Let me tell you a story. Maureen returned home after visiting her mother, Helen, who had been diagnosed with dementia. Her phone rang, and when she picked up Helen started yelling at her and accusing her of stealing. Maureen was heartbroken. This was her mother. The person who loved her like no one else. And now she believed things about her daughter that she would never do. Confused and despondent, Maureen took Helen to her doctor where they learned about a symptom of her disease they were unfamiliar with—dementia-related hallucinations and delusions. Knowing this allowed Maureen to stop taking things personally. It helped her push through the bad days and be by her mother’s side through the very worst parts of her disease.
That true story serves as the heart of the “More Than Memory Loss” campaign from Acadia Pharmaceuticals and Heartbeat. While they could have just detailed the facts behind dementia-related hallucinations and delusions, they knew it wouldn’t have the same impact. Because stories are capable of transporting us into the minds and hearts of characters (real or fictional), so we can feel what they feel and understand things far better than we could with just the facts.
As narrative marketing like this becomes more prominent in our industry, we wanted to highlight the best examples our industry has to offer. So, we created the new Masterclass of Storytelling as part of our annual Greatest Creators issue, which has always been dedicated to the creative mastery within our industry. Click here to experience these stories in full force with additional information, images, links, videos, and more.
However, I have one more story for you that you won’t find there. It is the story of how Mikael Dolsten, MD, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer and President, Worldwide Research, Development and Medical at Pfizer, led the company’s efforts during COVID to develop the first vaccine and the first oral anti-COVID pill. We are thrilled to announce that Dr. Dolsten is this year’s 2022 Uber ELITE recipient. We will tell his story, and those of the rest of our ELITE winners, in our upcoming May issue. But you will also have the chance to meet Dr. Dolsten in person at this year’s ELITE Awards Celebration on July 13th at 230 FIFTH in NYC. So, be there and hear his story straight from the source.
