Heritage Biologics
The First to Introduce Pharmacy Patient Experience Program

In the realm of high-dollar, specialty medications for rare disease therapies, patients require exceptionally personalized care to address their unique needs. Medication alone is insufficient; what is essential is a seamless coordination and effective communication between patients, healthcare providers, and pharmacies. The absence of such coordination can lead to unforeseen adverse effects from prescribed medications. These patients need a comprehensive array of services, including tailored care, coordinated support, advocacy, adherence guidance, education, and emotional assistance, to optimize their health outcomes.

Consider the journey of Tom O'Neill CEO and co-founder of Heritage Biologics, an ACHC and URAC accredited company known for its one-of-a-kind Patient Experience (PX) program. This program places chronic and rare disease patients at the center of their medical journey. It facilitates collaborative, multidisciplinary, value-based healthcare from various medical stakeholders.

Empathy-Driven Beginnings

At the time, O’Neill had encountered significant challenges when seeking medical care for his daughter, who was suffering from severe chronic health conditions. Frequent clinic and hospital visits, reliance on mail-order pharmacies for essential medications, and a lack of effective communication highlighted the existing gaps in the healthcare system. Co-founder Chris Quesenberry faced a similar situation being diagnosed with hemophilia at an early age, lacking the necessary resources and clinical support to navigate his journey successfully.

These experiences sparked a fundamental question for the founders: how can we align all healthcare stakeholders, including pharmacies, physicians, insurance providers, and pharmaceutical manufacturers, to improve patient care? This question led to the transformative journey of Heritage Biologics, dedicated to redesigning the home infusion and specialty pharmacy industry. The company's goal is to create a patientcentered healthcare experience that genuinely enhances lives.

“Innately driven by compassion, especially towards patients with rare and chronic diseases, we are committed to enhancing their medical journey through high-touch conciergelevel care,” says Tom O'Neill.

Harnessing Data for Optimal Care

At its core, the company’s Patient Experience program is powered by a data analytics platform, enabling the collection, interpretation, and presentation of crucial information from patients' medical journeys to physicians, employers, payors, and manufacturers. This approach eliminates gaps in care provision and facilitates informed decision-making. The program also features dedicated PX navigators, offering comprehensive patient support, adherence assistance, education, advocacy, and guidance at every step of the healthcare journey.

The execution framework of the Patient Experience Program begins with the first interaction with patients, even before onboarding. Dedicated PX navigators are assigned based on therapy types to support and advocate for patients throughout their healthcare journey. These navigators contact patients after each infusion to ensure the patient and nurse did not encounter any issues during the infusion. They also collect data on concerns during interactions with physicians, payors, and insurance providers, copay assistance and foundation enrollment if needed, and addressing barriers to receiving adequate healthcare.

Furthermore, each patient is also assigned to a clinical pharmacist that also champions patients in navigating their disease state and therapy regimens. Prior to each shipment, the clinical pharmacist will call the patient to discuss their last infusion, evaluate overall health status, provide medication counselling, therapy administration education, and coordinate their next shipment. This comprehensive approach significantly contributes to overall patient satisfaction.

Support Beyond Medications

In addition to clinical support and therapy administration, Heritage Biologics understands the financial obligations and stressors that come with costly specialty medications. Patients with rare and chronic diseases often face financial stress, which can leave them uninsured and facing various challenges.

Creating a comprehensive model that surrounds patients with resources and support to navigate their journeys, enabling them to have a voice in their care, is the framework from which the Patient Experience program was built. Heritage Biologics was the first pharmacy to have a formalized Patient Experience program. Amanda Walker, COO, was a part of the first class of Certified Patient Experience Professionals (CPXP) and lead the efforts in creating Heritage’s PX program. The PX team is now led by Shannon Schulz, another CPXP certification holder, and all PX Navigators have achieved certificates from the Beryl Institute, focused on establishing expertise and leadership in patient experience. Navigator roles are focused on supporting the patient as a whole, and responsibilities can vary anywhere from ensuring patients are tolerating their infusions, connecting patients with various resources (financial and others), and coordinating care across the healthcare spectrum. For example, Heritage Biologics proactively evaluates patients' eligibility for copay assistance and connects them to a network of foundations and patient support resources. This support helps patients access premium assistance, travel funds, and educational scholarships. This comprehensive program is built in such a way that valuable data is captured during any interaction with stakeholders.

