UCB sponsors ‘Hack Epilepsy’ digital event
pharmafile | March 12, 2015 | News story | Medical Communications, Sales and Marketing | Keppra, UCB, epilepsy, hack, lacosamide, levetiracetam, vimpat
Belgian biopharma firm UCB says it will be sponsoring a ‘Hack Epilepsy’ event this year to help support patient needs through digital tools and services.
The hackathon – a gathering in which computer programmers collaborate intensively on software projects – will be held simultaneously in the US and Belgium.
The event will bring digital experts, epilepsy specialists and patients together to build prototype digital tools aimed at supporting people living with epilepsy.
“Epilepsy affects millions of people all over the world. At UCB, we want to support patients, their families and caregivers, with digital solutions that can connect them to valuable sources of knowledge and experience that can make a meaningful difference to their day-to-day living,” says Erik Janssen, who is the vice president of global patient solutions epilepsy at UCB.
“Hackathons are rapidly establishing themselves as a fast, effective way to develop innovative digital healthcare solutions. Creative, highly skilled online developers and designers relish the challenge of coming up with practical, workable prototypes that can be of real value to people with a severe disease such as epilepsy.”
Participants will face challenges during the event that include accessing effective support and reliable information; empowering people to talk about their epilepsy; and knowing what questions to ask following diagnosis.
Coincidentally epilepsy is a key focus area for the Brussels-based firm who have approved epilepsy offerings via its Vimpat (lacosamide) and Keppra (levetiracetam).
UCB also recently established regulatory milestones for its investigational antiepileptic drug brivaracetam in Europe and the US, where it will be reviewed to treat adult epilepsy patients with uncontrolled partial-onset seizures.
The firm filed approval for the treatment after reporting positive results during its Phase III study back in July last year, and this newest product is “leading the way for UCB’s new era of patient-centric solutions”, it says.
Epilepsy is a chronic neurological disorder affecting around 65 million people worldwide and more than two million people in the US alone. The condition can develop at any age with one in 26 people developing epilepsy in their lifetime.
The hackathon will also give teams the chance to compete to win prize money for the most innovative prototype. Proposals will be judged on their ability to meet the real needs of people with epilepsy – in addition to other criteria such as the feasibility of implementation.
‘Hack Epilepsy’ takes place in Brussels and Atlanta between the 24 – 26 April.
Tom Robinson
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