An Interview with Svetlanna F. Davis, Senior Account Director

Great companies are made up of great people. Here at Jumo Health, our most valuable resource is our team. We are a collective of medical folk, product people, designers, and storytellers that share a common goal to change health care today. Through our We Are Jumo Health series, we will introduce you to the dedicated people who are the heartbeat of Jumo Health.

This month, we’d like you to meet Svetlanna F. Davis, who has been with Jumo Health since December 2021.

Can you tell us about your journey and what led you to join Jumo Health?

I started my career in advertising/communications, specifically healthcare advertising. If you asked me what I wanted to become when I grew up, advertising, creative, or medical communications is not what I would have said because it wasn’t on my radar.

I grew up in Guyana prior to starting college in the USA. In secondary school (high school), I decided to pursue the business administration path. When I started college, I didn’t know what I wanted to study, but I knew it needed to be something in business but not too stiff. I joined the American Marketing Association (AMA) club on campus, which at the time was the only business club on campus that wasn’t about accounting. It was through this club that I was introduced to advertising. One year, we went to the annual AMA conference, and I attended a session by the NBA where they were playing a sizzle reel highlighting all the cool things they did for underserved communities through NBA Cares. I was blown away by how they combined business, creativity, and social impact. That was when I decided I wanted to be in marketing because I wanted to combine business with creativity and helping people.

A few years later, I applied to be a fellow in the 4A’s Multicultural Advertising Internship Program (MAIP) and was selected by a healthcare advertising agency. I didn’t know healthcare marketing was a thing, but I ended up loving it because it combined that trifecta for me: business, creativity, and helping people, in this case, patients. After a few years in healthcare advertising, I decided I wanted to see what else was out there in the medical communications field, and that’s when the opportunity to join Jumo Health came along. I liked the mission of Jumo Health, which is to provide educational materials that explain difficult medical concepts in ways people can understand and make informed decisions in the clinical studies space. In my career, I was never exposed to clinical trials or had the chance to work in the pediatric space, so I came to Jumo Health for that exposure and to continue helping patients.

What excites you the most about working at Jumo Health?

The people. We have some incredible writers, graphic designers, and creative minds at Jumo Health. I get excited whenever I have a new project with a logo and study branding because I get to see what cool creative concepts our talented designers will create for our clients’ unique needs.

Can you share a memorable experience you’ve had while working with Jumo Health that made you feel proud?

I have many memorable moments, but the one that stands out the most in my mind is the occasion on Rare Disease Day when the company organized a live screening of a short documentary video I had been working on for over a year. One of our clients assigned us the task of creating a captivating and empowering documentary-style live-action video to narrate the journey of how a particular drug obtained approval due to the collaborative efforts and unwavering commitment of scientists, advocates, and corporate stakeholders over a period of two decades. The video emphasized the unity within the community and the significant impact the drug will have on the lives of patients.

Can you describe a time when you felt that Jumo Health made a real difference?

Every now and then, I’ll receive a note from a client expressing how much our products or videos are assisting patients in better comprehending a study, the mechanism of action (MOA) of a drug, or their disease. However, Jumo Health has also had a genuine impact on me personally. There was a moment when a toddler in my family was hospitalized after an incident, and I was able to provide his parents with one of the Jumo Health comic books that contains literature to aid them in understanding and navigating their situation more effectively. Empowering individuals by providing them with resources tailored specifically to their needs.

If you could have one superpower to help you in your job, what would it be and why?

Superspeed, because we work in a fast-paced, rapidly changing field.