Efficacy of Marketing Strategy for REACH Vitamins

According to the 2009 Global Report, Vitamin A supplementation in children reduces the death rate by 23% in populations at risk of deficiency. REACH Vitamins is a for-profit business that provides a one-year supply of vitamin A to children in underprivileged countries for each bottle of vitamins A, B, C, D, or the multivitamin purchased. The primary objective of this exploratory, qualitative study is to determine if there is a more appropriate marketing strategy for REACH Vitamins compared to the current marketing strategy used. The secondary objective is to determine if REACH Vitamins’ charity motivates consumers to purchase their products. Sample size will not be determined before testing is underway. Participants must be 18 years or older and be able to read and understand English. Physicians, pharmacists, and consumers from southern Ohio will be interviewed in focus groups for their opinions on the best vitamin marketing strategies. Questions will be open-ended and intended to invoke discussion in the group. Notes from the focus group will be written and recorded using Livescribe software. Data will be entered into the program NVivo. Data collection begins in the Fall of 2014

Efficacy of Smartphone Technology on Improving Asthma Control and Compliance

Asthma is the fifth most costly disease in the U.S., estimated to cost over $50 billion annually. This large cost is due to the large number of hospitalizations, ER visits, and doctor’s office visits. Improving patient adherence to asthma medications would decrease these costs significantly by preventing most hospital and doctor’s office visits. AsthmaSense® is a free to download smartphone application available on both iTunes and Android marketplaces. AsthmaSense® will allow patients to record when they take their medications, as well as send them reminders to take their medications