Sickle Cell Disease HTA Digital Advisory Board

The healthcare challenge

Sickle cell disease is a prevalent genetic condition in the UK, impacting 1 in 2,000 births. However, it continues to be an unmet medical need.

The ask

Sickle cell disease (SCD) patients may not always be eligible candidates for red blood cell transfusions. Recognising this limitation, our client aimed to explore the current practices and challenges in transfusion therapy for SCD.

This included:

•            Evaluating the benefits, risks, and real-world effects of transfusions in SCD patients.

•            Identifying areas where current practices fall short of optimal care.

•            Developing evidence-based resources to support shared decision-making between patients and clinicians.

By focusing on ongoing assessments and validation of interventions, our client hoped to improve patient outcomes for those living with SCD.

The solution

Over the course of 7 months, we hosted an asynchronousadvisory board on medCrowd, our compliant messaging platform. This advisory board comprised of 11 highly experienced adult and paediatric clinical leaders who provided valuable insights on best practices through multiple rounds of asynchronous questions. After each round of discussion, we compiled their insights into an executive scientific report.

The benefit

Our client gained valuable insights on addressing unmet needs in SCD through end-to-end support provided by medDigital. We coordinated the set-up process, liaising with healthcare professionals, running the advisory board in qualitative and quantitative formats, and delivering an executive report comprehensive of our findings.

The key area of focus was the potential of a new SCD treatment as a substitute for frequent blood transfusions. The insights gathered supported this notion – where we were able to uncover key findings from the HCP discussion within one week. This allowed our client to meet the deadlines set by NICE, to then include within their HTA submission.