Confirmed speakers

Patient Engagement Solutions & Innovations World Congress 2026 Europe

Transforming Care Through Technology, Empathy, and Collaboration

London, United Kingdom

Thursday 26th - Friday 27th March 2026

KEY INDUSTRY EXPERT SPEAKERS 2026

Clara Bentham, Head of Corporate Affairs UK and Ireland, Sanofi
May Rezai, Chief Operations Officer, MirZyme Therapeutics
Lara Bloom, President and CEO, The Ehlers-Danlos Society
Victoria Hayes, Director Public Affairs, Northern Cluster, Kyowa Kirin
John Rayner, Senior Director, EMEA Region, HIMSS
Rasmus Hjorth, Patient Engagement Director, James Lind Care
Emma Sutcliffe, Founder, Chief Patient Officer, ISPEP
Dr Lydia E Makaroff, Chief Executive, Multiple Sclerosis International Federation
Carole Scrafton, Director & Co-Founder, Flutters and Strutters
Alexandra Charge, CEO, ISPEP
Keith Berelowitz, Founder/CEO, pRxEngage Inc
Steve Clark, Founder and Patient Advocate, Strive for Five
Richard Stephens, Chair, CRAF-UK (Cancer Research Advocates Forum)
Richard Stephens, Chair, CRAF-UK (Cancer Research Advocates Forum)
Dani Motchi, CEO, IAPO (International Alliance of Patients’ Organizations)
David Gillen, Chief Medical Officer, Norgine
Dr Hend Abdelhakim, Assistant Professor, Pharmaceutical Sciences and Healthcare Innovation, GBSH, UCL Faculty of Population Health Sciences
Dr Helen Bulbeck, Director of Services & Policy, brainstrust
Harriet Lewis, Senior Director, Public Affairs & Communications, Chiesi UK*
Marie Pullen, Senior Clinical Operations, GCTO, MSD
Gillian Thwaites, Senior Clinical Research Manager, MSD
Nikul Bakshi, Research Involvement Lead, Parkinson's UK
Derick Mitchell, Executive Director, PFMD
Hannah Humphrey, Lived Experience Expert, Independent Patient Advocate
And much much more...

Victoria Hayes

Director Public Affairs, Northern Cluster

Kyowa Kirin

Victoria Hayes

Director Public Affairs, Northern Cluster

Vicky has 19 years of experience in government affairs and advocacy, with specific expertise in the pharmaceutical sector across Europe. She has led major campaigns on access to innovative treatments, service redesign and the crucial importance of the patient and public voice in the health debate. As a former Governor of the UK's largest mental health trust and today as a mental health advocate she focuses on health equity across the board. She is passionate about innovation strategies, women’s health and systems thinking.

Clara Bentham

Head of Corporate Affairs UK and Ireland

Sanofi

Clara Bentham

Head of Corporate Affairs UK and Ireland

I am a Corporate Affairs Executive with 20+ years’ experience in the Life Sciences sector shaping policy change as a lever for strategic growth, enhancing corporate reputation to support business goals, influencing through storytelling, delivering transformation to drive business performance, and ensuring that the patient voice is at the centre of everything we do. I currently lead Sanofi UK & Ireland's Corporate Affairs Function, where my team and I work to ensure innovative treatments reach the patients who need them most.

May Rezai

Chief Operations Officer

MirZyme Therapeutics

May Rezai

Chief Operations Officer

Dr H May Rezai is Chief Operating Officer of MirZyme Therapeutics, a UK-based biopharmaceutical company developing an end-to-end solution for preeclampsia through precision diagnostics and targeted therapeutics. She is working on the development of M-PREG®, a UKCA-approved digital diagnostic that uses routine maternal blood biomarkers and algorithmic interpretation for instant risk classification, as well as the advancement of MZe786, a hydrogen sulphide–releasing small molecule designed to restore vascular health in preeclampsia.

