Over The Counter Special: Enabling Digital Self-Care, With PAGB’s Michelle Riddalls

The UK’s consumer healthcare industry association, PAGB is publishing a series of blog posts for Self-Care Week – an annual awareness campaign in the UK organized by the Self Care Forum, held this year from 17-23 November. In this second part of a special episode of HBW Insight’s Over the Counter podcast, we catch up with the association’s CEO Michelle Riddalls, to talk about what the association is doing to promote digital health. As part of the UK government’s plans for reforming the country’s National Health Service, PAGB is asking for the widely used UK NHS app to not only advise people on how to self-care but also to take users to OTC brand websites that can help them to self-manage their conditions appropriately. We also discuss the advantage of having digital apps and self-care information generally linked to trusted umbrella brands. Timestamps 2:00 – PAGB’s digital health strategy 6:00 – The NHS app and self-care brands 12:00 – Self-care apps 15:30 – The importance of brands Guest Bio Michelle Riddalls OBE is chief executive officer of PAGB, the consumer healthcare association, which represents the manufacturers of branded OTC medicines, self-care medical devices and food supplements in the UK. Prior to joining PAGB, Riddalls was director of regulatory affairs for the Northern European Cluster at Pfizer Consumer Healthcare, where she was integral in the highly successful POM to GSL reclassification of Nexium Control and the Viagra Connect POM to P switch. Michelle has been recognized across a number of industry awards, including the Women in Trade Powerlist in 2024, and was awarded an OBE for outstanding services to consumer health in the King’s 2025 New Year Honours.