TO LAST A LIFETIME

By: Gabrielle Stoller (they/she), Copywriting Intern, Digitas Health

I entered the Publicis Health 2024 summer internship program with excitement and determination. All my training in developing brand identities, crafting thoughtful stories, motivating audiences, designing vibrant visuals — I always strived to create a better world. A reality where community is at the heart.

Starting at Digitas Health, I learned it’s truly possible to lead a career where we are helping, not selling. I didn’t expect to discover a new, boundless purpose “to equip and motivate people to take control of their well-being;” these words live in the Publicis Health mission statement — it’s empowering to know they ring true.

Over the summer, I was allocated tasks focused on human connectivity and understanding. As a writer, I was activated to learn the point-of-view for those with irreversible autoimmune diseases. I developed a framework for a patient journey and worked with creative directors to write net-new webpages, sprinkling in holistic insights to the reality of the diagnosis. I led an internal review and discussed our narrative emphasizing the need for our audiences to be seen as people, not solely patients on a drug. I felt proud to be part of a team where it is clear everyone truly cares to do our best by those who are already tolerating complex health issues.

Further, my manager continued to fuel my passions for community-driven action by connecting me to the Cultural Center of Excellence (CCOE) team where I was able to support the creation of best practices decks. These assets contain thoughtful research on how to best understand and appeal to multicultural audiences. It was my role to invent a vibrant visual brand identity to reflect different types of diversity. I wanted to offer a fresh, dynamic feel to the information by embedding the brand identity with colors, patterns, iconography, and imagery relevant to the audience being highlighted.

This opportunity was beyond meaningful. I felt empowered to help establish cultural representation as standard. I also felt acknowledged as a multifaceted creative. Though my position is defined as a copywriter, I was encouraged to exercise my art direction and creative thinking skills. I proposed we add in quotes from iconic figures throughout the slide decks to more deeply connect the work to the audience and inherently prove the desire — and need — for inclusive media.

Overall, it’s clear the early careers program at Publicis Health wanted to drive our success with a collaborative and embracing energy. Our five-week-long intern project revolved around socializing an existing Publicis Health campaign to solve for barriers in the cancer prevention and treatment space; specifically, relating to an underserved community. My team and I focused on a younger demographic, hoping to instill a proactive attitude toward medical issues. We wanted to tackle the needs for community-awareness and accessibility — landing on the message:

Healthcare Is Self-Care

By encouraging audiences to embrace healthcare as a form of self-maintenance, we created a more personable attitude without the daunting nor sterile side of pharma. We amplified the patient-centric outlook Publicis Health upholds and upon further consideration of why this type of work is so vital to our future, I want to reflect —

• Creating and sharing health equity resources is crucial to prevent the topic from being overlooked.
• With health equity at the forefront of all thinking, we can more quickly resolve inequities when we seem them.
• Building stronger communities is essential to highlight individual voices and perspectives.

Personally, my identity is one of many intersectionalities. Such as being a writer and visual creator despite these sometimes being viewed as siloed capabilities. When I may feel seen in one aspect, my coexisting identities can often go unnoticed. Here at Publicis Health, I was encouraged to show up as my full self. For these reasons, I know there is a deep emotional connection in the power of representation. This driver elicits a desire in us to work harder for each other and to be part of a team that cares. Business-wise it may improve functionality, efficiency … But more than that, I feel individually fulfilled knowing I can aid in positive, solution-oriented messaging for myself, my peers, friends, family, or complete strangers.

Ultimately, we are strengthened in the visibility of our identities. If we pretend to exist homogeneously, there will always be disparities and gaps to overcome. But, if we lay out the components together, we can design bridges to last a lifetime.