David Gillen

Chief Medical Officer

Norgine

David Gillen

Chief Medical Officer

LARA BLOOM

President and CEO

The Ehlers-Danlos Society

LARA BLOOM

President and CEO

Coming Soon

Dr Lydia E Makaroff

Chief Executive

Multiple Sclerosis International Federation

Dr Lydia E Makaroff

Chief Executive

Melanie Costin

Director, Patient Engagement & Support

Fight Bladder Cancer

Melanie Costin

Director, Patient Engagement & Support

Melanie Costin is Director of Patient Engagement & Support at Fight Bladder Cancer. She leads the charity’s core support services, including the national online forum, Bladder Buddy peer-support programme, co-created patient information resources, and advocacy linked to NICE treatment decisions. Drawing on her experience as a patient and carer, she focuses on making clinical information accessible and supporting people through complex care pathways. She regularly speaks at national and international meetings and urology events and is a patient expert within the European Association of Urology.

Hilary Nathan

Director of Policy & Communications

Breakthrough T1D

Hilary Nathan

Director of Policy & Communications

John Rayner

Senior Director, EMEA Region

HIMSS

John Rayner

Senior Director, EMEA Region

John Rayner is Senior Director at HIMSS, where he leads Analytical Services across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. With more than 45 years of experience in healthcare and health IT, John brings a unique perspective that bridges clinical practice, operational leadership and digital transformation. He began his career in the English National Health Service (NHS) in 1979, qualifying as a Registered General Nurse before moving into leadership roles spanning acute hospital management, regional health strategy and large-scale shared services. John served as CIO for an acute Hospital Trust in the North of England and as Managing Director of The Health Informatics Service, one of the NHS’s most successful IM&T shared service organisations. Since joining HIMSS, John has become a trusted advisor to health ministries and hospital executives in more than 25 countries. His work centres on helping health systems measure, benchmark and accelerate digital maturity, using the HIMSS Maturity Models as a framework for transformation, assurance and strategic planning.

Emma Sutcliffe

Founder - Chief Patient Officer

ISPEP

Emma Sutcliffe

Founder - Chief Patient Officer

Biopharma, where she leads a dedicated team of Global Patient Directors and is responsible for continuously improving and inspiring excellence in patient engagement practices across the entire organization including a patient champion network of 180 colleagues working with almost 300 patient organizations. As a Medical Biochemist and Psychotherapist, Emma has dedicated her career to amplifying the patient voice in the research and development of medicines and creating patient solutions; accordingly, Emma is one of the most frequently published and awarded leaders in the sector.

Alexandra Charge

Chief Executive Officer

ISPEP

Alexandra Charge

Chief Executive Officer

Dr Liz Clarke

Visiting Lecturer and Patient Engagement Theme Lead

Centre for Pharmaceutical Medicines Research, Kings College London

Dr Liz Clarke

Visiting Lecturer and Patient Engagement Theme Lead

Liz Clark is Visiting Lecturer and Patient Engagement Theme Lead at the Centre for Pharmaceutical Medicines Research within the Institute of Pharmaceutical Science, School of Cancer & Pharmaceutical Sciences at Kings College London Following Medical Qualification and a short period in clinical medicine, Liz spent 28 years working in pharma. Her career encompassed a variety of roles in both commercial and scientific functions, predominantly in Medical Affairs and most recently in Patient Engagement. She left her final Industry role as Vice-President of Medical Affairs at Norgine Ltd. in 2021 and now undertakes a wide-ranging portfolio of activity as an independent pharmaceutical physician. This comprises her role at Kings, patient engagement consultancy, delivery of training and coaching and as one of three Appraisal Leads and Educational Supervisor for the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine. She has recently led the formation of a working group on patient and community engagement at FPM. Her work in patient engagement was recognised in the WEGO Awards 2021 where she was a finalist in the ‘Champion for Patient Engagement’ Category. Liz’s research interests lie in the pragmatic involvement of people affected by health conditions in all aspects of the development and use of medicines, devices and other healthcare interventions, and sharing of best practice in this field. In addition to lecturing and supervising dissertations on the pharmaceutical medicine MSc courses, Liz is in the process of developing stakeholder networks to promote partnership working with patients and communities in medicines development and healthcare both within the Centre for Pharmaceutical Medicines Research at Kings and in collaboration with pharma and the broader stakeholder community.

