Why Patient and Provider Behavior Makes the Case for Point of Care Investment

To build the most effective strategies, healthcare marketers need to understand what happens before, during and after the moments when patients, providers and caregivers make care decisions. Where do they look for information? Which sources do they value? What helps patients and caregivers raise a question with a clinician, understand a prescription or find support to fill it?

Those questions should shape the role of Point of Care (POC) in a media plan. They connect investment decisions to the information needs that arise during care, giving marketers a clearer purpose for the environments and resources they choose.

M3 MI’s September 2026 report, Why Care About Point of Care?, offers evidence to inform that planning. Drawing on findings from its syndicated MARS Consumer Health and HCP Sources & Interactions studies, the report examines how patients seek information and respond to healthcare advertising, alongside providers’ perspectives on education and support.

The findings support a case for investing in POC as part of a connected communications strategy. Patients need help bringing information into the care conversation. Providers need resources they can use and share. Marketers have an opportunity to address both needs, with content designed around the decisions each setting supports.

“The findings highlight why Point of Care deserves a defined role within healthcare media planning. Patients increasingly arrive at appointments informed and engaged, while HCPs continue to look for educational resources that are relevant and easy to share. Point of Care creates a unique opportunity to connect those needs and support more meaningful healthcare conversations,” shared Dan Lynch, Director of Insights & Analysis at M3 MI.

Insight: Patients are increasingly researching their health (up 22% since 2022)

Actionable tip for marketers: Connect preliminary patient research with the clinical conversation through education at the POC

The report describes a patient audience actively seeking health information. It cites that 164 million (62%) U.S. adults go online for health and wellness purposes at least once a week, an increase of 19% since 2022. It also reports that 60% research treatment options on their own and then ask their doctor about them, up 22% since 2022.

This rise in patients seeking information about their health more proactively provides an opportunity for marketers to connect this initial discovery with discussion at the POC. A patient who encounters treatment information online, for example, may need help understanding its relevance to their own situation. Education at the POC can give that patient a useful question to ask or an explanation they can review with their care team.

Including POC during communications planning creates room to develop that connection deliberately. Marketers can identify the questions they want to help patients explore, then build suitable resources for the care encounter.

Insight: POC is a top health information source among patients

Actionable tip for marketers: Invest where patients value information

The report’s ranking offers another reason to give POC an explicit role in the plan - while patients increasingly seek information proactively about their health, they also value POC as a top health information source.

Among people who saw a prescribing physician in the last twelve months, POC is the highest-ranked media channel and the top health information source among patients under 45. The report defines “Health information at POC” as a combination of responses for print, digital, and in-office television tactics in a doctor’s office or pharmacy.

The research also helps explain how the care environment can connect patients to digital information. Among those who saw a prescribing physician in the last twelve months, the report cites that 73% are more likely to visit a health website that was recommended by their doctor or that they saw in their doctor’s office.

That finding gives marketers a concrete planning opportunity: make the next useful resource easy to find from the care setting. An office resource could direct patients to information they can revisit after the appointment via the web, for example.

Insight: Exposure to POC education increases the likelihood of action-oriented behaviors

Actionable tip for marketers: Give POC a defined role in engagement and follow through

The report also notes how patients that observe POC messaging behave in the moments following these interactions - patients who notice ads at the POC are 13% more likely than those who do not to ask their physician about an advertised prescription medication. These patients are also 9% more likely to discuss new treatment options with their physician.

For healthcare brands seeking to drive action at and after the clinical visit, these findings provide a reason to consider POC within the engagement strategy. They also suggest a practical creative question: does the message give patients something relevant, understandable and actionable to discuss? A campaign may need resources that explain next steps or help patients locate support after a treatment decision, for example.

Insight: A sizable cohort of U.S. adults are not just patients themselves, but caregivers as well

Actionable tip for marketers: Account for the caregiver in the audience strategy

Patient communications may also reach someone helping a family member navigate care. The report states that 40% of U.S. adults provide caregiver support for a family member. Among that group, it reports that 46% are very/somewhat involved in key condition- or treatment-related information and decisions for those they care for.

This involvement includes discussions with doctors about medical choices or treatment decisions, researching condition or treatment information, and reading or helping family understand educational materials provided by their doctor.

For marketers, this makes caregiver involvement an audience-planning question. In the relevant condition, who helps prepare for appointments? Who reviews the information afterward? Who helps the patient understand the next step?

Those answers can shape the resources marketers developed for POC. When messaging to caregivers, for example, language should recognize the caregiver’s supporting role while respecting the patient’s participation in decisions.

Insight: Safety, efficacy and cost are top considerations for patients filling a prescription

Actionable tip for marketers: Make prescription support part of the communications plan

After the visit, POC communications should also account for questions that arise when it’s time to fill a prescription. Among patients who filled a prescription within the last twelve months, the report cites side effects & safety (42%), effectiveness & necessity of taking the medication (37%) and price / out-of-pocket cost (37%) as top considerations before filling a prescription.

These findings give marketers specific topics to consider when developing education around treatment initiation.

Marketers can respond by reviewing the path from learning about assistance to understanding eligibility and accessing the program. Office materials, pharmacy resources and digital follow-up can each make that path easier to navigate. Affordability information deserves consideration during the initial content brief, with a clear explanation of what patients should do next and where they can get help.

Insight: Physicians already provide educational materials, but would provide more support if the resources were more patient-specific and friendly

Actionable tip for marketers: Build resources providers can use within care

Provider perspectives strengthen the case for investing in useful POC education. The report states that 96% of physicians provide patients with education/disease maintenance information, and that 63% would provide more support materials and tools if they were more customized to their patients - 40% find patient education materials too complicated for patients to easily understand.

For marketers, this means developing resources that suit the intended audience’s knowledge, questions and circumstances.

Customization could mean adapting a resource to the stage of care or offering an accessible introduction with a clear route to more detail. Brands should test whether patients understand the material and whether providers find it useful enough to share.

Availability within clinical workflows also matters. The report states that 40% of physicians would offer co-pay/ financial programs, and 34% would forward patient education, if available in their EHR platforms.

This gives marketers a reason to investigate whether their support can be made accessible where clinicians work in addition to in patient-facing settings. A resource’s value depends partly on how readily the care team can find it and pass it along.

Insight: The pharmacy is also a key venue for patient education where customization of educational materials could unlock more value

Actionable tip for marketers: Keep pharmacy and print in the plan

These findings regarding the strength and relevance of educational materials at the POC also extend to retail pharmacists surveyed - 63% of retail pharmacists find print materials for patients to take home useful at their practice. And 83% of retail pharmacists would provide more support materials and tools if they were more customized to their patients.

These findings support evaluating pharmacy resources according to the job they can do for patients and pharmacists. A take-home piece can provide information to revisit on dosing, application or adherence after the pharmacy interaction, for example. But its usefulness depends on whether it answers a relevant question clearly and gives the reader an appropriate next step.

Marketers should consider how pharmacy education connects with materials patients may have encountered during prescribing. Consistent explanations and clear support information can help create continuity across those settings. Format choices should follow audience needs and the care team’s ability to use the resource.

Turn the findings into action during planning

M3 MI’s research gives marketers evidence for considering POC early in planning. It identifies opportunities to support informed conversations, make education useful to providers, and address practical questions that arise around treatment.

The next step is to translate those opportunities into a specific marketing plan. That approach makes the case for POC concrete. The investment has a clear purpose within the care journey, and the plan gives patients, caregivers and providers information they can use.

For more information on the report, reach out to info@pocmarketing.org or to learn about M3 MI's syndicated healthcare studies, contact info@m3-mi.com.