growing majority of people are more likely to trust a digital human than the real thing, enhanced by accents as seen on TV advertising with specific accents to elicit trust.


    Unlike humans, what digital humans offer is complete anonymity and non-judgemental conversations. This is proving to be a major change for fields like mental health - suddenly, there’s a ‘confession room’ where full disclosure is safe. The therapist isn’t shocked or judgmental in the slightest—in fact, the digital human seems to become more compassionate the more you share.”


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    We know many patients feel they can’t ask the simple, perhaps silly, questions when with a doctor, yet this is what keeps them awake at night and will affect their adherence to treatment advice e.g. “will I get fat if I use this”, “will it affect my sex drive”, “will it affect my skin”, and many more questions easily answered by Vartelus.


  • Will digital humans take our jobs?

    No, they are designed to augment current activities and teams. The fact is that we are seeing smaller sales teams anyway; 50% of HCPs no longer want to see representatives and this puts serious financial pressure on a pharma company’s cost base and as a result they are reluctantly reducing salespeople.


    It’s time to streamline activities and use technology to drive better ROI.


  • Can Vartelus speak multiple languages?

    Yes, is the short answer, there are no limits on the languages we can deliver but some are more challenging than others, however the technology is advancing rapidly. It is important that we not only translate literally but that the system is translated culturally, and can manage accents and local dialects via natural language processing (NLP) capabilities that are really important in creating truly engaging conversations.

  • Isn’t machine learning dangerous and say the wrong things?

    It’s hard to look at a newsfeed without a ChatGTP, or Google BARD story. They are brilliant and may well revolutionise so much however outputs are questionable for our industry because you can’t guarantee that they will give the correct answers, i.e. a compliance risk. 


    Vartelus on the other hand, has been created specifically for life science industry in that it will only ever give the correct, and medically approved, answers and information – it will not deviate.


  • Do I have to book a session?

    No. Whether you are an HCP, or a patient, Vartelus is available on-demand 24/7. This is important because HCPs have limited time and want to choose when, where and what to learn. For patients it’s perhaps more important to remove their fears, and answer the questions they have, about a potentially life changing medication or treatment.


    Having access to a ‘trusted advisor’ available at any time of the day can be a real help and deal give answers to questions more rapidly rather having to book an appointment with an HCP.


  • How does Vartelus help patient adherence?

    Once a patient has a prescription, their HCP will give free access to Vartelus via a QR code or a website address. The patient can then access Vartelus on any device to receive support, information, educational videos etc. so they understand the reasons for taking a full course of treatment, and correctly.


    As well as being ‘reactive’ to patients, Vartelus is also ‘pro-active’ in that it engages with the patient at prescribed intervals as defined by each pharma company.


  • Why is adherence such an issue?

    It takes 10 to 12 years clinical research to bring a product to market at great expense and therefore it is the pharma companies who know why a drug should be taken, how it should be taken, and for how long, to achieve optimal health outcomes for patients.


    Yet 50% of people don’t complete a course of treatment or use the drugs correctly, this means that treatment outcomes fail, and patients don’t get better. 


    All this results in more return visits to HCPs, sometimes for answers to simple questions and misunderstanding, further drugs being prescribed, and potentially hospitalisation.


    As a result, pharma loses IRO $630bn a year, the NHS loses some £500-800m, and USA health systems around $250bn. This is a global problem and affects all of us not just an individual. 


  • Will HCPs really want to use this?

    The working lives of HCPs has changed dramatically, more so since the covid-19 era. Most HCPs still want to engage with pharma as they value the information and education, however some 50% have now said that they don’t want to see representatives. 


    We’ve seen an increasing adoption of eDetailing and other virtual forms of engagement, plus in the past few years, several AI based clinical options have been emerging, and HCPs recognise and accept this is the way forwards. 


    We have engaged with numerous senior HCPs, professors, clinical leaders and Med Tech specialists and the response is unanimous about the value such technology can bring to enhance the role of the HCP, and in supporting patients when HCPs don’t have sufficient time to do this. 


    Often a new diagnosis means a life change for patients and changing a lifetime of behaviours can’t be achieved in 6 minutes with an HCP; Vartelus offers and delivers multiple engagements to help them develop the new behaviours for better outcomes. 

  • Who pays for this?

    Vartelus is consumed and paid for by pharma companies to support products/brands across multiple geographical markets – it is free for patients and HCPs.

  • Who else could use Vartelus?

    The use of Digital Humans is limitless if you consider all the functions currently delivered by humans and then how those roles could be augmented for optimisation. Within life science we can augment the clinical trial process to help speed routes to market, we can support learning via spaced recall to drive knowledge retention, and much more.


    The technology can be used across the life science spectrum including med tech, veterinary etc. plus within the NHS to support and triage services, and educational services., plus work with CQC to answer questions and queries in a compliant and consistent manner.


    In fact, wherever there are common and often complex questions to answer, Vartelus is there 24/7 giving safe and approved answers and directions across the highly regulated industries.