Richard Stephens

Patient, Chai

CRAF-UK (Cancer Research Advocates Forum)

Richard Stephens

Patient, Chai

Richard has so far survived two cancers and a heart emergency plus sundry late effects and co-morbidities. He has participated in four interventional studies and twelve others. His professional life has included careers in education, journalism, and local government, and he now works with industry, academics and patients around the world. He is a Visiting Lecturer in PPI at KCL, a Eupati Fellow, a Facultymember of CReDO and Eureka, and the founding co-Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Research Involvement and Engagement. Richard was the patient co-author of England’s 2015-20 Cancer Strategy and is a CONCORD-Lancet Global Commissioner on Cancer. He Chairs the UK’s Cancer Research Advocates Forum and use MY data. He is a member of the European Society of Cardiology Patient Forum and the European Taskforce on eConsent, the former Chair of the Stakeholder Forum at BBMRI-ERIC and current Vice-Chair of the European CanSERV project. Richard has been a patient partner with EORTC, CRUK, Rising Tide and NIHR, and with industry. Since 1995 he has helped design and deliver over 70 individual research studies and programmes and has co-authored over thirty published papers. He would like to spend more time on beaches reading history books.

Dani Motchi

CEO

IAPO (International Alliance of Patients’ Organizations)

Dani Motchi

CEO

DrHend Abdelhakim

Assistant Professor, Pharmaceutical Sciences and Healthcare Innovation, GBSH

UCL Faculty of Population Health Sciences

DrHend Abdelhakim

Assistant Professor, Pharmaceutical Sciences and Healthcare Innovation, GBSH

Dr Hend Abdelhakim is an Assistant Professor in Pharmaceutical Sciences and Healthcare Innovation at the UCL Global Business School for Health and Co-Founder of Gustoceutics™, a specialist consultancy focused on medicine acceptability and taste assessment. Her work centres on designing medicines that children can – and want to – take, integrating taste science, age-appropriate formulation design and real-world adherence. Hend’s research began at the UCL School of Pharmacy, where her PhD focused on biosensor-based approaches to quantify bitterness and improve the palatability of paediatric medicines. She has since worked across academia, clinical trials and industry-facing consultancy, using tools such as the TS-5000Z electronic tongue to generate robust taste data that support formulation optimisation, Paediatric Investigation Plans (PIPs) and regulatory decision-making. At UCL, she leads the flagship MSc Research Project module across three postgraduate programmes and supervises a growing team of doctoral and postgraduate researchers. She also serves as Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Lead for her School and is a member of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society Science and Research Committee. Across her roles, Hend is committed to advancing patient-centred pharmaceutical innovation and closing the gaps between formulation design, patient experience and long-term treatment adherence in everyday life.

STEVE CLARK

Founder and Patient Advocate

Strive for Five

STEVE CLARK

Founder and Patient Advocate

Steve Clark was diagnosed with stage 4 colorectal cancer in 2013 and has since become an active patient advocate. He is a regular speaker for audiences of patients, healthcare professionals, researchers, and industry representatives as well as volunteering with several charities including being a Campaigns Ambassador for Cancer Research UK. Steve is a patient representative to several studies and study groups and has been co-author on a number of papers. In 2017 he set up www.StriveForFive.org, a not-for-profit organization with the mission to give hope to fellow patients with stage 4 cancer and to advocate for improved care for those with advanced cancer. He is a business and marketing consultant for the pharmaceutical industry with Redwood Brand Curators and has worked in UK and global pharma for over 35 years in business management and global marketing. Steve is a former Chairman of the Pharmaceutical Marketing Society and was awarded Healthcare Communications Advocate by Communiqué.

CAROLE SCRAFTON

CEO & Co-Founder Patient Advocacy Organisation

FibroFlutters

CAROLE SCRAFTON

CEO & Co-Founder Patient Advocacy Organisation

Carole is a patient with chronic and genetic rare disease, Patient Partner, Expert Patient, Patient Speaker, Author and Researcher. She is the CEO & Co-founder of FibroFlutters Patient Advocacy Organisation for chronic / rare illnesses. Helping to develop, nurture and advocate for a multidisciplinary approach to all aspects of medical healthcare so that chronic illness & rare disease patients can receive the type of care and treatments that they need. Carole utilises varying social media platforms to support people with Chronic illness & Rare Disease, #notjustpatients, and with a multi-stakeholder following. A network used for raising disease awareness and sharing as much up to date information. Carole also advocates for patientcentricity, especially patient engagement best practices and the need for patients to be included within research at early development / preclinical phases. She recognises the need to help educate patients about clinical trials and the reason why they should get involved. Recently as a Patient, and with FibroFlutters, was a team member of an initiative to create: ‘How-To guide’. How to implement Patient Engagement into Early Development and Preclinical phases with Patients Focused Medicines Development.

