Deriving the benefits of Elearning for Pharmaceuticals

According to a report by market research firm Evaluate Pharma, global growth rate for the pharma industry is expected to reach 6.3% CAGR through 2022, up from the 5% CAGR it predicted last year for the 2014-2020 period, and according to a report by IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics 2012 the world market for medical products is expected to reach nearly 1.17 trillion by 2017. (Source)

This growing industry employs millions of people across the world, and they play a key role in the success of the Pharma companies. It is important that these employees (direct and indirect) are trained in compliances, product knowledge, culture, and other areas to address dynamic business needs of the companies and contribute to success of the organization.

Before we look at how L&D department of Pharma companies can advantage of eLearning, let us look at some of the challenges faced by them currently. Some of the key challenges are a) Footprint of the companies across the globe b) Rapid launch of new drugs c) Rapidly changing regulatory compliances d) Budgetary controls for training organization wide e) Availability of face to face trainer f) High employee turnover ratio.

Elearning is able to deftly handle all these challenges and yet provide a more suitable alternative to classroom training in an affordable manner. The online courses take training to a next level but it ensures ethos of the training are kept intact. New technologies allow to create innovative and engaging courses and ensures no learner is left behind.

The most significant impact of elearning for the pharmaceutical industry is the amount of time saved: It takes fewer hours to train people online. That is especially critical when large numbers of medical represetatives must be trained simultaneously to launch a new product.

Here are some benefits that pharmaceutical companies can derive by using E-learning courses for training their employees:

Ease of access:

First and foremost, in-lab training is expensive and requires excessive precaution when it comes to handling hazardous material. Elearning courses eliminate the need of a brick and mortar training room and allow for a safer virtual environment. These courses replace the need for instructors and provide consistent training at any point and place of the user’s choice. Today’s technology driven workforce prefers using their mobiles, ipads, etc to gain knowledge. Companies can leverage on this trait and allow employees to learn as per their preferred time and place making a highly flexible and dynamic learning process

Handle change in requirements:

Product requirements evolve and change from time to time as newer markets are being tapped into at a rapid pace. For example, certain compositions in a drug may need to vary to suit regional compliances and norms. Instead of educating trainers who may then impart this knowledge to the employees, Elearning courses can be easily modified to incorporate these changes. They can also be designed to adapt to suit regional norms and linguistics.

Presentation and demo made easy:

Elearning courses can help medical representatives to a great extent. Being always on the run to pitch new products and/or drugs to a growing clientele, they have limited time to consume information. Yet they have to keep up with the newest products, their features as well as knowledge about whether these products have been created after following necessary regulations. These modules can be created in small chunks that can be easily accessible and digested whenever required. If the situation demands that the end customer be demonstrated how the product works, the med rep can show these videos in the absence of said product.
For example, it may not be feasible to carry huge equipments such as ultrasound and MRI machines. Sales persons can demonstrate how machines work using videos on their laptops with minimal hassles.
Elearning has transformed classroom training to a more collaborative training and development process. It is not only more interactive but also allows the users to discuss their progress and difficulties as per their own convenience. Pharmaceutical companies now find sales personnel training alongside training of factory workers can be done more efficiently.

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