UDOS WOMEN IN OPHTHALMOLOGY
Bernie Ursell
A Passion for Eye Care Education by Chow Ee-Tan
W
ith an extensive career background in health and public relations, Bernie Ursell believes that her past experiences have ultimately led to her current role — and her calling — in the eye care industry. Based in Surrey in the south of England, Ursell is the director of communications and public relations for Allergan Eye Care. In this international role, she supports many key countries and covers internal communications, in particular, crisis communications. CAKE magazine caught up with the busy executive to get to know what it takes for women to thrive in the ophthalmology industry.
Looking Back at Nearly Two Decades of Experience Ursell’s connection with the eye care industry can be traced back to 2002, when she joined Bausch & Lomb and sub-specialized in eye care communications. “Prior to that, I worked in many therapeutic areas including cardiology, dermatology, oncology and even animal health,” said Ursell, who is married to consultant ophthalmologist Dr. Paul Ursell. “It was my husband’s boss who asked why I didn’t work in ophthalmology. He then facilitated the introduction to Bausch and Lomb and the rest, as they say, is history.” At Bausch and Lomb, Ursell worked as a medical writer alongside the communications director — which introduced her to medical education, across the company’s whole cataract
and refractive portfolio. She also worked at CIBA VISION for several years. Ursell’s mother was a nurse, which resulted in an early interest in healthcare. At the same time, writing was always one of her passions. “I also loved writing, so my ambition was to be a medical journalist. I was advised by the National Council for the Training of Journalists to obtain some kind of health training, so I moved to London to train as a nurse,” she shared. After that, Ursell continued to pursue her midwifery training at St. Mary’s Hospital, Paddington, before coming across public relations (PR), which helped fulfill her passion for both writing and health education. “As a stepping-stone into public relations, I worked as a pharmaceutical sales representative in the south of England, which provided valuable insight into the industry,” she added.
A Passion for Journalism and Healthcare From sales, Ursell eventually moved on to her first PR job at an agency in London. She had experience dealing with over-the-counter eye care products but she mainly specialized in neurology and cardiology. “My training as a nurse and midwife means that I have a good understanding of all the systems in the body and many disease areas, making my job significantly easier,”
she said. “From public relations life, I moved to in-house roles and spent around five years working as a freelance medical writer and journalist.” Ursell added that her experience as a freelance journalist has provided deeper understanding of what the media needs, what makes a great story, as well as its constraints. “Having a medical background helps with the technical and human aspects of my job. I spent 10 years as a healthcare professional and I can put myself “in the shoes” of our audience. I know very well what life is like in outpatients, in the wards and operation theatres,” she shared.
Finding a Sense of Belonging with the Right Company Eye care has always been — and remains — a key part of Allergan’s business. Over the last 70 years, the company has launched 125 eye care products and invested a huge amount of resources in new treatments for prevalent eye conditions, including glaucoma, ocular surface disease and retinal diseases, such as diabetic macular edema and retinal vein occlusion. From the very beginning, Allergan has worked in close partnership with ophthalmologists. The company’s first ophthalmic product — an antihistamine eye drop to treat allergic conjunctivitis — was first produced as a nose drop, but following the advice of an ophthalmologist, it was reformulated to become an eye drop and became the first product to treat the condition. Ursell is proud to work for a company
| May 2020
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