Harriet Lewis

Senior Director, Public Affairs & Communications

Chiesi UK*

Harriet Lewis

Senior Director, Public Affairs & Communications

Keith Berelowitz

Founder/CEO

pRxEngage Inc.

Keith Berelowitz

Founder/CEO

Keith Berelowitz founded pRxEngage to genuinely engage patients in clinical trials. With over two decades of experience in clinical research, patient engagement, and health technology, Keith understands that patients are vital partners, not just participants. At pRxEngage, we use smart technology and fresh thinking to make it easier for patients to connect with and stay involved in clinical trials. Our focus is on building strong, lasting connections with patients from the outset, ensuring their continued participation. This consistent engagement is key to successful research. Keith’s broad experience includes leading operations and commercial strategy at a UK leading full-service CRO, where his focus on patient connection helped achieve top enrolment. As Chair of the Fulham Research Ethics Committee, he gains a different, equally important, perspective, which helps him create practical, innovative solutions for trials and the people in them. His work with pRxEngage is all about delivering effective, cost-efficient, and ethical research by truly understanding what patients need through direct and ongoing connection.

Dr Helen Bulbeck

Director of Services & Policy

brainstrust

Dr Helen Bulbeck

Director of Services & Policy

Gillian Thwaites

Senior Clinical Research Manager

MSD

Gillian Thwaites

Senior Clinical Research Manager

Marie Pullen

Senior Clinical Operations, GCTO

MSD

Marie Pullen

Senior Clinical Operations, GCTO

Derick Mitchell

Executive Director

PFMD

Derick Mitchell

Executive Director

Nikul Bakshi

Research Involvement Lead

Parkinson's UK

Nikul Bakshi

Research Involvement Lead

Nikul joined Parkinson’s UK in February 2022, where he leads the Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) programme, with a particular focus on integrating the patient perspective into research led by the commercial sector. He collaborates on various international research projects with both academic and commercial organizations, ensuring that the voices of individuals affected by Parkinson’s are heard and actively shape these initiatives. Beyond his work in PPI, Nikul also contributes to advancing the Equality, Diversity & Inclusion (EDI) agenda in research by collaborating with external programmes that aim to address underrepresentation in clinical trials.

Rasmus Hjorth

Head of Communication

James Lind Care

Rasmus Hjorth

Head of Communication

Rasmus Hjorth has several years of experience working with engaging patients in clinical research as Head of Communication in the patient recruitment company, James Lind Care. His work experience centers around how to engage patients in clinical trials which includes working with developing services and communication that increases the awareness and interest about clinical research among patients. He also has years of experience developing advertisement- and information material for recruiting patients to clinical trials, resulting in engaging thousands of patients in several clinical trials. Rasmus holds a Masters degree in communication and besides his job as Head of Communication in James Lind Care he is also a member of the board in the Danish Lung Patient Association.

Senior Representative

Available Shortly - Coming Soon

Astrazeneca

Senior Representative

Available Shortly - Coming Soon

Hannah Humphrey

Lived Experience Expert

Independent Patient Advocate

Hannah Humphrey

Lived Experience Expert

I am a passionate advocate for people living with rare conditions and a mother to a 13-year-old with 22q11 Deletion Syndrome and TANGO2. My family’s journey through complex diagnoses, hospital stays, and everyday challenges drives my commitment to putting lived experience at the centre of rare disease work. I use my perspective as a parent and advocate to ensure rare disease patients are front and centre in research, policy, and care. I am a member of the Participant Panel and Ethics Committee at Genomics England, a Lived Experience Expert with Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity, part of the Patient Advisors for Genomics Education (PAGE) group, and a member of Beacon’s Patient Group Engagement Committee. I also volunteer with TANGO2 UK, where I recently organised the charity’s first weekend away for families to connect, share, and support one another. In addition, I actively contribute to rare disease research by providing patient and family insights that help shape study design, priorities, and outcomes. As an experienced speaker, I have presented at the NHS Genomics Summit in London, the Genomics England Research Summit, and Rare Disease Day events, sharing insights from my personal journey and advocacy work. I am passionate about highlighting the critical role of patients and families as partners—not afterthoughts—in shaping care, research, and policy.

Senior Representative

Available Shortly - Coming Soon

Alexion Astrazeneca

Senior Representative

Available Shortly - Coming Soon

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