Patients as Partners in Clinical Research Agenda 2026 Page

Wendy Erler, MBA, SVP, Patient Affairs, Sarepta Therapeutics

9:05AM - 9:30AM

Industry Keynote: A Leadership Blueprint for Embedding Patient Insights into Organizational DNA

Keynote Speaker:

Lisa Petermann, Chief Patient Experience Officer, Roche Canada

Showing Events in 1 Track from 09:30am to 10:20am

Ask the Patients

9:30AM - 9:40AM

Fireside Chat: Bridging Perspectives - A Caregiver’s Journey and Patient-Centered Clinical Research

Fireside Guest:

Muffy Walker, Author of "Memory Weavers" & Co-Founder, International Bipolar Foundation

Adrelia Allen, PharmD, Executive Director, Clinical Trial Patient Diversity, Global Clinical Trial Operations, Merck Research Laboratories

9:40AM - 10:20AM

Patient and Caregiver Perspectives: Insights for Optimizing Clinical Trials

Gwyneth Mogg-Hall, MPH, Director, Clinical Trial Patient Engagement & Advocacy Lead (PEAL), Pfizer

Panelists:

Donna Dinkin, DrPH, Lived-Experience Expert, Patient Advocate

Jennie Flanagan, Lived-Experience Expert & COO, Community Health Center of North Country

Muffy Walker, Author of "Memory Weavers" & Co-Founder, International Bipolar Foundation

Rev. Robert (Bobby) Wiseman Jr, MA, CPSS, Lived-Experience Expert & CEO, Potential of Ability

Sarah Woods, Lived-Experience Expert & Founder, Serenely Guided Foundation

Showing Events in 1 Track from 10:20am to 11:00am

Grand Opening, Breaks and Networking

10:20AM - 11:00AM

Grand Opening of the Patients as Partners Exhibits, Networking and Breakfast

Showing Events in 1 Track from 11:00am to 12:45pm

Morning Sessions
Pacific Grand Ballroom

11:00AM - 11:25AM

Keynote: Using Digital Innovation and Responsible AI to Bring Research Closer to Patients

Keynote Speaker:

Ashita Batavia, MD, Global Head, Study Innovation, Global Medical Affairs, J&J Innovative Medicine

11:25AM - 12:10PM

INTERACTIVE SESSION: Co-Creating a Patient-Centered Trial Toolkit to Enhance Experience and Optimize Trial Design

Session Leaders:

Victoria DiBiaso, MPH, VP, Head of Patient Informed Development & Health Value Translation, Sanofi

Rucha Shah, Lived-experience Expert, and Assistant Clinical Research Project Manager, ECOG-ACRIN Cancer Research Group

12:10PM - 12:15PM

5-Minute Yoga Break

Graciously Hosted By:

12:15PM - 12:45PM

Reducing Patient Burden Technologies: A Quickfire Pop-Up Session

Jenn Curry, Head, Patient Engagement Capabilities, Biogen

Participants:

Alex Barabasz, COO, Research Grid

Anne-Marie Bisson, Managing Director, Zebricks

George Dorsett, Senior Vice President, Sales, Marketing & Growth, Clariness

Kevin Harkey, Director of Pharma Partnerships, myTomorrows

Gary Nolan, Chief Executive Officer, Colab Health

Sheetal Padania, Head of Insights, Origins

Maya Zlatanova, CEO, TrialHub/FindMeCure

Showing Events in 1 Track from 12:45pm to 01:45pm

Lunch and Optional Roundtable Discussions

12:45PM - 1:45PM

Luncheon and Optional Roundtables

Showing 3 of 6 Tracks

from 01:05pm to 01:45pm

Roundtable #1

Leveraging Patient Experience Data to Drive Meaningful Impact: Challenges and Solutions

Jillian Lusk, Sr Manager, Patient-Centered Outcomes Assessment, Pfizer

Roundtable #2

From Insight to Impact: Scaling Patient Engagement Through Digital Transformation

Mackenzie Abramson, MPH, Lived-Experience Expert, Patient Advocate

Nidhi Saxena, Global Patient Engagement Strategy Director, Innovative Health Engagement & Advocacy Global Development, J&J Innovative Medicine

