Stories

Novartis Ireland is proud to have been recognised as a finalist in the 2026 CIPD Ireland HR Awards for our Maternity Returners Programme, shortlisted in the People & Culture Initiative category.

The nomination acknowledged the work of our People & Organisation (P&O) team in developing a supportive, human‑centred experience for employees returning from maternity leave. The programme was co‑created with returners, managers and P&O partners, and provides a structured approach that strengthens confidence, connection and career continuity. Key elements include a Maternity Returners Toolkit, flexible return pathways, a peer buddy programme, workshops, a returners community, and access to dedicated maternity coaching. 

Launched in Dublin in 2025 and now embedded across Novartis Ireland, the initiative was designed in response to clear feedback from employees about the challenges of returning to work after maternity leave - including confidence loss, disconnection from the business, and uncertainty for managers supporting returners.

On 14th February 2026, Novartis celebrated the eighth anniversary of the Novartis Commitment to Patients and Caregivers – a milestone that reflects our promise to place patients at the center of every decision we make. 

This Commitment was co-created with the patient community in 2018 to further ensure we partner with patients and caregivers to embed their lived experiences throughout the development of medicines. From early research, through to trials and post-launch, patient partner organisations have helped us make decisions that are informed by, and relevant to patients and caregivers.

Our Commitment is continuous, and we are always working to strengthen our patient partnerships, and while much remains to be done, we wanted to invite you to read about the meaningful progress made in 2025 summarized in our factsheet below. This details the progress made in four key areas, defined and achieved together with patient organizations, known as the pillars of Commitment: Respecting and understanding the patient community, conducting responsible clinical trials, expanding access to our medicines, and recognizing the importance of transparency and reporting.

Our partnership with patient organisation is instrumental in reimaging medicines together as it allows us to immerse robust patient experience data within our work to design better trials, accelerate development and access, and ensure innovations address real-world needs. 

Thank you for to all the patient organisation in Ireland for your invaluable collaboration and support 

We remain fully committed to listening and learning from you as we continue to evolve together, and we look forward to our continued partnership.

Early diagnosis can make the difference. That’s the message at the heart of our support for the Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association (IPHA) Innovate For Life 2025 campaign, which this year focuses on early diagnosis and prevention. As part of this advocacy campaign, we’re shining a spotlight on newborn screening – and two family stories in particular – to urge immediate action to implement the Minister of Health’s decision (Nov2023) to include Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) in newborn screening, (ie the heel prick test), by the end of 2025. 

Calling for Action. This campaign isn’t just about one or two families – it’s about every family and the 60,000 babies born in Ireland every year.  The November 2023 decision to add SMA to the heelprick test needs to be implemented by the end of 2025. #BringSMAtoHeel