NEW YORK, Jan. 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Flashpoint Medica, a member of the Omnicom Group , this week celebrated the return of one of its founding partners, Risa Bernstein, who was forced into an abrupt leave of absence after her son, Benji, was seriously injured in a bus accident a year and a half ago.
Bernstein is resuming her role as Managing Partner of the agency, working side-by-side with Co-founders Charlene Prounis, Flashpoint’s Joint Managing Partner, and Helen Appelbaum, Chief Operating Officer. The three women have worked together since 1999, when Prounis and Bernstein helped found Accel, and Appelbaum served as its Executive Vice President.
“We always hoped that Risa would come back, but we didn’t know when,” said Prounis, who added that Bernstein’s decision -- to focus on her son’s recovery and stay closer to home -- was the one that most parents would make.
According to Bernstein, her intention was always to be at her son’s side for as long as needed, but not to abandon her career. “The secret was to stay current,” she explained. As Benji made progress, she kept up with industry reading, publications and trends.
The experience also allowed her to gain first-hand insight into the doctor/patient relationship, the communication area on which Flashpoint focuses. “I was in the throes of daily communication with a team of multi- specialty healthcare providers,” she added. “It really made me aware of the importance of patient and caregiver education and the huge opportunity that this represents for marketers.”
Bernstein’s unexpected leave began in July 2005, just four months after Flashpoint Medica was launched. Benji, who was then 12, was at summer camp, on his way to an amusement park, when the bus in which he was riding rolled over and fell into a ravine. He was thrown from his seat, causing a serious head injury.
“It was a horrible year-and-a-half, beginning with the phone call that every parent dreads, the one that says, ‘Your child has been in an accident, and has been medevaced to the trauma center. Get here as soon as you can.’ From that moment on, I knew that my first priority had to be my son and his recovery,” she said.
Working from the family’s Montclair, NJ home, Bernstein consulted with clients and kept in close contact with the agency team. Benji had tutors and managed to keep up with his school year. In December 2005, still unable to read, he marked his 13th birthday with a Bar Mitzvah service that celebrated life itself.
For Bernstein, the experience has pinpointed some of the parallels between the Flashpoint culture and her own system of beliefs. “It comes down to understanding the value of commitment,” she said, “and to realizing that some of the most crucial decisions in life are made in those ‘flashpoint’ moments.”
A former managing director of Grey Healthcare Group -- where she and Prounis first began working together some 20 years ago -- Bernstein believes that her return to Flashpoint will speed up the agency’s growth, allowing it to manage the increased volume of work by having a partner assigned to every account. “Our goal is to create an environment where everyone understands the value of synergy,” she added.
During her absence, Flashpoint expanded on several fronts. Today, the agency provides a full range of services, including ‘flashpoint’ analysis, strategic brand development, positioning workshops, competitive claim assessments, and operates a full-service studio with interactive capabilities. It also offers direct to patient initiatives and promotional medical education.
Now that the triumvirate is once again intact, Flashpoint Medica is poised to continue the remarkable growth spearheaded by Prounis and Appelbaum during Bernstein’s absence. To date, its roster of clients includes Genentech for Herceptin (Trastuzumab), a treatment for breast cancer; UCB for Tussionex (hydrocodone and chlorpheniramine) a cough/cold product; Integra Life Sciences for a spinal fusion product; Enzon for Abelcet, an IV anti-fungal agent, Novogyne (Noven and Novartis) for Vivelle Dot (estradiol transdermal system), a hormone replacement patch, Valera for Valstar (Valrubicin) a bladder cancer agent, Vantas for prostate cancer and Supprelin for precocious puberty.
Flashpoint Medica is located at 158 W. 29th Street, 2nd floor, New York, NY 10001-5300. Telephone: 646-823-0150. Fax: 646-823-0152. www.flashpointmedica.com.
CONTACT: Julie A. Laitin Enterprises
Julie Laitin (212) 286-2424 jlaitin@julielaitin.com
Flashpoint Medica
CONTACT: Julie Laitin of Julie A. Laitin Enterprises, +1-212-286-2424,jlaitin@julielaitin.com, for Flashpoint Medica
Web site: http://www.flashpointmedica.com/
