Reverba: Amplifying Patient Voices In Healthcare

Published in Healthcare Business Review
By: Cheryl Lubbert, Co-Founder and CEO

While patient-focused drug development (PFDD) is the aspirational goal for every pharmaceutical company, achieving it is often more complex than anticipated. The main reason is many pharma companies view PFDD as a technological maneuver when rolling out patient engagement initiatives. Fully adopting it necessitates a transformation in organizational culture and mindset—a change that must be woven into the very fabric of the company and lead from the C-Suite of the organization.

There’s an opportunity to improve this—with Reverba™.

A global leader in patient and healthcare engagement, Reverba’s mission aligns seamlessly with its name; to amplify patient voices and perspectives.

Reverba is a global patient engagement company that creates transformative tech-enabled solutions to build a bridge between patients and biopharmaceutical companies, from discovery to clinical development through commercialization. Formed from the mergers of Health Advocacy Strategies, Patient Health Perspectives and Health Perspectives Group and rebranded as Reverba in 2021, the company consolidated its clinical and commercial divisions to provide comprehensive custom patient engagement solutions with its proprietary reverbaBRIDGE™ technology platform.

By assisting pharmaceutical, biotech, and healthcare organizations to directly connect with patients, the company transforms how they think and act to make compliant, patient-centered actions possible.

Reverba delivers patient engagement solutions that blend deep relational understanding with state-of-the art technology while maintaining a strong commitment to privacy and security in order to nurture long-term relationships with health consumers.

It serves as a conduit between two key areas—the clinical and commercial aspects of healthcare. On the clinical front, Reverba works to refine trial designs, boost recruitment rates, and improve the patient experience during trials by engaging patients directly in the process. On the commercial side, it engages healthcare consumers throughout the product lifecycle to foster relationships, influence behavior, and cultivate patient ambassadors that share their experiences, within the guidelines of privacy and compliance.

Whether aiding clinical operations teams in trials, assisting companies in launching new products, or supporting organizations with existing product lines, Reverba’s engagement is all-encompassing. Remarkably, this often extends beyond a product’s patent life, continuing partnerships with organizations whose products remain marketable post-patent.

“We channel these empathic engagements through our reverbaBRIDGE platform, working with people throughout their patient journey to inform and improve their access to information and others with the same condition. Our goal is to equip every person with a health condition (so everyone!) with support, tools, and platforms that enable them to express their needs and access vital information to effectively manage their health issues,” says Cheryl Lubbert, CEO of Reverba, highlighting the platform’s patient first philosophy.

Orchestrating Patient-Centric Engagements

With two decades of experience, Reverba has crystallized its success around three core pillars. The first pillar involves a deep understanding of patient needs, the foundation for the company’s tailored engagement strategies. Building on this initial understanding, the second pillar is the integration of reverbaBRIDGE to foster a collaborative environment between healthcare companies and patients, in order to improve the patient experience as they navigate the complexities of healthcare. The third pillar involves Reverba’s partnerships with clinical operation teams during trials. Here, the company offers a holistic suite of solutions to enhance healthcare outcomes and patient satisfaction throughout the lifecycle.

Integral to this holistic approach is Reverba’s use of multiple channels for engagement, including traditional and social media. This strategy not only deepens pharmaceutical companies’ relationships with individuals but aligns perfectly with the expectations of today’s digitally savvy healthcare consumers.

Over the years, this comprehensive strategy has enabled Reverba to forge alliances with more than 30 biopharmaceutical companies and healthcare organizations. Currently, it collaborates with 7 of the top 10 biopharmaceutical firms, and its clinical expertise extends across an impressive 450 disease areas. What sets Reverba apart is the company’s significant experience finding and engaging diverse and specific patients to share their stories, even those with rare diseases and cancers. The company’s expertise includes both patients that are on specific therapies and/or living with a variety of conditions.

The Reverba Effect: Amplifying Patient Voices

One of the critical insights Reverba has gleaned regarding the challenges of patient enrollment and engagement is the aversion of many individuals to be labeled as ‘patients.’ It often makes them feel less in control of their healthcare journey. This understanding is central to Reverba’s mission to empathize with those navigating health issues.

Reverba employs a wide range of creative engagement methods, from social media, online communities and one-on-one conversations to live speaking events, educational materials and support groups. It pioneered compliant mentor programs for the industry and continues to innovate new communications channels and technology tools to enhance its engagement efforts.

The goal is cultivating a network of patients willing to provide ongoing insights. This enables clients to gain a more nuanced understanding of the factors that influence patient behavior and outcomes.

A notable success came through a collaboration on a Crohn’s disease trial. The original trial protocol called for frequent colonoscopies every three months—a proposal that met with understandable resistance from the patient advisory panel. After hearing the advisory panel’s concerns set up by Reverba, a pivotal change was made to the trial design. The protocol was revised to be more patient-centric, resulting in greater participant willingness.

A Pillar of Support in a Complex Landscape

‘Transforming Passion into Action to Advance Healthcare’ is more than a tagline for Reverba; it’s a guiding principle. The company understands trust in healthcare is not confined to interactions with medical professionals alone. It also encompasses a patient’s relationship with their families and friends.

Building on this trust is the company’s mentorship programs. They address a critical emotional aspect often overlooked in healthcare— the overwhelming feeling patients experience upon receiving a new diagnosis. While patients may turn to online resources for advice, they often seek the counsel of someone who has experienced the same medical journey.

In one notable case, a woman who had not disclosed her HIV diagnosis even to her family shared her story anonymously through Reverba. Her aim was to offer support and guidance to others facing similar challenges, demonstrating the program’s capacity to provide a safe space for sharing sensitive information.

This shows the strength of Reverba’s mentor relationships, which lie beyond offering informational support. Over the years, these programs have had a ripple effect, touching the lives of countless patients.

A Gold Standard on Compliance-Driven Engagement

Reverba’s annual anonymous client surveys consistently rank it ‘the best in the business’ for establishing enduring relationships. It solidifies this trust through SOC 2 Type 2 and ISAE 3400 certifications, ensuring top-tier data security and privacy.

Another key pillar is mastery of compliance regulations, thanks to its multifaceted team. This team comprises professionals from diverse sectors like social work, nonprofits, medical research, legal affairs, public relations, publishing, and technology.

Lubbert herself has worn many hats—from research and corporate roles to involvement in various service organizations. Whether shaping a brand strategy, crafting educational materials, or conducting lab research, the central mission is always to equip patients with knowledge and a path to better self-efficacy.

The focus isn’t just a professional goal for her but a personal mission. This motivation makes Reverba a go-to partner for navigating the highly regulated landscape.

Expanding Horizons

As healthcare needs know no borders, Reverba has set its sights on a global scale. It actively explores new avenues to enrich patient experiences and amplify their voices.

This expansion is deeply rooted in diversity, equity, and inclusion principles. Reverba is committed to widening the healthcare dialog to encompass voices from all walks of life, not just traditionally active participants. This focus on inclusivity extends to ensuring access to medicines.

With a focus on equity, Reverba’s commitment is to deliver a platform for everyone that ensures their distinct healthcare needs are considered and met.