The poor health indices in the Africa region will drastically improve if patients are in the centre of healthcare service delivery, stakeholders in the health sector have said.
Stakeholders at the second annual global event, ‚Patients in Focus‘ organised by Pfizer, said patients in focus approach has continued to gain recognition globally as the key to providing quality healthcare, even as they applauded Pfizer’s commitment to serving patients, especially those in the Africa continent.
As a part of their yearly ongoing commitment to all patients, Pfizer hosted their second annual global event, Patients in Focus, to recognize the influence patients have on every facet of their work. This year’s theme “With Patients. For Patients.”, signifies a renewal of Pfizer’s ongoing commitment to serving patients. While this event is week-long, Pfizer’s commitment to patients is year-round and central to the work Pfizer does every day.
Speaking on the reason behind the Patients in Focus global event, the chief corporate affairs officer at Pfizer, Sally Susman, said, “We are made up of many local markets and differing functions, but our Purpose at Pfizer is global: to develop breakthroughs that change patients’ lives. For our work to be meaningful, every function of Pfizer needs to understand the importance of engaging patients, caregivers, and advocates in our work. By showcasing real patient experiences and where we have made an impact on patients’ lives, Patients in Focus week will continue to build empathy and show colleagues how to focus on patient advocacy year-round and in everything we do.”
In West Africa, Susman said the company is demonstrating its commitment to patients through an interactive panel discussion with their country manager and patient advocates in Oncology, Rare Diseases and Immunization to discuss ‘Promoting Health Equity As a Patient Advocate’, adding that Patient Advocates is about the impact of their interventions to patients.
Pfizer West Africa country manager, Olayinka Subair, said “Pfizer’s #PatientsInFocus, a global, week-long activation of our focus on patient centricity. This Summit is helping us to learn from our patient advocacy partners to understand how we can better incorporate patient voices into our work every day. Pfizer could not realize its purpose without the pivotal role played by patients, caregivers, and advocates, whether engaging in our Research & Development efforts, offering consult on our clinical trial design, or partnering with us to develop tools, resources, and easy-to-understand materials for our patients.
„This time and focus will support our work as we continue to strive to be the most patient-centric company, understanding and embedding the patient perspective in all we do. Further, Pfizer will be able to develop more innovative medicines and breakthroughs when we engage with patients and patient advocacy groups to understand the needs of all patients. Patients in Focus spurs inspiration, energy, and innovation by showcasing examples of new ways to include patients at every step of Pfizer’s work and is an opportunity for us to collectively envision how we can continue to best serve the evolving needs of patients in the years to come.”
Vice president of Global Access Financing, Michelle Akande, said “Patients in Focus allows us to highlight examples of successful patient engagement and partnerships and learn from them, demonstrating not only how Pfizer has made a difference in patients’ lives but how patient groups provide insights that guide our work. By sharing real patient and caregiver experiences, Patients in Focus will build empathy for and allow colleagues to better understand patient journeys and how we can work with patients to address unmet needs. Patients in Focus allows us to showcase bi-directional advocacy relationships and partnerships that build trust and increase awareness of the value and benefit of partnering with patients across all functions.”
Executive director at Rare Disease Ghana Initiative, Samuel Agyei Wiafe, stated, “Rare Disease Ghana Initiative in collaboration with Pfizer has been able to address gaps in the management of rare disease from increased knowledge and awareness to early diagnosis and prevention to the best-to-best practice treatment and care to community engagement to access to best treatments and comprehensive research.”
On her part, programs lead, Vaccine Network for Disease Control, Chika Nwankwo, said “Vaccine Network for Disease Control and Pfizer have a long standing relationship of collaborating to address pertinent issues in sensitizing communities through edutainment. This approach of community awareness drive has since been adopted by many health outreaches and has achieved positive results in transforming community behaviors to vaccines and other health services in Nigeria.”
Patients in Focus highlights examples of successful patient engagement and advocacy and helps ensure all Pfizer employees have the knowledge and resources to incorporate patient voices into their work. This effort, led by Global Patient Advocacy Leads across the organization, provides momentum toward Pfizer’s goals of being the most patient-centric company and improving health equity.
We’ve got the edge. Get real-time reports, breaking scoops, and exclusive angles delivered straight to your phone. Don’t settle for stale news. Join LEADERSHIP NEWS on WhatsApp for 24/7 updates →
Join Our WhatsApp Channel
