The MedComms Forum “Disrupted events: what’s happening in #MedComms practice?” took place on 15 July 2020. This extended MedComms Networking webinar comprised five expert-led sessions and provided valuable, practical insights aiming to stimulate wider debate across the MedComms community. Videos from each session are included below.

The medical conference is dead, long live the medical conference. REDUX

The world of physical medical conferences has been radically disrupted by the coronavirus in the space of just a few months. Len Starnes reviews what this means for doctors, medical societies and patients, and identifies significant underlying change drivers. Additionally, he explores some of the possible long-term implications.

Bring on the patients!

Over recent years, much effort has centred on inviting the patient voice into the discussions at medical and industry events. Could the dramatic shift towards a focus on virtual events herald a significant opportunity for more patients to get involved in more of those discussions, directly from home? Trishna Bharadia, Tessa Richards, Richard Stephens and Steven Walker participate in this panel discussion.

Effective engagement of congress delegates in a disrupted world

The accelerated move to virtual scientific congresses has significantly disrupted traditional pharma delegate touchpoints such as the poster hall presentation and the exhibition booth. The session explores the changing nature of engagements at events around the exchange of scientific content with delegates and the impact technology can bring to effective engagement, sharing and compliant distribution of the science. Sam Barnes, Matthew Saunders and Nick Trout participate in this panel discussion.

Virtual meetings – top trends, tips and lessons learnt

This session involved panellists Katherine Baria, Johanna Dixon, Ged Forshaw and Orla Weir. They offer practical tips on how to deliver virtual meetings, with a focus on the advisory board settings and meetings where external experts and healthcare professionals are involved. They highlight key considerations (format, timing, length, technology, etc), questions to always ask, common pitfalls and lessons learnt, as well as touching on the high-end delivery of customer-focused content.

Face-to-face events – what might a new normal look like?

There’s been a rush to transform face-to-face events into virtual events. Does that mean the face-to-face meeting is essentially dead? That would call for a paradigm shift in the way humans behave and like to interact. Is the future more about blended formats? If so, what are the additional practical complexities? How do venues accommodate physical distancing needs? How might those business models look? Stephane Dazet, Mark Handforth, Alex Morris and Andrew Winterburn participate in this panel discussion.

Recorded 15 July 2020 as a MedComms Networking webinar. Produced by NetworkPharma.tv