AI now shapes physician brand discovery, report finds

HealthLink Dimensions and DeepIntent say 74% of physicians use AI for clinical information, and AI assistants sent physicians to brand sites in 79% of campaigns measured. The 2026 Physician Communications Report suggests healthcare marketers are missing behavior shifts that now affect reach, content, timing and prescription impact.

Why it matters: - Physicians are increasingly using AI to find clinical information, which changes how healthcare and pharma brands need to reach them. - The report ties physician behavior to measurable outcomes, showing where marketer assumptions diverge from actual engagement. - AI-referred traffic, omnichannel reach and content preferences now appear directly connected to brand discovery and prescription performance.

What happened: - HealthLink Dimensions published its 2026 Physician Communications Report with DeepIntent. - The report found that 74% of physicians use at least one AI tool for clinical information. - AI assistants referred physicians to pharmaceutical brand sites in 79% of campaigns measured. - The report says AI tools are now a new frontier for healthcare and pharma marketers trying to drive awareness for drugs and treatments. - The findings draw on a survey of 896 qualified U.S. physicians, roughly 2.4 million email opens from HealthLink Dimensions first-party engagement data, and programmatic ad measurement across verified clinicians.

The details: - ChatGPT accounted for 97% of the AI referrals measured. - AI-referred visits rose more than 80% year over year. - Only 27% of physicians said they rigorously verify what AI tools return. - Paid search drove about 47% of brand-site arrivals, but that share fell 23% year over year. - Social referrals increased 78%, digital media rose 6%, and email declined 8% across about 1.6 million healthcare professional site visits analyzed. - More than 97% of healthcare professionals are reachable across display, CTV, audio and native formats. - Physicians reached on three or more channels showed nine times higher total prescription rates than those reached on a single channel. - Interactive case tools led content engagement at an 18.6% median open rate. - CME followed at 17.3%, and podcasts and video came in at 16.4%. - Clinical trial summaries and scientific data ranked first in physician stated preference, with 40% calling that content the most valuable. - That same category ranked sixth out of seven in actual opens, at a 13.4% median. - Roughly 20% of physicians said they are receptive at every daypart. - Measured opens clustered on Tuesday through Thursday, which accounted for about 62% of weekly opens. - Open activity peaked between 8 a.m. and 11 a.m. - About 14% of opens happened within the first 15 minutes, and about 39% within the first hour. - A second reading wave appeared 8 to 16 hours later. - 76% of physicians said they want information at least monthly, and 32% want it weekly. - DeepIntent measured that 54% of physicians were reached by more than 10 brands last year. - Click engagement stayed flat across frequency levels, with no observable fatigue curve. - Prescription rates increased as frequency increased, while pharmaceutical campaigns accounted for less than 0.01% of all ad impressions delivered to healthcare professionals.

Between the lines: - The report argues that what physicians say they want and what they actually engage with are not the same. - That gap matters because marketers may be overinvesting in preferred content formats and underusing formats that generate real engagement. - The AI findings also suggest brand visibility will increasingly depend on how well content is surfaced and represented inside AI systems, not just search engines and email. - The timing data implies marketers should treat physician attention as highly concentrated rather than evenly distributed across the day.

What's next: - The 2026 Physician Communications Report is now available for download. - HealthLink Dimensions says marketers can use the report to plan against measured behavior instead of relying only on stated preferences. - DeepIntent says the next opportunity is turning AI-driven awareness into measurable outcomes for patients. - HealthLink Dimensions and DeepIntent both point to omnichannel planning as the practical path forward for healthcare and pharma campaigns.