CREATION.co

How Novartis’ scientific momentum is translating at the digital front line of care

14.07.2025 | Insight

How Novartis’ scientific momentum is translating at the digital front line of care

By Bernard Groen and Jessica Fernandes

By: Bernard Groen and Jessica Fernandes | CREATION.co | July 2025 | Article read time 5 minutes

Every month, an average of nearly 300 healthcare professionals (HCPs) are talking about Novartis online. But only a small fraction of them are expressing clear sentiment when engaging.

In early 2025, Novartis reaffirmed its ambition to lead as a pure-play innovative medicines company (Novartis, Q1 2025 Results). With a sharpened focus on cardiovascular-renal-metabolic conditions, oncology, immunology and neuroscience, alongside bold investment in emerging platforms such as radioligand therapy and xRNA, the company laid out a strategy that is ambitious, science-led and commercially confident.

But how is this being received on the front line of care?

At CREATION.co we analysed nearly 3,000 verified online HCP mentions of Novartis between January and June 2025 using our proprietary listening engine (CREATION Pinpoint®, 2025). This real-world dataset reveals not just what clinicians are saying, but what they feel, what they overlook, and what is shaping clinical conversation. It offers evidence-based insights on Novartis’ digital influence among those who ultimately translate innovation into practice.

Sustained mention volume, yet limited clear sentiment

On the surface, Novartis is gaining and maintaining digital attention. With a steady monthly average of 500 mentions of Novartis and its main products/trials by HCPs, peaking at 700+ posts during the months of May and June following a series of FDA approvals. Whilst Novartis is a visible presence in the digital HCP clinical conversation, the overwhelming sentiment of HCPs remains neutral to its products or trials. Clear sentimental signals amongst the digital HCP community tend to be rare, so in many ways this is not an unexpected finding. However, when HCPs do show affective language toward Novartis, it leans more towards curiosity or caution rather than enthusiasm or trust.

This creates an interesting tension. Novartis seems to be capturing attention among HCPs, but may not yet be fully converting that attention into systematic positive impact. As the organisation advances a pipeline that includes high-impact assets like PSMAfore and inclisiran, the need to foster strategic and longer term trusted engagement with the digital front line becomes a more urgent strategic objective.

The data also indicates a pattern of ‘event-led engagement’ with spikes around medical congresses (e.g. ASCO25), press releases or specific publication moments, followed by periods of relative digital calmness. This suggests that HCP discourse may be more responsive in nature rather than proactive when it comes to Novartis updates, reinforcing the importance of fostering strategic as well as tactical relationships with trusted HCPs online.

Influence is concentrated in key clinical voices

Novartis’ digital influence is not distributed equally. A small cluster of digitally active clinicians including Dr Abdulla Damluji (@DrDamluji) and Dr Santhosh Ambika (@RenoHemonc) drive disproportionate visibility around Novartis. These are respected, credible peers whose posts shape how fellow HCPs interpret new data or trial milestones.

Source: CREATION DOL Finder, July 2025

Source: CREATION DOL Finder, July 2025

Outside of this relatively small group, influence diffuses quite rapidly. Many clinicians reference Novartis only occasionally, and without much (if any) amplification. This signals a strategic opportunity: engagement with a focused group of high-impact digital HCPs (DOLs) could dramatically increase the reach and resonance of scientific messaging, particularly around early-stage or lower-visibility assets such as Novartis’ PTC518.

Notably, some emerging DOLs appear across multiple therapeutic areas, particularly in cardio-oncology intersections, where drugs like Entresto and Kisqali are mentioned in the same threads. Our analysis also surfaced a handful of unexpected high‑impact voices, including Dr Ahmed Bennis (@drbennisahmed), Dr Harvey Olufunmilayo (@OurFavOnlineDoc) and Dr Eric J. Topol (@EricTopol), underscoring that non‑traditional or broader public health commentators can influence clinical perception when posts gain traction outside specialist circles. These ‘therapy-hybrid’ DOLs could play a critical bridging role in engaging digital multi-specialist HCP communities. This follows a wider trend we have observed in our research, that of increasingly ‘integrated clinical messaging’ which aims to bring together closely related therapeutic areas as both clinicians and healthcare organisations see the synergetic benefit from doing so. 