Roundtable #3

Building Strategic Pharma-Advocacy Partnerships: Practical Tips for Driving Impact

Christa Kerkorian, VP, Patient Advocacy, Day One Biopharmaceuticals

Misha Mehta, Neev's Mom; Sr Director of Research, Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation

Roundtable #4

Approaches for Overcoming Internal Pushback on Patient Engagement

Terri Robertson, Patient Engagement Program Manager | CRMS, Medtronic

Emily Wotczak, MBA, Sr Business Process Improvement Program Manager, Medtronic

Roundtable #5

Strategies and Real-World Models on Embedding Patient Insights in Research

Paris Barnes, MS, Senior Training Specialist, The PATIENTS Program, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy

Barry Nelson, Lived-Experience Expert, Patient Advocate

Roundtable #6

Boots on the Ground: Community Engagement Strategies for Inclusive Clinical Trials

Erica Alshehabi, Sr AD, Patient Recruitment and Representation, Boehringer Ingelheim

Behtash Bahador, Senior Director, Community Engagement & Partnerships, The Center for Information and Study on Clinical Research Participation (CISCRP)

Natanya M. Candelario, PharmD, MS, Senior Director, Health Equity Inclusive Research, Global Purpose and Patient Experience, BMS

Showing Events in 1 Track from 01:45pm to 03:10pm

Afternoon Track Choices

1:45PM - 3:10PM

Pharma, Biotech and Advocacy Case Studies on Patient Engagement Initiatives and Demonstrating Impact

Participating Companies:

Showing Events in 3 Tracks from 01:45pm to 03:05pm

TRACK 1: Early Patient Engagement
Pacific Ballroom ABC

Track Chair:

Anthony K. Taylor, DHSc, MSPharm, Director, Clinical Patient and Site Insights, AbbVie

1:45PM - 2:05PM

Alexion’s Early Patient Engagement Approach that Boosted Trial Feasibility and Efficiency

Janella Beltran, Patient Recruitment Lead, Global Patient Experience, Alexion, AstraZeneca Rare Disease

Pesh Patel, Founder and CEO, A Kidney Life

2:05PM - 2:25PM

How a Patient-Led Biotech Operationalizes Patient Engagement to Enable Early-Stage Research & Trials in an Underserved Disease

Kurt Harrington, MBA, Patient & Founder/CEO, Ventoux Biosciences

2:25PM - 2:45PM

Pfizer: How to Systematically Embed Patient Engagement Early Across Development

Angie Beyer, MBA, Director of US Patient Partnerships, Chief Medical Office, Medical Evidence Development, Pfizer

Ann-Marie La Ronde-Richard, PhD, Director, Patient Engagement; Translational Clinical Sciences, Pfizer R&D

2:45PM - 3:05PM

Breaking Silos: How to Embed the Patient Voice Early in R&D

Giulia Ghibellini, PhD, Sr Dir, Patient Focused Medical Engagement Lead; Global Medical Affairs, Innovative Medicines R&D, Teva Pharmaceuticals

TRACK 2: Operationalizing & Scaling PE
Pacific Ballroom DE

Track Chair:

Madison Reider, Former Senior Manager, R&D Patient Partnerships, CSL Behring

1:45PM - 2:05PM

How Boehringer Ingelheim Turned Patient Input into Measurable Trial Success: Faster Enrollment, Higher Retention, Better Experience

Kisha Bush, Director, Patient & Site Engagement, Boehringer Ingelheim

2:05PM - 2:25PM

BMS: Incorporating Early Patient Insights for Measurable Impact

Amy Fesmire-Baus, Associate Director, Patient Engagement and Recruitment - ICN Pillar Lead, Bristol Myers Squibb

Josée Pelletier, MBA, Executive Director, Research & Drug Development, Global Patient Outreach, Global Purpose & Patient Experience, Corporate Affairs, Bristol Meyers Squibb

2:25PM - 2:45PM

Roche: Embedding Diverse Patient Insights in the End-to-end Development of Medicines

Ruma Bhagat, MD, MPH, Executive Director, Head of Strategy Population Science Team, Genentech, a member of the Roche Group

Ashley Iyer, Sr Director, Global Patient Partnership, Ophthalmology & Inclusive Health Catalyst, Roche

