Pharmacy student Defnesu Tap won first prize with Parkinson’s awareness project

The AbbVie Beyond Innovation Competition, which brought together students from different disciplines to develop solutions to everyday challenges associated with Parkinson’s disease, was held in Istanbul on October 24–25, 2026. The Senkron team, including Defnesu Tap, a student at Istanbul Medipol University School of Pharmacy, secured first place following the jury's evaluation. 

Organized by AbbVie Türkiye at the initiative of the AbbVie Youth Advisory Board, the competition brought together 40 undergraduate and graduate students. Eight teams of five members worked over two days to develop projects addressing the needs of people living with Parkinson’s disease and various stakeholders involved in their care.

RAISING PUBLIC AWARENESS OF PARKINSON’S DISEASE
The first-place Senkron team consisted of Defnesu Tap, Andaç Karaköse, Zülal Emel Şentürk, Ahmet Bağcı, and Tunahan Akkuş. İlke Gövem and Berke Kerpiçoğlu provided mentorship throughout the team's project development process.

Approaching Parkinson’s disease from a public perspective, the team developed a project aimed at increasing awareness of the condition across society. Their work was among the public-focused solutions evaluated alongside proposals addressing the needs of patients, physicians, and caregivers.

EIGHT TEAMS DEVELOP HEALTHCARE SOLUTIONS
The competition brought together students from various disciplines, including medicine, pharmacy, engineering, information technology, and business administration. Participants attended design thinking and idea development workshops before presenting their projects to the jury, supported by mentorship from AbbVie experts.

The jury evaluating the projects included representatives from the Parkinson’s Disease Association of Türkiye, TÜBİTAK, and AbbVie Türkiye, as well as members of the AbbVie Youth Advisory Board.