Innovation mentions: established brands dominate

Established brands such as Kisqali (386 HCP mentions), Entresto (314 HCP mentions), and Cosentyx (216 HCP mentions), dominate digital HCP discussion about Novartis. In contrast, trial programmes like NATALEE, generated 174 HCP mentions, still well below established brands, yet meaningfully ahead of most early-stage trials. With OAV101 remaining relatively underrepresented, while PSMAfore is mentioned 23 times by HCPs. PTC518, the Huntington’s disease candidate, generated no mentions and Fabhalta (64 HCP mentions), highlighting growing curiosity around neuroscience and nephrology pipelines. Despite its strategic importance as a gene therapy for SMA, OAV101 received fewer than 10 HCP mentions between January and June 2025.

 

One example includes a post by a cardiac nurse, Micheal Lynch, emphasising Entresto’s established role within the digital frontline.

Shared by 12 HCPs

In contrast, PSMAfore is not silent in the discourse. It appears in over 170 HCP mentions, often as part of comparative trial discussions. 

Shared by 94 HCPs

This disparity is not necessarily a sign of failure. In many cases, it reflects a lag between pipeline visibility and clinical relevance. However, it also points to the importance of building pre-launch narratives, especially among digitally engaged HCPs (DOLs), so that emerging science is introduced with context and credibility.

Sentiment, trust and timing

Sentiment composition across the six‑month period stands at roughly 91 percent neutral, 5 percent positive and 4 percent negative. Positive language peaked in late March, aligning with FDA approvals, while isolated negativity in April related mainly to pricing debates initiated by general health commentators rather than prescribers. Although these non‑HCP posts are filtered from our core CREATION Pinpoint view, their presence in broader social data illustrates how fast a pricing narrative can seep into the digital frontline conversation by HCPs.

This neutrality is not inherently problematic. But for brands aiming to lead in competitive classes, sentimental differentiation is critical. Confidence, curiosity, urgency these are the signals that precede behaviour change.

A final few emerging insights: 78 percent of all HCP posts tend to occur between Tuesday and Thursday, indicating that mid‑week is the optimal window for launching or amplifying scientific content which underscores the value of multilingual listening in strategic HCP engagement tactics.

Strategic takeaways for life sciences leaders

What can we learn from Novartis’ digital footprint?

  1. Reach without resonance is insufficient. Awareness is the floor, not the ceiling. Credibility and emotion build influence.
  2. Peer impact is unbalanced. A small number of HCPs drive a disproportionate amount of the conversation. Identifying and equipping these HCPs early and developing them as a DOL can accelerate message amplification and thus awareness.
  3. Scientific narratives need storytellers. Trials do not become real-world conversations without peer interpretation and visible endorsement.
  4. Sentiment is strategic. Sentimental queues shape decision-making, even in evidence-led environments. Trust and urgency must be intentionally cultivated.
  5. Context matters, it is not just about content. Engagement spikes around relevant moments, e.g. congresses. Strategic timing, aligned with trial readouts, congresses or media, can maximise impact.

The next frontier of strategic listening

Deep social listening has matured. It is no longer a reactive tool for brand protection, but a proactive mechanism for strategic sensing. For Novartis, and for any life sciences company investing in scientific innovation, the digital front line provides a vital window into how brand strategy lands with those tasked to make a difference in the analogue-world-front-line.

The digital front line of care is speaking. The real advantage lies not only in hearing it, but in responding with precision and meaningful engagement to ensure it is translated into the patient-facing front line of care.

Study Methodology:

  • Utilising CREATION Pinpoint®, we analysed the online conversations made up of nearly 3,000 social media posts from nearly 1,500 individually verified HCPs online.
  • Data for this research was analysed from the online X (Twitter) conversations of HCPs globally in the English language between 01 January 2025 – 30 June 2025.

 

Share this article

Meet the Authors

Bernard Groen

Bernard has worked in the NHS for nearly 15 years, culminating in a national role as Head of Data Management at NHS England/HEE. Additionally, Bernard worked at Accenture as Consulting Manager leading several large projects across a variety of public sector organisations. Bernard holds a doctoral degree and is a visiting research fellow at Durham University, and an associate professorship at UNICAF University.

Bernard loves spending time outdoors with family hiking, or on a road bike - going fast!

Jessica Fernandes

After attaining a 1st class degree in Theology from Durham University, Jessica returned to Kent to join the graduate programme here at CREATION.co. She uses her research and analytical skills to inform health strategy and serve clients.

Outside of work, Jessica loves to travel and visit historical landmarks. She also enjoys mini-golf and going out for brunch with friends and family.