Dear GlobalSkin Members,
It was lovely to see so many Members, partners and stakeholders at the virtual retirement party we held on March 10th for Christine Janus. It was a fun event celebrating Christine’s achievements as a patient advocate in dermatology. We will miss our founding CEO but wish her much happiness and new adventures in retirement.
As you know, when I announced Christine’s retirement earlier this year, I shared that our plan was to hire a permanent CEO by the third quarter of 2021. Since that time, the Executive Committee has reconsidered this timing due to ongoing global uncertainty related to the pandemic.
We now expect that this process will take place in early-2022 – providing more time for global stability to be restored. The Executive Committee is pleased and confident that in the meantime, the organization is in excellent hands with Jennifer Austin as interim CEO.
2021 has started positively for GlobalSkin with solid Membership growth. We currently have 180 dermatology patient organizations from 60 countries representing more than 65 disease areas. It is so fantastic to see these numbers steadily climb and our global reach grow.
If you are new to GlobalSkin and are wondering about our Membership - we welcome not-for-profit patient organizations and support groups in dermatology to be part of our global alliance. We network, share resources and have opportunities to learn from experts in the field of health, research and academia through webinars, conferences and workshops. Together we speak with one voice to grow awareness around the impact of skin diseases on patients and their families. I encourage you to learn more and consider applying for our free membership today.
Despite the ongoing pandemic, our organizational priorities are strong for 2021:
- We continue to demonstrate organizational excellence through our Board leadership and Committees focused on Finance, Governance, Membership and Nominations.
- Our Members are always top of mind and we create supportive environments and opportunities for them through our programming.
- Knowledge-based sharing and networking are key to our Members and will be a highlight of 2021 as part of our virtual Conference which takes place on June 3, 2021.
- This year our novel research project GRIDD continues to move forward as researchers collect data and conduct psychometric testing.
- And our stakeholder and fundraising relationships open new and exciting opportunities for GlobalSkin year over year.
I am so pleased you are with us for this journey and part of our global skin movement. I hope you continue to stay in touch by reading our newsletter and checking in on our website.
Warm regards,
Simmie Smith
IADPO Board President
