Empower the Voice of Physicians

A global leader in orthopedics recognized lower performance in a key product category and partnered with W5 to understand how specialists currently treat various forms  of osteoarthritis. The primary focus was to explore the typical trajectory of treatment among healthcare professionals and identify potential explanations for alternative treatments to the product category.

Approach

W5 conducted a series of one-on-one expert interviews with healthcare specialists who primarily treat osteoarthritis (i.e., physicians and physical therapists) to understand physician and clinical outlooks for treatments. Interviews were conducted virtually to connect with experts more efficiently, a difficult to recruit audience. Topics discussed included patient preferences, physician viewpoints, and the impact of COVID-19 to capture triggers and barriers to product adoption.

Results

W5 provided the client with insight on approaches to osteoarthritis treatment from the physician perspective, and challenges and barriers that potentially contribute to downward shifts in product prescriptions. Insights from expert interviews allowed the client to revisit key principles concerning osteoarthritis and explore hypotheses for the future role of their category. Results from this research informed the client on their near-and long-term strategic market approach to product sales.