Healthcare professionals (HCPs) make countless decisions every day that shape patient outcomes. That’s why connecting with and educating them is critical for healthcare marketers. Drawing on insights from the Point of Care Academy course Engaging HCPs at the Point of Care, this post explores how today’s Point of Care strategies and tactics can help brands engage HCPs in meaningful, measurable ways, right at the moment of care.

Reaching HCPs Where Clinical Decisions Happen

As the healthcare marketing landscape continues to evolve, Point of Care (POC) media provides a trusted, compliant and contextually relevant channel that educates, informs and empowers healthcare professionals within the clinical setting, where it matters most. 

Every interaction at the POC—whether in a doctor’s office, hospital, pharmacy or a telehealth setting—represents an opportunity to provide educational resources. POC offers multiple touchpoints, combining digital precision with static presence to keep vital information visible across every step of the care journey. Some examples of opportunities for engagement include when a provider reviews lab results on an Electronic Health Record (EHR), prescribes a medication through an electronic prescribing (eRx) system or views content on a screen in their back office.  

When brands reach HCPs with the right message in these moments, they strengthen clinical decision-making.

Why Engaging HCPs at the POC Matters

Engaging HCPs at the Point of Care strengthens clinical dialogue, too. When brands deliver the right message at the right moment, they encourage informed prescribing, reinforce evidence-based practice and can encourage early detection of complex conditions and improve treatment adherence.

​With the average primary care visit lasting just 15–20 minutes, physicians need to rely on tools that reinforce communication beyond conversation. POC communication helps HCPs do exactly this within clinical settings —on screens, on walls or through educational handouts. Research shows that POC media resonates with both patients and providers. 56% of patients with access to POC materials consistently adhere to treatment plans and proactively discuss preventative services. And providers widely use POC, with 96% distributing materials because they find them valuable for patient care.

​​Leveraging The Dual Power of Digital and Static POC

The most effective HCP engagement strategies leverage both Digital Point of Care and Static Point of Care solutions. Each delivers distinct value, but together they form an omnichannel ecosystem that maintains consistency of message across every stage of care.

Use Digital POC for Precision and Personalization

Digital POC marketing reaches healthcare professionals directly within their workflows, both on devices like Electronic Health Records (EHR) and electronic prescribing systems (eRx), during telehealth appointments and in physical spaces with digital wallboards and back office screens. 

These environments empower marketers to: 

• Target precisely: Deliver disease-specific or patient-journey-based messages within EHR workflows. 
• Promote interactivity: Use HCP-facing displays, telehealth platforms and diagnostic tools for immersive education. 
• Expand access: Enable virtual interactions where sales representatives share approved videos or slides using back office screens.
• Track results: Analyze engagement through real-time data and reporting.

These subtle but powerful touchpoints create value beyond impression counts, supporting real clinical decisions with measurable outcomes.

Embedding messaging into these digital ecosystems helps marketers engage HCPs before prescribing decisions occur. For example, ads can highlight copay assistance or provide clinical data during treatment discussions.

Other digital tactics, including mobile and Wi-Fi targeting, sustain consistent visibility throughout clinical workflows.4 

Establish an Always-On, Physical Presence with Static POC

Static media tools provide steady exposure in spaces where healthcare teams collaborate and make decisions daily. Examples include: 

• Condition guides and exam-room posters: Equip providers with quick references or patient handouts. 
• Pharmacy kits: Combine samples with education materials for immediate use.
• Wallboards and back-office materials: Reinforce brand updates and clinical information. 
• Hospital discharge kits and brochures: Extend education beyond the clinical visit.

Static tools work silently but powerfully—serving as educational anchors that keep evidence-based information in sight and top of mind for the care team. Strategically placed static assets build familiarity and strengthen brand trust among all members of the care team.

Best Practices for HCP Engagement at the POC

1. Balance Static and Digital for Omnichannel Continuity

Successful campaigns blend digital precision with persistent static formats. Digital POC delivers targeted, data-backed content, while static materials encourage and reinforce awareness and credibility.

