Walk a While in their Shoes
Patient Education. New Perspective.
To raise awareness of lupus—a disease often overlooked during diagnosis—a leading global biopharma company partnered with Jack Morton to create an experience that would educate healthcare professionals and help accelerate treatment for patients. The challenge was to make the complexities of lupus more relatable and memorable for clinicians. Jack Morton responded with the concept “Walk in Their Shoes,” an interactive exhibit designed to humanize the patient journey. Drawing from real lupus patient personas—such as The Overwhelmed (slipper), The Actress (high heel), and The Warrior (hiking boot)—the experience used symbolic footwear to represent different symptom profiles and lived experiences.
Attendees spun a wheel to determine which patient persona they would explore, receiving a corresponding RFID-enabled shoe. When placed on an interactive podium, the shoe triggered diagnostic insights and patient data tailored to that persona, helping clinicians better understand the variability of lupus. Participants then added their shoe to a growing sculpture within the booth, visually building the “Walk in Their Shoes” installation and generating ongoing interest throughout the event. At the close of the show, all shoes were donated to local charities—transforming the activation into a meaningful philanthropic gesture while extending the campaign’s impact beyond the exhibit floor.
THE IMPACT
The lupus exhibit experience was executed at multiple events throughout the year including national, regional, and local conventions. The physical display of shoes was an eye-catching traffic builder while the tactile learning experience created a lasting impression on attendees and helped to raise awareness of the disease. The experience was so successful that the Lupus Gala included it in their annual event and it was deployed at other Lupus patient walks around the country.