2:45PM - 3:05PM

How Merck is Operationalizing Health Literacy Across Clinical Research

Maureen Kashuba, Director, Health Literacy Projects; Medical Writing and Disclosure (MW&D), Merck Research Laboratories

TRACK 3: Metrics, ROE & Data-Driven Impact
Pacific Ballroom FGH

Track Chair:

Adrelia Allen, PharmD, Executive Director, Clinical Trial Patient Diversity, Global Clinical Trial Operations, Merck Research Laboratories

1:45PM - 2:05PM

J&J on Co-Designing Trials for Faster Activation, Fewer Amendments, and Higher Retention

Gonzalo Linares, Global Head of Patient Advocacy, R&D, J&J Innovative Medicine

2:05PM - 2:25PM

Measuring What Matters: How Novartis Demonstrates Patient Engagement Impact, From Recruitment Speed to Protocol Optimization

Michaela Dinboeck, Head of Patient Engagement, Novartis

2:25PM - 2:45PM

Sanofi: Leveraging Patient Engagement - Actionable Insights to Drive Meaningful Impact and Value

Sarah Cross, PhD, Senior Health Value Translation Lead, Patient Informed Development & Health Value Translation, Global Research & Development, Sanofi

Heather Pin, Head, Patient Centric Operational Effectiveness | Patient Informed Development & Health Value Translation, Sanofi

2:45PM - 3:05PM

Epicrispr: A Patient-Anchored Leadership Model for Meaningful Rare Disease Engagement and Medicine Development

Amber Salzman, PhD, CEO, Epicrispr Biotechnologies

Showing Events in 1 Track from 03:10pm to 03:50pm

Afternoon Break and Networking

3:10PM - 3:50PM

Afternoon Break and Networking

Graciously Hosted by:

Showing Events in 1 Track from 03:50pm to 04:45pm

Innovative Solutions and Technologies

3:50PM - 4:45PM

Two track Choices: Innovative Solutions and Technologies that Enhance Patient-Enabled Trials and Services

Participating Companies to Date:

Showing Events in 2 Tracks from 03:50pm to 04:25pm

Track 1
Pacific Ballroom ABC

Track Chair:

Jessica Rentcome, Manager, Informed Consent Management, Biogen

3:50PM - 4:05PM

Building Scalable, Patient-Centric Clinical Trial Websites to Improve Global Recruitment and Access

Krista Goedel, Clinical Digital Content Lead, Sanofi

Wes Martz, Senior Director, Client Services, TrialX

4:05PM - 4:15PM

Leveraging Patient Experience Mapping to Drive Regulatory Success and Market Value

Martha Gauthier, Vice President, Patient Centered Outcomes, Lumanity

Angela Wheeler, President, Insight USA, Lumanity

4:15PM - 4:25PM

Designing More Meaningful Endpoints: Translating Patient Priorities Into Measurable Outcomes

Ella Balasa, Patient Expert & Founder, BalasaConsulting

Sébastien Coppe, PhD, CEO, One2Treat

Track 2
Pacific Ballroom FGH

Track Chair:

Pankaj Patel, BSc, Innovation Capability Head – Representation in Clinical Research GCO Innovation / Development, Novartis

3:50PM - 4:00PM

The Patient Between the Data Points: Listening to What Trials Don’t Measure

Aaron J Horowitz, Founder & CEO, Empath Labs

Denisa McKnight, Director of Partnerships, Trialbee

4:00PM - 4:10PM

Humanizing Clinical Trials with Patient Insights

Courtney Oury, Associate Director, Patient Strategy and Insights, Parexel

4:10PM - 4:20PM

Patient Engagement in Practice: From Co-Design to Measurable Impact

Anya Zeitlin, Lead User Researcher, Trial Flow by Little Journey

Showing Events in 1 Track from 04:25pm to 04:25pm

General Session Resumes

4:25PM - 4:25PM

General Session Resumes in Pacific Ballroom DE

Showing Events in 1 Track from 04:30pm to 05:20pm

Afternoon General Session

4:30PM - 5:20PM

Panel: The State of Inclusive Research and Community Engagement to Better Serve All Patients