Leading the way for a new standard of care

Leading the way for a new standard of care

by | Apr 9, 2021 | Therapeutics

Leading the way for a new standard of care

The needs are changing for patients and providers. Here’s how one key account manager is leading the way with innovative solutions.

“Absolutely Not. I’m Not Going to the Hospital.”

A podiatrist in Georgia heard this from a patient with a severe heel infection. Many patients at this wound care clinic were already reluctant to check into a hospital for a several-day stay to receive a series of IV treatments. But now during the COVID-19 pandemic, patients are refusing. This patient’s infection was so severe that the physician needed to start treatment immediately to reduce the infection and quickly schedule surgery.

“For a case like this, the standard of care used to be to admit the patient to the hospital or they might refer them to the infusion center for daily infusions if the patient is likely to be compliant,” said Joe O’Weger, key account manager in Atlanta, Georgia. “But, the standard of care is rapidly changing. With COVID-19, patients don’t want to go to the hospitals, and oftentimes, the hospitals don’t even have room for them.”

Following the traditional standard of care, the podiatrist called the hospital where he would place this patient for treatment. But, even if the patient was compliant with hospital admittance, there wasn’t space for him. The physician needed a treatment that would be fast-acting, effective and administered without a hospital to ensure compliance. That’s when he considered our therapeutic.

Ultimately, we help providers change their standard of care to meet the changing needs of patients. Everything we do is with the mindset to best serve the patient, and the result is a win-win for the patient and provider.

Joe O’Weger, Key Account Manager

Developing a patient-first access strategy

“Easy access to a treatment for both the patient and provider is so critical. Without easy access, we can’t help get our therapies to everyone who needs them. We can’t change as many lives,” Joe said. “That’s why I developed a strategy that works for both patients and providers in my territory.”With this podiatrist, when asked, Joe provided several local home health infusion contacts. They communicated with the patient’s insurance company and directly with the patient to explain the process and schedule a home health appointment for the infusion.

Innovating to meet the changing needs of patients and providers

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, there were challenges with the traditional standard of care. Some patients weren’t compliant with daily infusions at infusion centers or taking oral medications, and sometimes oral medications aren’t an option. Hospital stays not only interrupt a patient’s life but also involve multiple physician points of contact. With this home health infusion access strategy, patients are happy because they don’t have to go to the hospital and they don’t have to see another physician. They can stay at home and get this one-time treatment then see their physician after treatment. And, providers are happy because this access strategy ensures patients are compliant with the treatment without a hospital stay. Within 72 hours, the patient with the heel infection received a home health infusion and the podiatrist scheduled outpatient surgery.
When the pandemic struck, here’s how our team made a life-saving impact

When the pandemic struck, here’s how our team made a life-saving impact

by | Apr 9, 2021 | Therapeutics

When the pandemic struck, here’s how our team made a life-saving impact

Amidst the world upheaval in the spring of 2020, one thing was top of mind for our Sunbelt sales team — they wanted to make a positive impact in their communities.

In the Spring of 2020, the Entire World Changed

The U.S. was in lockdown for the COVID-19 pandemic. The healthcare space was in crisis. Our team was navigating the new work-from-home reality. Amidst the world upheaval, one thing was top of mind for our Sunbelt sales team — they wanted to make a positive impact in their communities. “We make a life-saving impact every day with our products.

But, during this time of crisis, we knew we wanted to do more,” said Barbara Taylor, regional sales manager. In April 2020, Barbara started brainstorming with her team about how they could use the volunteer day off that Melinta provides annually to all employees. With travel restricted, they needed a cause that was locally accessible for all team members across Florida, Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina, Tennessee and Mississippi. And, they needed to be able to volunteer safely with social distancing.

Our team is small, but we’re able to make such a big impact. I can’t wait to see what we do next.

Barbara Taylor, Regional Sales Manager

“At the time, the Red Cross was in such short supply of blood and advertising so much about their blood drives,” Barbara said. “And, we’re so connected to our hospitals and physicians that we were naturally inclined to try to find a way to give back in the healthcare space. We wanted to help patients in any way we could.”

They identified mobile Red Cross blood drives near everyone on the team. And, in April 2020, our Sunbelt sales team collectively gave 10 pints of blood across several states in the southern U.S. “Everyone here at Melinta is just so committed to patients and physicians. I’ve been in this industry for 33 years and never felt this level of passion with any other company,” Barbara said. “We help save lives in our work, and it really lifted our spirits to be able to come together and help save lives by donating blood too.” Barbara and her team are currently organizing the second annual blood drive to continue supporting the Red Cross and their communities.