Bringing the Story to the Press

Kathy Wilson, MS and her Miracle Drug.

This pharmaceutical company had a problem. Its drug was not listed with BC Pharmacare and they knew it could help certain people with MS who couldn’t afford it on their own. Dozens of pharmaceutical companies a day are pitching BC Pharmacare to list their drug, but their arguments are compromised by the evident self-interest.

We identified Kathy Wilson, who was in a wheelchair with MS and was clutching at any straw in an attempt to reclaim her mobility. We interviewed and photographed her, then wrote up her story with a focus on her life before MS which was filled with athleticism. She had uncovered a drug which was not listed with Pharmacare, but which allowed her to walk on her own.

We placed our story with pictures in her community’s newspaper, and it caught the attention of TV, radio, and media province-wide. It also got the attention of the people at BC Pharmacare, who began paying for what she termed her “miracle drug”.

It was the breakthrough that the pharmaceutical company needed, and the Kathy Wilsons of BC were the beneficiaries. We’re proud that we were able to help tell a story that made a difference.