A Dose of Creativity
Colin Forsyth 鈥�15 designs solutions for health care communication challenges.
HOW DO YOU CONVINCE doctors that the first FDA-approved medicine made with CBD鈥攁n active ingredient derived from marijuana鈥攊s the real deal?
Traditional pamphlets and printouts just wouldn鈥檛 do, Colin Forsyth 鈥�15 realized.
Instead, Forsyth and his team at The Bloc, a full-service health creative agency, launched a virtual reality experience that takes physicians inside the meticulous manufacturing process for Epidiolex, a highly purified, clinically tested oral medication approved by the FDA for the treatment of two rare and severe forms of epilepsy.
Donning VR glasses, doctors can see every step of the manufacturing process鈥斺�渇rom greenhouse to lab to bottle鈥濃�攁nd meet the patients who are benefiting from the medication, like 4-year-old Grace, who was having 400 seizures a day, which dropped to single digits on the medication.
The project was recently honored with an international health care communication award, the Creative Floor Award for best use of technology. Forsyth, an art supervisor at the independent agency, wasn鈥檛 surprised the project won. But he was surprised to be named 鈥淏est Young Talent鈥� at the same award show for a pro bono project aimed at helping people with dementia.
鈥淚鈥檝e only been in the industry for a couple of years, so I was very humbled,鈥� he said.
Forsyth majored in art at 糖心TV and earned a certificate from the Ammerman Center for Arts and Technology. After graduation, he worked for a social media startup that eventually went out of business, then for a smaller design studio.
鈥淚 was living in New York City and trying to make my way as a designer. I told myself, 鈥榃hatever I do, I should help people in some way,鈥欌�� Forsyth said.
That鈥檚 when he found The Bloc. The company鈥檚 motto, 鈥淏e great to do good,鈥� resonated with Forsyth, despite the fact that he knew very little about the health care industry.
鈥淚 knew I could contribute something different; that distilling lofty scientific problems into something I could understand would be beneficial, because if I can鈥檛 understand it, the audience can鈥檛 either,鈥� he said.
While Forsyth never imagined he would be using his skills to showcase human genome sequencing technology and CBD medications, he has found in health care communications a niche market for innovative creative design.
鈥淚t鈥檚 about tapping into human emotion and empathy,鈥� he said.
In addition to client-based work, The Bloc challenges its employees to think creatively about ways to solve virtually any health problem. Once a month, the company hosts a pitch competition for ideas like 鈥淢emories for Memory Loss,鈥� Forsyth鈥檚 pro bono partnership with Tribute, a platform that allows users to easily create video montages.
The service is marketed as a unique gift for birthdays, anniversaries, weddings and graduations. Users can invite friends and relatives all over the world to make a video for the recipient, and Tribute compiles them into personalized montages.
鈥淚 thought, 鈥楾his could be a health product,鈥欌�� Forsyth said. 鈥淔or people with dementia, watching loved ones share memories can help them live in the moment and not feel so isolated.鈥�
Forsyth partnered with Tribute to create a special version of the platform tailored to the dementia community, then launched the product with video of a family revealing their Memories for Memory Loss tribute to their elderly father with dementia.
鈥淚t was extremely moving. He would hear one memory, and it would trigger something else that the family hadn鈥檛 heard him recollect in years,鈥� Forsyth said.
The campaign was extremely successful, with social media click-through rates far exceeding initial expectations.
鈥淲e are arming caregivers with a way to reconnect with their loved ones,鈥� Forsyth said. 鈥淲hen you are really passionate about the work, the results will follow.鈥