  • Is Vartelus expensive?

    The technology is already developed and waiting to be adapted and created for pharma companies so the cost of creating the core system and configuring for each brand and language is surprisingly inexpensive.  


    The ongoing subscription model is built on ‘bundled’ pricing based on HCP and patient engagements called Touch Points and costs approximately 5% of the equivalent human cost to achieve the same quantity of HCP interactions.

  • Can I choose my digital human?

    Yes, our digital human team is extensive and will suit most cultures and needs. Your chosen digital colleague will in effect become the ‘face’ of your company and a strong candidate for branding purposes and customer loyalty.

  • What outputs do you create and what value do they have?

    A new generation of data and informative outputs is created by using Vartelus. Not only will Vartelus populate CRM systems to help human teams shape more meaningful calls on HCPs, but it will also help better shape omni-channel strategies to individual HCPs from what they choose to engage with.


    We will also know which HCP has prescribed and when they’ve prescribed specific medications, plus we will know how patients respond to specific treatments across the many stages of a product life cycle – a level of feedback never seen before.


  • How is Vartelus promoted to HCPs?

    Promotion of Vartelus and its availability is critical for its adoption and success. Your marketing team will be responsible for this and connection to HCPs can be achieved via email campaigns or by any direct channel e.g., your human sales and MSL teams, or text message in some markets can be a successful approach.


    Attending medical congresses to engage with HCPs, and driving HCPs to your website are also good promotional avenues.  Building customer interest and loyalty with HCPs that don’t want direct engagement can be achieved via your advertising channels and effective use of social media.


    Vartelus will appoint an account manager to you that will work with you and your teams to help optimise HCP engagement and the use of the technology.


  • How easy is it to update and make changes?

    Vartelus is a dynamic system that can be updated rapidly to reflect changes in brand messaging, additional indications etc. With the core system created we can quickly add further brands and additional languages.

  • Can I have exclusivity for my brand?

    This is an excellent moment in time for us to be able to offer exclusivity to you – we can offer this to companies in 2023 for 18 months for specific therapeutic indications.

  • Won’t people just get this information from the internet?

    Yes possibly, but along with much incorrect information as well – this is a risk for pharma, HCPs and patients!


    The problem with much web driven information is that it isn’t based on evidence or clinical work, in our modern world anyone with an opinion can publish on-line and will get a following of people ready to believe what is often nonsense. If pharma doesn’t protect its brands and deliver its messages and information according to requirements and strict regulations, then it will be at risk.


  • Why not just use a chatbot?

    Chatbots are indeed popular currently but have significant limitations; whilst they do continue to improve, they are typically transactional, 2-dimensional interfaces, that haven’t to date offered great experience – consider Chatbots used by banks, phone providers, utility companies etc. and the quality of engagement and satisfactory experience.


    Vartelus offers a dynamic, conversational, interactive, 3-dimensional experience that takes interaction to the next level.


  • Does this fit with Omni Channel marketing?

    Yes, and if you’ve chosen an omni-channel strategy, Vartelus will inform you better than you have ever been. From HCP interaction with Vartelus, and from the choices they make in terms of what material and the format, you will have the insights to make informed decisions.


    HCPs are complaining that there is too much information in so many different formats, just too many to choose from. It’s a complex and crowded space and you need to stand out – Vartelus and its ‘concierge’ methodology is well regarded by HCPs.


  • What do you mean by concierge approach?

    A long standing negative of the industry to HCP interaction has been the ‘push’ selling approach – it’s never been really successful, and HCPs have never really liked it, especially when it’s been done badly.


    Our methodology is one of ‘pull’ engagement by asking HCPs from the outset what they would like to see, hear, or do first – this is proving to be very popular in that they can ask questions and find the information they want, and then move on.


    This doesn’t mean we don’t ensure that key messages are still delivered, it’s about the way we structure the conversation. HCPs feel this would encourage more interaction if it’s at a time to suit them, and is consistent and compliant. This suits pharma as well as it alleviates the problem of the ‘variability of human ability’ associated with human teams so they can be assured that the right messages are delivered 100% of the time with Vartelus.


  • Can this be used in clinical research?

    Yes, it can. We are often told that the pressure on clinical teams is growing because of the increased pressure on trial sites (Covid backlash). This results in more questions being passed back to the clinical teams [non budgeted time and service] and often simple questions about the trial protocol and wearable tech for instance, all quite mundane yet very important questions that Vartelus can answer 24/7. 


    Some clinicians also believe we can gather information from patients, not possible before now, that would help shape the trial outcomes and provide early usage data that could support product launch.


  • Can this be used for Med Tech?

    Absolutely. Vartelus can offer a lower cost, faster, compliant, and educational sales and patient support resource. We see amazing medical technologies emerging but for patients using these technologies, it can be daunting and worrying. 


    Vartelus supports, educates and trains patients in the correct use of the technology and what it will do for them. If Vartelus is used to support products in the retail environment, how can you be sure that patients have the right information from across thousands of untrained retailers working in a busy environment.

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