Video transcript
Terence:
My aha moment was in the grocery store. In fact, I had a patient that we tried to treat several times. And somehow the treatment was not working, and we eventually decided to put them on a long-acting injectable after multiple hospitalizations. Once this patient disappeared from the system for a long time, and then this fateful morning, I go into the grocery store and here comes the patient calling my name, “Mr. Terence, Mr. Terence,” and when I turn and look at the patient, I couldn't recognize him because he looked not disheveled anymore, he looked presentable wearing a grocery store uniform. And then I asked him, “How are you doing?” He said, “Oh I'm doing great. I now moved out of my parents’ house. I now live on my own. I actually, I live with my friend but I'm looking to moving on my own, and I'm planning to go back to school.” For me, that was my aha moment, and I actually took that moment back to work to share it to my coworkers and all and our department newsletter, because I wanted people to hear about this successful story, because a lot of times the successful stories are not told.
Mia:
There was a moment that I realized that long-acting injectables like INVEGA SUSTENNA® were changing, in terms of how the patients were doing with their symptoms. And it was with that first patient that I started with INVEGA SUSTENNA® back in 2009. And there were multiple admissions, very negative side effects, and not socially into other people, only into his voices. And after being a while with INVEGA SUSTENNA® that he was stable, he was able to come in my office, ask me something personal about my car, and at the same time make a joke about it. After he left, I said, he was not like that. Now he's interacting with others. That means that he's doing much better. So, for me it was like, if it can do it for him, it can do it for all the patients who are in the same situation. So, that's why I got more involved with long-acting injectables like INVEGA SUSTENNA®. Well, we knew by some studies that close to three-quarters of our patients, they don't take the medication as prescribed. And when I talk about not taking as prescribed, it's as simple as missing the time of taking the medication. Or, if they have to take a medication with food, they would not do it. Or they miss more than one day. So, that was my concern, that my patients were missing doses. So, when there was an option of putting on a long-acting injectable that I would know when the patient is getting the medication, and I would not have concerns about adherence, that was for me an easy sell.
Linda:
So, the moment for me where LAIs became such a big component in my ability to treat patients with schizophrenia, was when I looked at the clinical trials on comparing basically the time to relapse for patients who were on oral antipsychotics versus who were on LAIs. I definitely feel that that medicine as a whole is moving towards long-acting agents whether they're long-acting injectables or whatnot I mean, you look at birth control, we have injections for that, you look at cholesterol, we have injections for that, you look at diabetes, you look at a lot of the chronic conditions, and injectables are more and more becoming more prevalent even with migraines and things like that. There needs to be a pivot where it's like more and more healthcare providers understand, hey this is where it's going. This is what's best for our patients in terms of prognosis and making sure that they're on treatment. Understanding schizophrenia itself, it's a disease/condition where patients may lose insight, have poor judgment in that sense. Or, have issues with adherence and that, that if we want what's best for our patients, we need to move that needle over. Well, figuratively. And, you know, in both ways. But, ultimately, to get more patients on injectables because that's going to be where it's headed.
LAI=long-acting injectable.