M+C Saatchi North America is turning to a longtime pharma pro to serve as its inaugural medical advisor.
The ad agency announced Tuesday that it has recruited Freda Lewis-Hall, M.D., to the role, in which she’ll support M+C Saatchi North America’s growing focus on the health and wellness sector.
Lewis-Hall’s pharma career dates back several decades, featuring stints at Eli Lilly, Bristol Myers Squibb and Vertex Pharmaceuticals. She joined Pfizer in 2009 and stayed there for more than a decade as an executive VP, chief medical officer and, in her final year, chief patient officer, too.
Throughout her career, Lewis-Hall has spoken often about the need to put a “human face” on the work that pharmaceutical companies do, including in conversations with Fierce in both 2015 and 2025. The latter was a podcast interview that took place at Fierce Pharma Week in September and featured Lewis-Hall’s thoughts on how the industry can rebuild credibility and patient trust amid growing misinformation.
“Joining M+C Saatchi North America is an exciting opportunity to help make complex health information accessible to the average patient,” Lewis-Hall said in Tuesday’s announcement.
“I have spent my career focused on patient trust and the responsible communication of health and science,” she continued. “I look forward to advising the team as they help brands engage so they can have more impact with the communities they aim to reach.”
Lewis-Hall’s appointment as M+C Saatchi North America’s first medical advisor comes shortly after the agency made another hire to bulk up its health and wellness expertise.
In late October, the company named Katie Chlada as the managing director of strategic communications and advisory services at M+C Saatchi SSK, a position that puts her at the helm of the agency’s pharma and DTC work.
Like Lewis-Hall, Chlada arrives with plenty of industry experience, including stints at DTC healthcare companies Ro and Calibrate. In fact, their careers share some overlap: Not only did Chlada serve as a chief of staff and communications advisor to Lewis-Hall for a few months last year, but she also led global comms and corporate affairs for Lewis-Hall for several years during her time at Pfizer.