Why Artificial Intelligence Revolutionizes the Insights Process for Medical Affairs

Artificial intelligence is transforming the landscape of medical affairs, especially in the realm of insight generation and analysis. Recently, Kwello had the privilege of hosting a webinar featuring Dave Harper, Senior Field Medical Director at Sanofi, where we delved into the persistent challenges in insight generation and how AI can be a game-changer in this domain. Below is a summary of key insights from the discussion.

Insight Generation Challenges

In the webinar, Scott Thompson, Co-Founder of Acceleration Point, highlighted the enduring challenges faced by Medical Affairs teams in generating actionable insights. Despite being a critical component of field medical activities, the process of collecting, analyzing, and disseminating insights often remains fraught with inefficiencies. Dave Harper, with over 20 years of experience at Sanofi, provided valuable insights into these challenges:

1. Volume and Complexity of Data: Teams often collect tens of thousands of data points annually from various sources, including organic insights and structured surveys. The sheer volume and complexity make manual processing impractical and time-consuming.

"If we're analyzing a year’s worth of data, we're talking about tens of thousands of data points easily, and that's very hard to work through manually to try and find what's really useful and meaningful in there."
- Dave Harper, Sanofi

2. Timeliness and Actionability: One of the primary issues is the delay in processing and analyzing data. Insights collected early in the year might only be reviewed months later, diminishing their relevance and impact.
3. Integration of Structured and Unstructured Data: Combining structured data from surveys with unstructured data from free text entries adds another layer of complexity. This integration is crucial for a comprehensive understanding but is difficult to achieve manually.
4. Communication and Utilization: Often, insights collected by field teams disappear into a "black hole," with little feedback on whether they are utilized. This lack of communication can demoralize teams and reduce the perceived value of their efforts.

"One of the things that I often hear from field teams is that we do all this work, and it disappears into the black hole. We keep submitting it, but we don't know what happened to it; we don't know if anybody ever read it."
- Scott Thompson, Acceleration Point

How AI Enhances Insight Analysis

AI offers a powerful solution to these challenges by automating and streamlining the insight generation process. AI can handle both structured and unstructured data, allowing teams to quickly process and analyze large datasets. This capability significantly reduces the time and effort required from team members who would otherwise spend countless hours on data entry and analysis.

1. Automated Data Processing: AI can handle vast amounts of data, both structured and unstructured, far more efficiently than manual methods. Natural Language Processing (NLP) can be used to analyze free text data, extracting valuable insights that would otherwise be overlooked.
2. Real-Time Analysis and Reporting: AI can significantly reduce the time lag in processing insights. By automating data analysis, AI enables real-time reporting, ensuring that insights are timely and actionable. For example, Kwello’s AI-powered Medical Affairs Insights Assistant, Elsie AI, quickly analyzes data from multiple sources, including field medical activities and social media interactions.

"We may decide that, say, for the first quarter we're going to look at all the insights for the first quarter, but maybe we start working on that in April, and by the time we can put together all that data into a meaningful report and share it, it may be the end of May." - Dave Harper

3. Enhanced Accuracy and Consistency: AI algorithms can improve the accuracy of data categorization and analysis, ensuring consistent and reliable insights. This reduces the risk of human error and bias in data interpretation.
4. Improved Communication and Feedback: AI-powered systems can facilitate better communication between field teams and central offices. Automated dashboards and reports can provide instant feedback to teams, showing how their insights are being used and their impact on strategy and decision-making.

Transforming Data into Actionable Strategies

Dave Harper shared practical examples of how AI is being utilized at Sanofi to address these challenges. By implementing AI-driven solutions, Sanofi has been able to streamline their insight generation process, making it more efficient and impactful. Here are some key takeaways:

1. AI for Survey Analysis: Sanofi uses ElsieAI to analyze survey data quickly, identifying key trends and insights without the need for extensive manual effort.

“I can ask it to summarize only insights that mention a certain thing. And I ask it to provide me what the top five topics are with specific examples of each. And so it'll, do it. It is almost instantaneous. I get that summary report with those top topics ranked specific examples.” - Dave Harper

1. Real-Time Insight Dashboards: AI-powered dashboards provide real-time updates on the status of insights, ensuring that field teams are aware of how their data is being utilized.
2. Integration of Diverse Data Sources: AI helps in integrating insights from various sources, providing a holistic view that informs strategic decisions.
3. Enhanced Training and Support: AI also aids in training field teams, offering insights into best practices for data collection and entry, ensuring higher quality and more actionable insights.

How AI Helps Medical Affairs Teams

The integration of AI in Medical Affairs is not just a technological upgrade but a strategic transformation. By addressing the core challenges of volume, timeliness, and integration, AI empowers Medical Affairs teams to leverage their insights more effectively, driving better patient outcomes and organizational success. As AI technology continues to evolve, its applications in insight generation will undoubtedly expand, offering even more sophisticated tools and methodologies to overcome the challenges discussed in our webinar.

Kwello stands out by focusing on the process of insight generation, not just technology. The combination of cutting-edge AI technology and our philosophy ensures our customers receive a seamless and integrated experience. Kwello’s platform is specifically designed for medical affairs teams, recognizing their unique needs and challenges. This tailored approach, combined with a commitment to customer success, positions Kwello as a valuable partner for medical affairs teams of all sizes.

By leveraging AI, Kwello helps medical affairs teams turn vast amounts of data into actionable insights, reducing the time from insight to impact and ensuring that every piece of information contributes to advancing patient care. Kwello’s innovative approach ensures that these insights are not only timely but also strategically aligned, empowering medical affairs professionals to drive meaningful change.

You can access the full recording of Acceleration Point’s webinar with Dave Harper below. 

To learn more, visit our website to discuss how Kwello can support your team’s insights process.