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Erik Ravaglia

Prof. Charlie Lees, PhD FRCP(Ed), Edinburgh University

Translating complex medical research into clear visual tools used by patients, clinicians, and researchers.

digital design / motion / brand identity10+ years (2015–present)

We simplified it to the point where everybody could understand it.

Professor Charlie Lees, PhD FRCP(Ed), University of Edinburgh
Listen: a discussion about our collaboration

The very first PREDICCT animation. The beginning of a decade-long collaboration in science communication.

The Challenge

PREDiCCT is a decade-long study across 47 NHS centres. Recruiting over 2,600 patients required a visual language that could serve patients, clinicians, and researchers without losing scientific credibility.

The Diagnosis

The challenge was not complexity alone, but consistency. Every slide, animation, and patient-facing document needed to align. This was not about producing a single explainer, but about building a visual language that could scale across years of research.

The Prescription

I developed a distinctive, illustration-led visual system that made complex science approachable without oversimplifying it. The system was designed for reuse across presentations, publications, and patient materials, and remains in use more than a decade later.

Execution

I delivered multiple animation projects alongside hundreds of supporting assets used across conference presentations, publications, and patient-facing materials. Work supported international conferences from Edinburgh to Tokyo and evolved across multiple branding phases and design systems over more than a decade.

Animated assets designed for reuse across conference presentations and publications.

Illustration-led data visualisations explaining genetics, microbiomes, and biomarkers.

Brand identities developed over a decade-long collaboration, including Charlie’s online presence, Atomic IBD, and Sentinel.

Animation assets reformatted for social media, editorial, and public-facing use.

Impact
  • Created hundreds of assets across digital design, motion, and brand identities over a decade-long collaboration
  • Supported recruitment of over 2,600 patients to the PREDiCCT study
  • Research published in Gut (BMJ), January 2026
  • Ongoing collaboration, including the Atomic IBD brand identity

"We're still working together and still making content... and we've been friends ever since."

Dr. Charlie Lees