DIA Europe 2019 annual meeting heads to Vienna, Austria in February

DIA, founded as the Drug Information Association, announced three keynote speakers for the upcoming DIA Europe 2019 annual meeting: Dave deBronkart, "e-Patient Dave"; Hans Lehrach, Director at the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics; and Kristel Van der Elst, CEO, The Global Foresight Group. The diversity of experience brought by these three leaders is reflective of the meeting mission to ensure industry, payers, patients, and regulators all have an equal voice in the debates advancing regulatory science and access to healthcare.

These keynote speakers will join 300 speakers in more than 80 sessions, across seven thought leadership streams to drive collaborative answers in medicines development and access to healthcare. Highlights from sessions include Guido Rasi, Executive Director, EMA, will present first look strategies for 2021-2025 during the European Regulatory Town Hall and Niklas Hedberg, Chair EUnetHTA Executive Board, will feature case studies of Real World Evidence in Market Access. All sessions and speaker details can be viewed in the recently launched and continuously updated Searchable Programme. The Programme Highlights provides an overview of the key successes from DIA Europe 2018 and the direction conversations will take in 2019. Cross-functional dialogues will address cutting-edge topics such as the Evolution of Science and Policy, Modern Clinical Research, Access to Medicines, and Digital Disruptors.

The annual meeting theme of, "Join Us at the Crossroads of Healthcare", continues to emphasize the multi-stakeholder, outcome-driven dialogue that occurs at the DIA Europe annual meeting. "Stakeholders come from across the world to hear about how Europe is approaching some of the most important issues of the day for regulatory science, for patients, and for how healthcare is going to develop not only here in Europe, but clearly what contributions we have to make to the broader global debates," as Virginia Acha, Executive Director, Global Regulatory Policy, MSD and member of the DIA Europe Steering Committee, shared in a recent video interview.

Critically important for all development and access stakeholders is understanding current policies as well as future pathways for regulatory science. DIA Europe 2019 brings together representatives from over 35 regulatory, HTA, and patient advocacy agencies throughout the globe, including European Medicines Agency (EMA), Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM), Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency (PMDA), and the Austrian Medicines and Medical Devices Agency (AGES).

"The DIA Europe 2018 annual meeting set a high bar both in terms of attendance and level of engagement. We look forward to building upon that momentum of confronting the tough challenges facing drug development professionals. While DIA’s history has its roots in bringing together regulatory professionals, we’ve evolved to address the interconnectedness of all functions and facilitate discussions across the entire drug development spectrum – from discovery to marketed use. 2019 will be no different." details Thomas Bols, Senior Vice President and Managing Director for DIA Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA).

To learn more and register for DIA Europe 2019 visit, DIAglobal.org/Europe2019. For live updates, follow and join the conversation on Twitter, @DIA_Europe using the hashtag #DIAEurope2019.