17th Annual eyeforpharma Barcelona (Commercial, Digital and Patients)

Mar 12, 2019 - Mar 14, 2019, Barcelona

Where Pharma Becomes The Solution

Barcelona 2019: Patient Champion Finalists Revealed

We have whittled it down to the final three. Here are the contenders for the Patient Champion Award



What makes our species so unique is our ability to spread ideas. This cross-pollination has enabled peace and prosperity to flourish, and ignorance to be supplanted by understanding.

Each of the innovative programs recognized in this year’s awards have made a meaningful contribution to improving people’s lives. Perhaps they have eased the burden on patients, or helped HCPs navigate the demands of their job, or entered a fruitful collaboration. Through sharing their ideas, we hope you too will be inspired.

The winner of this award will be an individual or group who has provided the patient with a voice. A voice that has influenced governments, customers or other patients - and ultimately provided better results for society. Good advocates are able to challenge the status quo, ensure that patients are heard and empowered, and motivate others to account for those in need. We will look for evidence of original work with pharma and health organisations to make a difference. That difference may come in the form of increasing access, understanding, education, value or health benefits to patients and caregivers.

Here are the finalists:

Teresa Ferreiro
Patient advocate, professional coach, trainer, speaker, founder of Baby Beatles

Becoming a mother is a life-changing moment in any woman’s life. So is surviving breast cancer. Teresa Ferreiro went through both. Her experience made her acutely aware that motherhood is a dream that many women never get to fulfil after breast cancer, due to a lack of readily available resources and support. Ferriero has made it her life’s mission to rectify this.

Ferreiro wrote a book (I have breast cancer – What now?) to help women connect with themselves in order to gain the force they need to stand against their cancer. This book was awarded finalist of the International Book Awards. She is also the brainchild behind Baby Beatles, an organization that offers information and financial help to women in this situation.

Alongside her efforts, Ferreiro advocates for the POSITIVE trial, a study evaluating Pregnancy, disease Outcome and Safety of Interrupting endocrine Therapy for premenopausal women with endocrine-responsive breast cancer who desire pregnancy (IBCSG 48-14/BIG 8-13, POSITIVE).

Catalina Cernica
Director of Health & Happiness Studies, LEO Innovation Lab

Focusing on the patient experience has become de rigueur in pharma, but separating substance from sloganeering can be a tall order. Not in the case of Catalina, Director of Health & Happiness Studies, LEO Innovation Lab.

Catalina Cernica led an innovation in how patients with psoriasis are understood - - moving from the classic health related measures (disease) to happiness related measures (life).  And she did this on scale, representing over 200,000 patients across 184 countries.

For the last 2 years, Catalina Cernica headed up PsoHappy, the Psoriasis Happiness Studies team in LEO Innovation Lab.  Her team uses an innovative digital survey platform to give patients with psoriasis a voice by asking what is important to them.  They work closely with the Happiness Research Institute to benchmark findings against the United Nations Happiness Report and publish the findings in a report that is used by stakeholders around the globe to push the psoriasis well-being agenda.  

The PsoHappy project has contributed significantly to how the healthcare system looks at the impact of chronic conditions as well as how health policies and treatment plans are designed and implemented.

Scott Williams
Head of Patient Advocacy and Strategic Partnerships, Merck

Scott Williams is a bonafide trailblazer in the patient advocacy space. He has dedicated his life to advocating on behalf of patients and caregivers through his role as Senior Vice President at Men’s Health Network, Managing Director of Strategic Partnerships at American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, and now Head of Patient Advocacy and Strategic Partnerships at Merck.

Through the support of Merck leadership, he established the first-ever patient advocacy function in the organization’s 350-year history and subsequently built multiple coalition style task forces and cross-function teams within the company to ensure that all action is patient-directed.

Of particular note, Scott led the development of a global movement to improve the lives of caregivers and forged the launch of a Merck initiative committed to bringing together global patient advocacy representatives with the company’s senior leadership. Working closely with Merck’s R&D Senior Leaders, Scott is actively incorporating the patient voice throughout the drug development continuum.

Your exclusive opportunity to witness these, plus many other real world, successful case studies awaits! Find out more about the Awards Pitch Day Europe here.



17th Annual eyeforpharma Barcelona (Commercial, Digital and Patients)

Mar 12, 2019 - Mar 14, 2019, Barcelona

Where Pharma Becomes The Solution