The Say Communications Award for Excellence in Product Communications

Summary of work

The UK’s drink problem is a heavy and growing burden on the nation’s health, well-being and public purse, yet only around 6% of people with alcohol dependence (AD) receive treatment each year.¹ 

Selincro® (nalmefene) was the first treatment licensed to help certain AD patients to reduce, rather than abstain, from drinking – an effective and recommended treatment goal for reducing health harms in appropriate patients. Its launch represented a unique and challenging opportunity to present an exciting alternative treatment approach, but one that targeted a distinct patient group, and didn’t fit neatly into the prevailing service configuration/treatment pathway. Clarity, accuracy and responsibility were vital for the success of the communications programme and Lundbeck’s subsequent reputation in a new therapy area. 

A pre- to post-launch programme of activities saw the development of an innovative, endorsed template integrated care pathway tool to aid local service redesign; high quality and particularly factual media reporting reaching >260 million (despite a high risk for ‘overhype’ or misinterpretation); purposeful joint working/engagement with >60 new AD stakeholders and a wealth of new, interactive resources in use by field teams to directly educate and demonstrate identification of patients and treatment success to a range of healthcare professionals. 

Reference: 
1. Alcohol Concern. Investing in Alcohol Treatment – Reducing Costs and Improving Lives. 2010

Judges comments

This is a proper product comms programme. It deals professionally with a very sensitive subject that is surrounded in controversy. They thought about the care pathway and got stakeholders together and demonstrated strong evidence of customer insights and strategy through highly-targeted execution. It is a well-presented and well-rounded programme, that got excellent media results. It’s an excellent example of product launch.