Press Release

Healthcare Companies Use Silverlink to Advise Patients and Offer Options

Burlington, MA - Silverlink Communications, the leader in personalized voice solutions for client communication, today announced that its SAVS™ (Silverlink Automated Voice Services) automated outbound call technology was used by leading healthcare companies including Familymeds, a specialty retail pharmacy chain, and NMHC, a national independent pharmacy benefit manager, to proactively reach out to patients impacted by Pfizer’s Bextra suspension.

PBMs and pharmacies using the technology reported that live call center calls would have taken longer to make and would have been much more expensive. Sending letters wouldn’t have been fast enough to keep distressed patients from placing inbound calls. Automated outbound call programs were the most effective and affordable way to handle the crisis – keeping patients calm and avoiding expensive inbound phone calls.

Silverlink’s CEO Stan Nowak said, "Picking up a newspaper and reading that the FDA has issued a warning on your drug is scary and stressful for patients taking that medication. In this case the FDA not only addressed Bextra but issued warnings about other drugs in the class creating additional anxiety for patients. Our customers were able use our technology to make the Bextra suspension a less traumatic event in thousands of people’s lives. As quickly as six hours after the announcement, our customers were proactively calling impacted patients to help them take action. These automated call programs improved our customers’ patient satisfaction levels and helped our customers save money by avoiding inbound calls from distressed patients."

Familymeds, a specialty retail pharmacy chain based in Farmington, Connecticut, used Silverlink’s technology to contact patients regarding the Bextra suspension. Patients were given basic information about the suspension and were advised to contact their physicians about replacement therapies. The calls also included information about resources established by Bextra's manufacturer (Pfizer) for consumers. Familymeds also included an interactive feature in their calls which allowed the patient to indicate whether they wanted their pharmacist to contact them to answer any questions. "We were able to make almost a thousand calls within 24 hours of the suspension. It's unrealistic to think we could have done that without Silverlink," said Jim Beaumariage, SVP Field Operations for Familymeds. "Because our stores are primarily located in medical office buildings, hospitals and clinics, our patients look to us as partners in their health management more than is the case with other retail pharmacies. Our priority has always been providing the best possible service to our customers - Our partnership with Silverlink is a good example of our commitment to going above and beyond the traditional pharmacy experience."

Familymeds has initiated other automated call programs regarding drug recalls and has an ongoing Refill Reminder program with Silverlink.

National Medical Health Card Systems (NMHC) a national independent pharmacy benefit manager (PBM), reached out to nearly 1,500 Bextra patients within nine hours of the suspension announcement. Call recipients were given suspension information, a fax number to provide their physician for a replacement prescription, and an option to transfer to a live call center representative or pharmacist for immediate prescription assistance. Vincent Mavente, NMHC Vice President, Member Relations, said, "Quickly reaching our Bextra patients with actionable information was our key concern, and Silverlink was a reliable, cost-effective communication vehicle. Understanding our time constraints, Silverlink promptly offered script templates for approval that addressed patient privacy issues, reduced anxiety, and guided our patients with alternative solutions to resolve questions. Hours after the Bextra news broke, our patients were receiving their calls and getting answers."

About Silverlink’s Bextra Suspension Calls

All of the outbound calls used in this program utilized Silverlink Automated Voice Services. The calls were personalized, addressing the patient by name. The calls were also HIPAA compliant and were created from SAVS templates for rapid deployment. They contained the following information:

1. Suspension information: Information about the recall was provided to every recipient. A sample of the call dialog is as follows: "We are calling because our records indicate you are currently taking the prescription medication Bextra. Pfizer, the manufacturer of Bextra, is voluntarily suspending sales of this drug due to the risk of cardiovascular and gastrointestinal events and potential skin reactions. The manufacturer recommends that all Bextra patients contact their healthcare professional to discuss possible alternative treatments."
2. Empowerment to act: One or more of the following actions were used by the healthcare companies to help patients take action:
   • Recommending that the patient contact his physician and providing a fax number (so the doctor could fax the new script which would be automatically processed and shipped to the patient).
   • Giving patients the option to have the PBM or pharmacy contact the physician directly to arrange alternative treatment.
   • Offering a transfer to a live call center representative to answer questions after delivering suspension information.
   • Telling patients how to learn more about the suspension: "Further information may be obtained from the drug manufacturer at 1-866-6-BEXTRA, or 866-623-9872.

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