Meet Our Team: Rebecca Block
Rx4good’s Senior Director of Research, Dr. Rebecca Block, joins us in this week’s Meet Our Team blog. Rebecca, who joined Rx4good in 2021, earned her PhD in Social Research and has both deep research and clinical social work experience. She oversees our research activities and has a special expertise in primary data collection and moderating and facilitating patient councils.
Q: What have been the most exciting and daunting parts of transitioning from your previous roles to joining Rx4good?
What’s been most exciting is the opportunity to use all the different skills and knowledge that I have – it really feels like all the pieces are coming together! The most daunting part might be that I had never worked on the industry side before. I was working on the advocacy side, which is how I met the Rx4good team. Now that I’m at Rx4good and able to work with both the advocacy and industry, it feels like everything has come full circle.
Q: What services have sparked your interest so far?
I love to work on patient and caregiver councils or ad boards. Working with different groups of people – whether it’s patients, caregivers, advocacy leaders, researchers, or health care professionals – and creating an environment that feels safe and empowering is key. Since each group and topic is different, I’m able to be thoughtful and innovative in planning a session where all participants have the space to contribute and reveal the richest insights. It also requires being quick on my “feet” to be responsive to the group and the flow of conversation, knowing how to strike a balance between getting the questions answered and exploring the questions we didn’t even know to ask as they come. It allows me to really use all of my skills, both clinical and research. And more than anything, I am grateful to have the opportunity to hear and hopefully amplify voices that need to be heard.
Q: What have you learned about your clients?
It’s been really interesting to see the diversity of our clients’ backgrounds and where they’ve come from. Many of them have come from industry, but many others have come from the advocacy or clinical worlds. I’ve also learned how the structure of advocacy varies from client to client. There’s not just one way the patient advocacy role or team looks. It looks different for almost every client.
Q: How would you describe Rx4good’s culture?
Our culture is extremely collaborative and very supportive, with a very clear focus on patient-centricity and excellence. You’re expected to be awesome, and everyone around you is going to make sure that you will be awesome, and you’re going to make sure everyone else can be awesome, too. The bar is very high, but you have all the tools you need to reach it.
Q: Where do you want to make your mark?
I want to continue to raise the bar and take our research services up a notch, because I think it’s a competitive edge. But more than that, I know it can help us make an even bigger difference for patients. We’re not just listening and summarizing, but we’re using real qualitative analysis methods to analyze the insights we’re collecting. We’re getting the richest, deepest, most meaningful insights for our clients so that patients can be served even better.
Q: Why do you think patient-centricity is important?
The reality is that there isn’t a health care system without people to take care of – it really is the whole point. Having been both a patient and an advocate for family members and friends, I can see what a difference it makes when the system cares – whether that’s getting care from a team that focuses on patient-centricity or making sure patients are included in the design and implementation of clinical trials. When patients are heard, you can see how it improves the care and research – and ultimately the outcomes for patients.
Q: Tell us about you as a human.
My daughter Vivian is going to answer this one: “She’s very intelligent, interesting, sweet, warm but strict, and when you need a hug, she is the one!”
-Q: Favorite food? Sushi
-Q: Favorite movie or TV show? The Muppets, both the shows and movies, and Making the Cut
-Q: Favorite place you’ve ever been? It’s a tie between seeing gorillas in the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest in Uganda and exploring Japan with Vivian.
-Q: Your hobby? Baking, designing clothes, hanging out with my kid, playing games (especially Monopoly, Scrabble, and Cranium), storytelling, and traveling
