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World AD Day 5-Year Anniversary
Five years of World AD Day:
What comes next?
This year, we celebrate progress made by patient and advocacy communities in raising awareness of atopic dermatitis (AD) over the past five years. Since World AD Day (also known as World Atopic Eczema Day) was founded in 2018, there has been a significant shift towards more personalized patient care, patient empowerment, and a revolution in treatment options for different age groups. Discover different perspectives from the AD community below, as they mark the fifth World AD Day by reflecting on the great advancements made to date in patient care and look ahead to what further progress must take place to improve the lives of people living with AD.
World AD Day: How it started
World Atopic Dermatitis Day (also known as World Atopic Eczema Day) was co-founded in 2018 by the International Alliance of Dermatology Patient Organizations (also known as GlobalSkin) and the European Federation of Allergy and Airways Diseases Patients’ Associations (EFA), to raise awareness about the disease around the world. Since World Atopic Dermatitis Day was established, the AD community comes together every year on September 14 to bring global attention to the disease, speak up about the challenges that impact those living with AD, and recognize the need for collective advocacy to improve AD care and treatment.
Mobilizing the global AD advocacy community
Hear from leaders from the AD patient advocacy community as they share their perspectives about what has changed over the past five years since their organizations co-founded World AD Day, and what advancements they hope to see in the years ahead.
“When I think about the past few years and the progress that the AD community has made, I really think that the biggest one is the community itself: how it has grown, how it has come forward, how it has joint messages and actions.”
Susanna Palkonen, Director of EFA
“In five years’ time, if we’ve done a really good job as advocates, we will hopefully see atopic eczema receive the healthcare prioritization that it truly deserves. Patients will be met with understanding, compassion and support by their communities and their governments.”
Jennifer Austin, CEO of GlobalSkin
Managing AD
Discover how care for people living with AD has transformed over the last five years from the perspective of a leading dermatologist. See how healthcare providers can build on this progress by continuing to raise awareness about AD and widely adopting integrated, holistic care.
“We must continue to invest in patient and healthcare provider education, in disease awareness, in changing the way payers and policymakers think about AD, and in reducing barriers to appropriate care.”
Dr. Stephan Weidinger, Professor of Dermatology at Christian-Albrecht’s-University Kiel and Vice Head of the Department of Dermatology at the University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein
Living with AD
Get personal insights from a patient advocate and social media influencer on what it's like to live with AD. Learn more about her inspiration to advocate for positive change in the AD community, how she uses the connection of digital platforms to support patients and caregivers, and the potential of these platforms to further empower the AD community in the future.
“There's been a lot of progress over the last five years in terms of awareness about AD. People are actually talking about living with it, whereas before I felt like we were all living with AD in secret. We were all hiding under our turtlenecks and nowadays people are showing their skin and they're showing it proudly.”
Kortney Kwong Hing, Social Media Influencer and person living with AD
Advocating for change
How have patient organizations transformed AD care? Hear from an AD champion as she shares the impact that the AD community's advocacy has made over the last five years, and what they're focusing on for the future.
“With the involvement in things like World Atopic Eczema Day campaigns, we're bringing our eczema community together and we're doing our own advocacy campaigns for access to better treatment and support. We really have seen lives changed.”
Melanie Funk, Managing Director of Eczema Support Australia (ESA)
Play your part in shaping the future of AD care. Connect with your local advocacy group today.
For contacts in your country, please visit:
Agents of Change
The 'Agents of Change' AD Challenge is a global grants initiative helping to solve some of the common challenges that people with AD face.
Read moreThe AD-GAP Survey
The Atopic Dermatitis Global Adolescent & Pediatric Survey is a global study designed to explore the impact of AD for children and teens.
Read more
Initiatives
We're always striving to Change AD for the better. Get involved with our initiatives and see the change you can make.
Learn more