Increasing Representation in Pharma
This May, Roivant Sciences and Roivant Social Ventures (RSV) partnered to launch our inaugural Diversity in Pharma Internship Program, providing real-world drug development experience to qualified PharmD students from diverse backgrounds.
Hannah is interning with Roivant Sciences' Research & Development Team, where she will:
Assist with all quality matters related to drug substance and drug product.
Review and present on regulatory guidance documents, with a focus on Inspection Readiness.
Assist with supplier qualifications on Good Manufacturing Practices, Laboratory Practices, Documentation Practices, and Clinical Practices.
Communicate the importance of a Pharmaceutical company’s Quality Organization to pharmacists, pharmaceutical scientists, and laypersons.
Develop an understanding of the computerized systems that support quality functions.
Hannah is passionate about pursuing a career in pharma, because she has experienced first-hand how impactful medicines and medical intervention can be on quality of life. At 18 she was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. The support that she received from local pharmacists, who meaningfully improved her access to the medicine she needed, was pivotal in helping her navigate this challenging phase in her health journey. Inspired by this arduous experience, Hannah changed her career trajectory to pursue pharmacy school.
Hannah has developed her leadership experiences to date through:
Working with local and state representatives to lead legislation change in North Carolina to expand access to insulin through T1International USA's Insulin for All campaign.
Serving as the University of North Carolina Eshelman School of Pharmacy's 2025 Class President.
Completing inpatient internships with Cone Health System in both operations and direct patient care.
Becoming a Gender Affirming Care Coordinator for the Student Health Action Coalition and working in their community clinic.
Serving as the President of the North Carolina State College Diabetes Network.
We sat down with Hannah to learn more about her proudest accomplishments to date, what personally drives her work, and how her summer internship will impact her career development.
What are your proudest accomplishments to date?
"I got involved with T1International USA's work to expand access to Diabetes medications and supplies when I was first diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. We started by creating the North Carolina chapter and developing educational materials for the community. Our social media work even picked up traction with the most recent presidential campaign, and they asked us to connect them with local North Carolina residents to hear their stories about their treatment stories! On a parallel path I was also working with the North Carolina State College Diabetes Network to develop educational events, such as "Safe Eats" meals on campus. Now we are developing a bill to continue this work by creating a way for patients to get access to emergency medicine when needed, based off of Minnesota's Alec Smith Law.
In my current work with the Student Health Action Coalition we are holding a free health clinic in Chapel Hill for people who need access to healthcare, including those who don't have insurance. The clinic is completely student-led and run, with pharmacy services only being incorporated over the course of the last two years. Through advocating for our specialty to be a part of this team we have been able to assist in med histories, teach people how to do medication injections and navigate dosage forms, and more. Our work with the student team has allowed the clinic to take more patients from the clinic's waitlist, and we are currently expanding our involvement to take on additional pharmacy interns and coordinators!"
What type of impact do you hope to make through your work?
"To help people the way that I have been helped.
To empower myself and others to feel comfortable asking questions and to continuously learn in the pursuit of improving our health.
To inspire others to also get involved in healthcare and to advocate for those who need our help."
What are you most looking forward to about your internship this summer?
"I adore chemistry, which was my concentration during undergrad. When I was exposed to the Chemistry and Manufacturing Controls lecture through RSV's Making Medicines course, I was immediately captivated. I can't wait to learn about chemistry's impact on stability, storage, dosage forms, and quality.
I was incredibly impressed by the talent at Roivant and this unique opportunity to get to work with them directly to better understand the real ins and outs of medicines, patient populations, and how drug development works in the real world!"
Diversity in Pharma Internship Program
Equal access to medicine and medical care should be a fundamental human right. Unfortunately, people of color, women, low-income populations, and the uninsured often cannot access the medicine they need either– because they cannot afford it, or because it has not been developed.
Biopharma offers a solution to healthcare inequities, but systemic issues exist within the space– including a lack of diversity in leadership. The pharmaceutical industry is overwhelmingly white and male, especially in the C-suite. Biopharma executives in North America, Europe, and Australia are less than a third female, according to a 2021 report from the Biotechnology Innovation Organization. About one in five CEOs is female only one in four is a person of color, and in the broader healthcare field, only 1% of CEOs are women—the lowest of any industry (Korn Ferry).
By increasing racial and gender diversity in future leaders of the biopharma industry, we can start to dismantle these inequities.
During the Spring 2023 semester all interns completed RSV's "Making Medicines" course at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, the top ranked School of Pharmacy in the United States. This innovative course was designed to introduce PharmD students to the new drug approval process and key issues in drug discovery, pre-clinical testing, clinical trials, FDA approval, and global access to medicines. The course is taught by Lindsay Androski, RSV Founder & CEO, and Scott Singleton, Associate Professor at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy.