OP0321 PARE A NOVEL APPROACH TO REACH PATIENTS FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES – VIRTUAL CONFERENCE REUMANET
Authors: Mitchell Silva, Nele Caeyers
Journal: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases (2019)

<h3>Background</h3> Every two years, ReumaNet organises a physical conference for patients addressing various topics of rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMD). Traditionally, about 200 individuals attend this event. For the last edition however, ReumaNet swapped the physical event with a virtual one. This allowed us to reach far more people, who could attend the 'conference' online whenever they wanted, over a period of four weeks. <h3>Objectives</h3> The objective was to assess the impact, reach and patient experience of such a virtual event. <h3>Methods</h3> In this virtual event, more than twenty presentations were pre-recorded and put into an online system. Virtual booths were offered to partner organisations to offer educational material in pdf's or in video format. The board of ReumaNet set up an interesting program, covering the following aspects: Medical evolution in RMD's: explanation about new treatments in various indications, information on new medication Living with an RMD: information about the psychological, vocational, social and physical aspects of having an RMD The future of healthcare: information on the changing technology in healthcare and sustainability of the healthcare system Testimonials: video testimonials of patient advocates All information was pre-recorded and integrated into an online portal. The lectures showed both speaker and the slide set, moving along with the presentation. Registration was free and anonymous. Only email was required in order to validate the registration. Visitors also had the option to answer surveys on various topics and score every video presentation. All material could be downloaded (PowerPoint presentations, brochures, videos). This virtual symposium was accessible from mid-September till mid-October, covering four weeks around World Arthritis Day. People could come and go, and log in at any other point in time from different devices, so it was not necessary to view all at once. <h3>Results</h3> The results were very promising, having over 1.300 registrations (compared to 200 registrations at a physical event). The social media reach was over 140.000 and the event also increased the visibility of the Facebook page of ReumaNet. On the platform itself there were over 5000 video views and over 3000 visits of the virtual booths of partner organisations. General satisfaction rates were high: 96% of the visitors indicated they were most likely to visit a similar event in the future. Over 80% gave the event a + 4 star rating out of 5. <h3>Conclusion</h3> This event was considered to be very successful. The results showed that this virtual event exceeded our expectations and had an impact on the visibility of our organisation via social media. This type of event has been expanded towards sister organisations in rheumatology, such as the Belgian organisation for healthcare professionals and can serve as an innovative way for other European patient organisations to attract new profiles and increase awareness of RMDs among the broad public.&nbsp; <h3><b>Disclosure of Interests:</b></h3> Mitchell Silva Consultant for: For Pfizer, MSD, Janssen, Merck, BMS, Sanofi, Novartis, AstraZeneca, Speakers bureau: For Pfizer, MSD, Janssen, Merck, BMS, Sanofi, Novartis, AstraZeneca, Nele Caeyers: None declared