Finalist
The Renal Council: Driving Impactful Change for Patients with Glomerular Disease
by Bedrock Healthcare Communications on behalf of Novartis
Summary of work
In partnership with Novartis, we have established a council of leading experts who share a common drive to improve the understanding, diagnosis and management of rare renal disorders.
From the outset, the ambition from Novartis was to go beyond a traditional advisory programme and follow a bold collegium approach in which a long-term partnership with external experts would be nurtured in pursuit of a shared goal of measurable, positive change for patients.
The Renal Council (RC) was launched in Q1 2024 to initially focus on Complement 3 Glomerulopathy (C3G) and IgA nephropathy (IgAN) – two rare renal conditions with unique, complex unmet needs. The RC currently comprises of 10 multidisciplinary external Global experts and is planned to expand to 15–20 experts in 2025.
To support sustainable inclusion of top-tier experts across time zones, RC activities have leveraged an ‘asynchronous engagement’ approach using a virtual platform, alongside live virtual or hybrid meetings.
In 2024, the RC launched four dedicated working groups, each of which focuses on a key area of unmet need that the Council seeks to address by sharing advice, co-creating materials, and designing research activities. Publication and further dissemination of the first co-created outputs are expected for 2025.
Judges’ comments
Bedrock Healthcare Communications and Novartis have produced a solid and well-structured Expert Working Group initiative with clear objectives. The mutual benefits of the programme are outlined well and the ‘authentic allyship’ concept stood out to the panel. Its future focus is clear, and the judges are excited to see where it goes in the long term.
