SCOPE is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2026 SCOPE Participant Engagement Award, recognizing impactful, patient-centered approaches that strengthen education, trust, and engagement in clinical research.
The 2026 award honors Biogen, Proximity Health Solutions, and BlackDoctor.org for their collaborative initiative, Better Together – Sharing Our Lupus Stories.
Better Together – Sharing Our Lupus Stories is a bi-weekly, one-hour digital webinar series created to educate and empower female, African American, and other underrepresented individuals living with lupus, as well as their caregivers and families. Each session is designed as an interactive experience, featuring expert-led discussions co-hosted by a female African American lupus patient and a rheumatologist.
The series focuses on topics that matter most to the lupus community, including disease understanding, management strategies, clinical trials, and broader life considerations such as comorbidities, nutrition, and career navigation. By combining medical expertise with lived experience, the program creates an open, relatable dialogue that resonates with participants and supports informed decision-making.
A defining strength of the Better Together initiative is its emphasis on trust and connection. By creating a safe, supportive environment for sharing personal journeys and asking questions, the series helps participants feel seen and heard. This sense of togetherness is especially important for communities that have historically been underrepresented in clinical research.
Through consistent engagement and accessible education, the program deepens participants’ understanding of lupus and the role clinical research can play in advancing care. At the same time, it positions clinical trials within a broader context of patient empowerment, rather than as a standalone or transactional activity.
The SCOPE Participant Engagement Award recognizes initiatives that demonstrate how thoughtful communication and inclusive design can improve how patients experience and engage with research. Better Together – Sharing Our Lupus Stories exemplifies this approach by blending education, empathy, and community-building into a sustainable engagement model.
Congratulations to Biogen, Proximity Health Solutions, and BlackDoctor.org on receiving the 2026 SCOPE Participant Engagement Award and for setting a strong example of how participant engagement can support more informed, inclusive, and patient-centered clinical research.