Heritage Biologics leverages data-driven feedback for the continuous improvement of the patient experience. The company deploys quarterly surveys, which include patient-reported outcome metrics, to gather subjective and objective data on clinical outcomes, financial impact, physical well-being, and mental health. These survey results, combined with insights from PX navigators, are recorded in their data analytics platform, which produces value-based deliverables. This platform serves as a conduit for various stakeholders, empowering them with real time data to better serve their patients. This has allowed patients of Heritage Biologics to achieve better clinical outcomes, which results in tangible savings for patients and health plans. Value-based healthcare delivery remains a primary focus of Heritage Biologics.

Heritage Biologics provides concise individual patient snapshots to providers that offer a clear overview of recent developments in a patient's healthcare journey. This includes nursing information, insights obtained by pharmacists during assessments, disease-specific quality of life metrics, and input from the patient experience team, at minimum. This process enables physicians to make timely, informed decisions regarding dosages or medications, ultimately fostering superior care and patient retention for prescribers, and better outcomes for patients.

“The robustness of our data analytics platform, developed in alignment with Harvard Business School principles, creates a value-based care option that connects all stakeholders in the medical world, offering patients the optimum healthcare experience,” says Amanda Walker, COO at Heritage Biologics.

Heritage Biologics has also established extensive partnerships with industry stakeholders, including manufacturers and specialty distributors. Through these relationships and years of industry experience, we have identified innovative ways to provide value-based data back to our manufacturer partners. In addition, we have prioritized our membership and active participation with numerous industry leading organizations, such as the National Home Infusion Association and the National Association of Specialty Pharmacy. The company's active involvement in these associations, along with participation in conferences and contributions to publications, underscores its commitment to advancing healthcare practices.

The Human Element in Patient Care

“What sets Heritage Biologics apart is its internal operational approach. While many pharmacies rely on automated answering systems, Heritage Biologics prioritizes personal connections by ensuring every phone call is answered by an employee who can immediately assist the patient,” says Megan Johnson, VP of Operations. Patients engage in one-on-one conversations with PX navigators, who go beyond addressing their medical needs. They remember and celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, and personal milestones, which uplifts patients' mental well-being and brings moments of joy during their challenging medical journeys. This human touch adds a comforting dimension to their healthcare experience.

Expanding and Innovating in Patient Care

The delivery of efficient and impactful patient care at Heritage Biologics is rooted in the company's commitment to prioritize the confidence and competence of its personnel. The company supports ongoing growth through personal and professional development opportunities, guest speakers, and participation in relevant conferences. The ultimate aim of offering these provisions is to enable each employee to perform at the pinnacle of their professional capabilities.

“Our dedication to uplifting patients' experience in their care journey, while empowering physicians, employers, payors, and manufacturers to offer value-based care, makes Heritage Biologics a trusted choice for patients across the U.S.,” says Brianna Kaleikau, Director of Nursing.

Looking ahead, Heritage Biologics aims to continue refining its bespoke patient-centered care model through industry-leading specialty pharmacy services. Combining innovation with best-in-class care, the company is focused on strategic growth as they expand their reach to include more patients, insurers, payers, manufacturers, and physicians. The company is continuously working on enhancing its data platform to offer robust data resources and further bolster its engagement with various entities, including employer groups. In addition, Heritage is exploring ways to expand their specialty pharmacy services to include supporting Patient Assistance Programs. Their commitment to excellence has become central to Heritage Biologics' identity, and it takes great pride in the superior services provided to all stakeholders.