EP 24 - Celebrating Milestones and Advancing Patient Advocacy: GAAPP’s Journey in 2025 and Beyond

Welcome to the Passion for Patients podcast, where patient advocacy takes center stage! In this special year-end episode, Tonya Winders—President and CEO of GAAPP, the Global Allergy and Airways Patient Platform—reflects on the incredible achievements and milestones reached in 2025 by the GAAPP community. With over 200 patient advocacy groups spanning every continent and more than 25 disease areas, GAAPP has made significant progress in disease awareness, education, advocacy, and research.Join Tonya Winders as she celebrates standout moments like landmark resolutions at the World Health Assembly, record-breaking campaigns for respiratory diseases, and the growth of educational resources and research collaborations. She also offers an inspiring look ahead to 2026, sharing exciting plans for furthering awareness, driving guidelines updates, advancing policy initiatives, and supporting innovation in respiratory and immunology care.Whether you’re a GAAPP member, industry partner, or passionate advocate, this episode is filled with gratitude, hope, and a call to recharge for another transformative year of making a difference in patient lives worldwide.5 Key Takeaways:1. Unprecedented Global Growth:GAAPP now unites 200 patient advocacy groups across every continent and covers 25+ disease areas—a major milestone in global collaboration.2. Impactful Awareness Initiatives:Participation in 25 World Awareness Days, with record numbers of organizations raising the voice for conditions like chronic cough and asthma.3. Capacity Building & Education:New resources like the Knowledge Hub and Understanding Medications Hub empower advocates and patients with knowledge and tools to manage their conditions more effectively.4. Landmark Advocacy Success:Both the United Nations Political Declaration and World Health Assembly Resolution elevated respiratory diseases as global public health priorities for the first time ever.5. Advancing Research & Innovation:30+ peer-reviewed publications, multiple surveys, and growing clinical trial recruitment drive patient-centered innovation, with exciting treatment breakthroughs expected in 2026.Take a moment to celebrate these shared triumphs and rest up for an action-packed 2026. Stay passionate, stay engaged, and let’s make even bigger strides together with GAAPP—your worldwide patient advocacy family!#RespiratoryHealth #PatientAdvocacy #GlobalAllergy #HealthcareInnovation #GAAPPSummit