Marketers who coordinate messaging across both environments often see the greatest results. As an example of how a blend of digital and static POC can work together, let’s imagine an HCP first encounters a clinical data reminder within an EHR and later sees the same message on a wallboard.The repetition reinforces learning and strengthens recall—without overwhelming the provider with redundant content. Consistency creates confidence, and confidence leads to action.

2. Lead with Education, Not Promotion

HCPs seek educational, evidence-based content that supports clinical care. Prioritize producing dosing guides, mechanism-of-action visuals or updated treatment algorithms over promotional messaging. 

Educational storytelling builds trust faster than product claims. Consider framing materials around patient challenges and solutions: “Here’s how you can help a patient navigate affordability” resonates more deeply than “Here’s what our product does.” Aligning POC content with the physician’s goal—to provide better care—ensures engagement that feels authentic and useful.

3. Contextualize Content to Specialty and Setting

The more contextually relevant the message, the greater its ability to shape meaningful outcomes. That’s why you should customize every message for its environment. Here are some examples of how you might contextualize specific types of POC media: 

• Doctor’s Office Ads: Deliver therapy guideline updates. 
• Pharmacy Messaging: Emphasize affordability and adherence programs. 
• EHR Ads: Integrate treatment algorithms directly into clinical workflows.

Even subtle contextual adjustments—such as branded samples or discharge kits—can dramatically increase relevance. The goal is to provide just the right information, in just the right tone, at just the right moment.

4. Integrate a Measurement Plan Early

The more granular your POC measurement can get, the better. Your POC measurement program should aim to capture the true impact of HCP exposure at the POC over time, like when an HCP learns about a new therapy pathway and uses that insight in daily practice, or when a patient better adheres to treatment because their doctor reinforced it with a POC resource. The more of a story you can tell about its impact on outcomes, the more valuable POC becomes as a channel. 

That’s why we recommend you incorporate measurement into campaign planning from the start. Measurement-driven strategy helps marketers tell a richer story. Rather than stopping at “impressions served,” reporting on lift in prescribing behavior, content engagement or adherence rates provides tangible proof of performance. Brands that embrace these metrics elevate the value of their media investments and strengthen confidence in the POC channel.

Unlocking Point of Care Marketing’s True Impact with Patient-Centric Measurement reveals how some Marketing Mix Models (MMMs) can undervalue POC when utilizing non-patient-centric input variables.

Applying patient-centric metrics that consider office breadth and patient depth, for example, can help you achieve greater measurement precision for your HCP-driven POC campaigns. The pilot test demonstrated a 4.4x higher POC campaign lift using this model.

POCMA underscores impact over volume. Measure success by connecting exposure to outcomes—improved adherence and informed prescribing.⁴

5. Ensure Compliance with the CCN Standard

Be sure that all of your POC campaign messaging adheres to FDA Clear, Conspicuous, and Neutral (CCN) communication standards. Use POCMA’s CCN Final Rule Guidance to maintain clarity and neutrality.

By maintaining transparent, unbiased communication, marketers not only ensure compliance but also enhance credibility with HCPs. In an age of misinformation, staying compliant and neutral becomes an advantage.

Building Stronger HCP Relationships Through POC

HCP engagement thrives on partnership. Doctor’s office marketing, pharmacy ads and EHR messaging empower providers to deliver better care.

Strong patient-provider relationships are built on relevance, respect and reliability. When marketers approach POC as an opportunity to support both HCPs and the patients they serve they earn trust that transforms communication into collaboration. Over time, these connections strengthen the provider’s ability to inform, the patient’s ability to act and the brand’s ability to drive meaningful change.

In 2026 and beyond, the most effective Point of Care marketing will be commissioned by  brands that embrace continuous learning, integrate authentic education and measure success through the lens of patient impact. Those who elevate POC from placement to partnership will win with effective healthcare communication in the years ahead.

Want to learn more about reaching healthcare providers where clinical decisions happen? Complete the POC Academy Course on engaging HCPs within the POC setting here. And discover other Academy courses here.