Showcasing a Major Pharmaceutical Company’s Commitment to Meaningful Advocate Engagement

With a strong oncology portfolio and promising pipeline, a forward-thinking pharmaceutical company wanted to reinforce its commitment to serving as an innovative and meaningful partner across the advocacy community.  The company partnered with Jones Public Affairs (JPA) to conceptualize and execute a strategic program that would engage a broad spectrum of advocate thought leaders across the United States.

Recognizing that access to new and effective therapies is at the heart of both advocate and Industry efforts, JPA supported the company’s advocacy team in hosting a two-day advocacy summit exploring the challenges to ensuring the development of new, innovative oncology therapies. Convening more than 30 patient advocate leaders from across the country, the event successfully showcased the company’s commitment to the community and identified actionable items and opportunities for collaboration.

Challenge

• Patient advocacy landscape is increasingly competitive, with many pharmaceutical companies vying for patient associations’ time and attention
• Need to engage advocates in a meaningful way that is not tied to sponsorship or programmatic funding
• Identify an opportunity to engage across a broad spectrum of oncology advocates who represent various tumor types and service-focuses (i.e., policy, research, patient support, professional education)

Insight

• New drug development and access is a key topic of interest across oncology landscape given its direct impact on patients, professionals, advocates and Industry
• Many patient advocates don’t understand (or don’t sympathize with) the challenges drug makers face in bringing new cancer therapies to market
• Both Industry and advocates are interested in opportunities to partner to overcome barriers in the drug development process

Strategy

• Host inclusive, cross-tumor advocate summit to explore the current challenges in bringing new therapies to oncology patients and discuss ways Industry and advocates can work together to overcome these challenges

Success

• High praise from the more than 30 patient advocate leader participants for its relevancy, candor and execution
• Established greater mutual understanding of advocate and Industry challenges in new drug development through frank dialogue
• Identified actionable recommendations for partnership