When it comes to health education and patient engagement solutions, WebMD is building something.
Late last week, the Internet Brands company announced that it bought the operating assets of patient health education and engagement firm Healthwise.
Importantly, Healthwise — which was founded in 1975 — will continue operating as a nonprofit foundation while WebMD picks up its commercial operations.
The timing of the deal also makes sense given WebMD’s private equity backing. In 2017, WebMD was purchased for $2.8 billion by PE giant KKR & Co. Around the five- to seven- year mark is when PE shops look for an exit on their investment.
Though terms of the deal weren’t disclosed, Healthwise’s assets will be folded into WebMD Ignite, the company’s healthcare growth and engagement segment dedicated to health organizations, healthcare professionals (HCP), patients and payers.
The Healthwise deal expands the content reach for patient communication and strengthens WebMD’s point of care (POC) capabilities.
Ann Bilyew, EVP of health and president of healthcare solutions group at Internet Brands, tells MM+M that the combined company will service more than 650 healthcare organizations and will have more than 500 HCPs providing reliable, engaging and accessible medical information. She praises Healthwise’s strong reputation within the industry, saying it is well-earned and will be instrumental in supporting WebMD’s forward-looking mission.
“Following the acquisition, we’ll have all of the top health systems and payers using our content to communicate with their patients and their members over their clinical journey,” she says.
While many in the health communications and education space abide by the adage that it’s critical to get the right information to the right patient at the right time, Bilyew acknowledges that this is often easier said than done. To accomplish this feat, a company requires a large amount of content mixed with medically-reviewed clinical expertise and culturally relevant information — whether in a specific language or presented a certain way that makes it more accessible.
She says two capabilities Healthwise brings to the table in the deal are deep inroads in the payer community — which complement WebMD’s focus on providers and patients — as well as their library of medical illustrations and video.
In addition to understanding the patient’s needs and how they consume media, Bilyew stresses that companies require an omnichannel ability to reach them, which is why continuing to make investments at the POC is so important.
“Think if somebody wants to text or email or have access to the portal or something that’s interactive,” she says. “Or if somebody wants a video, an illustration or a podcast — you have to be able to develop all of those things and get them through the right channels to the patient.”
As for the patient education delivery aspect, Bilyew says WebMed remains committed to supporting personalized care with personalized information. While many can produce educational content, the key will always be to make it relevant, personalized and even entertaining in some cases.
“This has to be content that patients will willingly engage with,” she says. “That will help them make decisions that will help them understand their situation and help them adhere to their care plan. It has to be more than just information, it has to be influential.”
