2022 Social Health Awards: How Pharma Can Give Back to Patient Leaders

Published June 13th, 2022 | 3 Minute Read

Patient leaders are the driving force of social health – the dynamic, real-time action people take to find meaningful connections and share information that impact the health journey. In a recent survey conducted by Health Union, 95% of people living with chronic conditions noted they use online social resources for health reasons, proving just how crucial social health is in today’s patient experience. 

Social health creates space for people living with complex health conditions to find information, connection and validation, resulting in a mutually beneficial impact for both patients and the healthcare industry. Without the contributions of patient leaders in online health communities, on social media and beyond, social health would not be possible. 

For this reason, Health Union recognizes patient leaders for their hard work and advocacy through the Social Health Awards (formerly the WEGO Health Awards), with the goal of empowering and celebrating those who are essential to the ongoing conversations and meaningful connections made through social health.

Show Your Dedication to Patient Centricity by Getting Involved 

Your participation will lay a strong foundation in emphasizing your commitment to patient advocacy efforts:

  • Nominate a Patient Leader (June 13 – July 1st, 2022): If you’ve partnered with or simply crossed paths with a patient leader who stands out from the crowd, recognize their efforts by nominating them for one of 10 categories:
    • Healthcare Collaborator 
    • Community Cultivator 
    • Advocacy Trailblazer 
    • Social Media Master 
    • Creative Contributor 
    • Rookie of the Year 
    • Best Team 
    • Revolutionary Researcher 
    • Caregiving Champion 
    • Lifetime Achievement 

* Patient and caregiver leaders who are based in the U.S. and at least 18 years old can be nominated

Get involved today: 

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This year, the Social Health Award winners will be honored alongside industry at the 2022 Fierce Pharma Marketing Awards Ceremony during the Digital Pharma East conference in Philadelphia on October 19th. In years past, the awards program has been impactful and inspiring for patients and industry alike:

As someone who has worked in healthcare for over 10 years, I had a realization that we can become quite transactional in our language and our approach to uncovering unmet needs. We start to become immune – when you see disease every day, when you look at stats on health every day – it begins to blur into a state of ‘normal’. Attending the WEGO Health Awards and hearing from individuals so personally and so passionately taking charge of their situation (for themselves or a loved one), and being vulnerable enough to let us into their lives… It moved me and my entire team. It shook us through stories and testimonials how real and devastating illness can be, but also motivating when you can help others through your experience or advocacy for change.”  

Head of Digital, Healthcare Company 

Frequently Asked Questions

The Social Health Awards are split into four different phases:

  • Nominations |  June 13-July 1st
  • Endorsements | June 27th -July 1st
  • Judging | July and August
  • Celebration | September & October

Anyone patient or caregiver leader based in the U.S. and at least 18 years old who is an active and leading member of an online community, and making a difference in healthcare, is eligible to be nominated. They should provide the community with valuable information and support to make a difference for other patients and caregivers.

Think about the advocates and influencers you see moderating Facebook communities and website forums, blogging about their health journey, collaborating with healthcare companies, publishing articles on health sites, and presenting on national stages. Patient leaders have started nonprofits, published podcast episodes, and authored books – there is no shortage of patient leaders’ contributions to the world, so let’s recognize as many of them as we can for their talents, contributions, and commitment.

Go to the Social Health Awards nominations page to get started. Tell us who you want to recognize, where you follow them online, and the Social Health Award you think they should win. You can nominate as many patient leaders as you’d like.

Yes! We encourage you to nominate patient leaders for the most appropriate awards category. If you think they fit multiple categories, feel free to nominate for more than one.

The Social Health Awards Nominee Directory is a quick and easy way to discover, follow, and connect with top patient leaders.

There are six finalists in each award category. To ensure the integrity of the program, half of the finalists will be determined through endorsement count and half will be selected through the Health Union judging process. Finalists are selected in two ways:

  1. The top three endorsed nominees within a Social Health Awards category automatically move on as finalists.
  2. The subsequent three finalists in each category are selected by a first round of patient leader judges. The finalist judging panels are composed of past award winners, foundations, and organizations.

Once the top six finalists in each Social Health Awards category have been selected, we’ll announce the finalists and then move into the final round of judging with healthcare industry thought leaders.

Health Union is partnering with Fierce Pharma to celebrate and honor the inaugural Social Health Award winners during the Fierce Pharma Marketing Awards at Digital Pharma East on October 19th. If you are interested in attending, visit the Digital Pharma East website.

For questions about healthcare industry involvement in the 2022 Social Health Awards, please email pr@health-union.com.

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