International Women’s Day 2025: Accelerate Action

Andrea_Puletto — Fri, 07 Mar 2025 12:49:54 +0000

Marie Teil, Special Patient Populations

Andrea_Puletto Fri 07/03/2025 - 13:49

International Women's Day is more than a celebration; it is a global call to #AccelerateAction and to acknowledge strategies, resources and activities that positively impact women's advancement. At ��ֳ�, we embrace this wholeheartedly, particularly when it comes to ensuring that women of childbearing age have equitable access to clinical research and, ultimately, the best possible care.

Historically, women, particularly those of childbearing age, pregnant, or breastfeeding, have been underrepresented in clinical trials. This gap in research has significant implications, limiting understanding of how treatments affect these populations and leaving many women without clear information on the risks and benefits of their medications.i It is imperative that we #AccelerateAction to address these disparities and drive meaningful change in clinical research, ensuring women are adequately represented.

In the past year, we’ve delved deeper into the experiences of women of childbearing age living with chronic diseases, shedding light on critical gaps in their healthcare journey. Through a social listening study analyzing over 1.2 million posts from France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the UK and the USA, we identified 2,600 posts from women navigating pregnancy and chronic illness. The results of the analysis highlighted four key areas of unmet need: lack of patient support, inadequate specialist discussions, suboptimal coordination of care pathways and the greater need for empowering these patient populations. We concluded that to bridge these gaps, ongoing collaboration is essential to:

Establish moderated online and in-person support services to reduce misinformation and provide platforms for communication between patients and healthcare professionals
Develop educational resources for patients and healthcare professionals
Create tools to enable discussion between women of childbearing age with chronic diseases and their healthcare professionals.

These partnerships and actions are instrumental in driving forward our shared goals so that all women have access to evidence-based healthcare. Collaboration is key to accelerating action. We are proud to partner with patient communities, scientific communities, regulators and policymakers to promote the inclusion of women in clinical trials. Within our work supporting women living with chronic diseases during their reproductive years, we successfully collaborated with the Epilepsy Foundation, HS Connect, IFPA, MG Holistic Society, Living Well with Epilepsy and Lupus Europe to support the development of a discussion guide to promote open discussions about reproductive health between these women and their healthcare professional. It includes background information and key conversation starters to support these discussions to help everyone involved prepare for the future. To read more, visit: /sites/default/files/2024-12/20598_��ֳ�_WoCBA_Discussion_guide%20B_AW0_0.pdf

Looking to the year ahead, the ICH E21 Guideline for Inclusion of Pregnant and Breastfeeding Individuals in Clinical Trials is expected to be available for public comment later this year. Additionally, we look forward to continued collaboration with the BRIDGE Commission (Better Research, Information and Data Generation for Empowerment) to provide administrative and communications support.

In my role at ��ֳ�, I am personally committed to this cause. I believe that by working together to champion the inclusion of women in clinical trials, we are not only advancing scientific knowledge but also honoring the fundamental principles of health equity.

On this International Women's Day, let us unite in our efforts to create a world where women receive the care and treatment they deserve. Together, we can make a lasting impact on women's health and wellbeing.

Follow me, @MarieTeil, on LinkedIn, and stay connected with ��ֳ�’s social channels for ongoing updates on our progress.

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Introducing Lissiah Taylor Hundley, Head of DE&I at ��ֳ�

Andrea_Puletto — Tue, 11 Jun 2024 13:55:27 +0000

Introducing Lissiah Taylor Hundley, Head of DE&I at ��ֳ�

Chiara Montecucco, Global Communications

Andrea_Puletto Tue 11/06/2024 - 15:55

We sat down with Lissiah Taylor Hundley, who recently joined ��ֳ� as Global Head of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I).

Lissiah: With 27 years of experience in DE&I leading international teams, I’m passionate about equal rights and committed to driving meaningful change. As a survivor of stage 4 cancer, I’ve experienced healthcare disparities firsthand, which further deepened my dedication to enhancing DE&I. This is also what drew me to ��ֳ�, a company that supports diversity and inclusion and that can make a difference in improving equity in the communities around us.

��ֳ�: Can you share your initial experience at ��ֳ�?

Lissiah: It’s been amazing! In just a few months, I’ve seen the company’s commitment to DE&I. My approach has been one of balance between listening, learning, and starting to see where to implement strategic changes. I focus on ‘the 4 Ps’ - People, Patients, Products, and Partners - and I follow my deep belief that diversity drives innovation, growth and sustainability for the future.

��ֳ�: How do you view the current state of DE&I, beyond ��ֳ�?

Lissiah: It’s challenging, especially with political climate changes and polarization of the public opinion. However, I remain hopeful and passionate. There are many supportive organizations and engaged teams and talents committed to DE&I, both within and outside ��ֳ�. I believe in the power of exchange and collaboration, so engaging with these groups is therefore key to ensure the inclusivity of all different perspectives.

��ֳ�: What impact do you hope to make at ��ֳ�?

Lissiah: I hope to have DE&I intimately embedded in all that we do. Systemic change is important. With this we can drive change in DE&I initiatives within ��ֳ� and the broader industry. With the company’s support, I’m optimistic about creating a more equitable and inclusive environment that understands, respects and celebrates diversity.

��ֳ�: Any specific examples?

Lissiah: I want to ensure that our people mirror the patients and the communities we serve, so we partner closely with our Talent Acquisition team to support our diversity recruitment practices and ensure that all talent has an equitable hiring experience. I also seek to have more diverse patients in our clinical trials, so the DE&I team supports the business as they look to engage differently in diverse communities, work with external partners who have close connections to diverse patients and ensure we’re building trust in those communities as well. I also partner with the business to educate our teams so that they know how to connect with underrepresented groups and understand the cultural nuances that may play a role in how they trust and engage with us.

��ֳ�: Lissiah, thank you for sharing your journey with us. We look forward to seeing the impact you’ll have at ��ֳ� and in the larger DE&I space.

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DEI our company about ��ֳ� Diversity equity and inclusion

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International Women’s Day 2025: Accelerate Action

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Introducing Lissiah Taylor Hundley, Head of DE&I at ��ֳ�

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DEI

International Women’s Day 2025: Accelerate Action

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Introducing Lissiah Taylor Hundley, Head of DE&I at ������ֳ�

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Introducing Lissiah Taylor Hundley, Head of DE&I at ��ֳ