Greg Cohen presented on using social media to increase patient connectivity and engagement. He discussed how the Epilepsy Advocates program utilized Facebook, a public relations campaign called "My Four Words", and other initiatives to help epilepsy patients feel less isolated and build community. Cohen emphasized the importance of truly listening to patients, empowering them to share their stories, and engaging with them through social media to make programs more patient-centric.
BlogWell Bay Area Social Media Case Study: UCB Pharma, presented by Greg Cohen
1. Greg Cohen
Increasing Patient Connectivity Through
Social Media
This video is from
BlogWell
San Francisco
June 20, 2011
socialmedia.org/blogwell
SocialMedia.org
Case Studies
This presentation is from
BlogWell
Bay Area
August 6, 2013
socialmedia.org/blogwell
2. #blogwell @gcohen85
Jérôme and Raffaele, living with epilepsy
Increasing
Patient
Connectivity
Through Social
Media
Presented by:
Greg Cohen
3. #blogwell @gcohen85
The thoughts and opinion
represented in this presentation
reflect those of the presenter,
Greg Cohen,
and not UCB.
6. #blogwell @gcohen85
PCM gives patients the opportunity to express
themselves
Listen to patients to
understand what they
want/need
Center your project brief
on the answer to “What
do our patients want?”
Consider the language
your patients use and
the response you want
to elicit
Develop programs to
elicit feedback and give
your patients the
opportunity to EXPRESS
themselves
7. #blogwell @gcohen85
Program objectives are both useful and uplifting
Insights into patient
thoughts and activities
Descriptions of Patient-
Doctor Interactions
General Direction for
Quantitative &
Qualitative Research
Patient success stories
Insight into content /
programs they WANT
8. #blogwell @gcohen85
Epilepsy is isolating and confusing
More than 2M people in the US are
living with epilepsy
Epilepsy is the 4th most common
neurological disorder in the US
10% of Americans will experience a
seizure in their lifetime
There are multiple types of seizures,
such as generalized and partial-onset
seizures
Because the condition has been so
misunderstood, many people with
epilepsy suffer from stigma and
isolation
9. #blogwell @gcohen85
EA on Facebook
EpilepsyAdvocate
Magazine
EA Patient Programs
Epilepsy
Advocate.com
EA on YouTube
The Epilepsy Advocates
The multimedia Epilepsy Advocate program was designed to
engage patients in conversation across various media
10. #blogwell @gcohen85
Facebook enables community for increasingly open &
moderated discussion
Unmet Need: Isolation, lack of understanding and stigma created a
need for a community providing education, support, and connection
2009: Page Launch with
no commenting
2011: Turned on
open commenting
2013: Began Real Time Engagement to
be more responsive to patient needs
12. #blogwell @gcohen85
My Four Words… a public relations campaign to
drive engagement that started offline…
Encourage patients to
explain their experience
living with epilepsy in a mere
4 words
It included local and national
events and media outreach…
16. #blogwell @gcohen85
“Unfortunately, normal
teaching didn’t work for
these kids…Don’t you
see, they’re gonna have
to survive in the world
of the future. If they
learn how to learn,
they’ll be able to survive
anywhere!” –Mystery
Teacher…
Internal education is the key to making a patient-
centric organization
Be positive – anyone can
learn about Social Media with
patience and a positive
attitude
Encourage creative thinking
beyond the rules of
Compliance and Regulatory
bodies THEN reshape in
context of what’s possible
today
Don’t rely on the education
tools of the past – learn to
think in terms of the
requirements of the future
20. Learn more about past and
upcoming BlogWells
socialmedia.org/blogwell
This video is from
BlogWell
San Francisco
June 20, 2011
socialmedia.org/blogwell
SocialMedia.org
Case Studies
This presentation is from
BlogWell
Bay Area
August 6, 2013
socialmedia.org/blogwell