GENEVA, Oct. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Schering-Plough Corporation today announced that Fred Hassan, chairman and CEO, was named president of the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations (IFPMA) at its biennial statutory meeting in Geneva. His term of office begins immediately and extends until the fall of 2008. Hassan succeeds Daniel Vasella, M.D., chairman and CEO of Novartis, who served as IFPMA president from 2004-2006.
"IFPMA is an important organization uniquely positioned at a time when health care issues are increasingly global and high on government and societies' agendas," said Hassan in accepting the post.
Reviewing key items for his term ahead, Hassan said, "We will continue to strengthen IFPMA's ability to engage and collaborate with stakeholders, to become a credible catalyst, driving the agenda for good health care for the long term -- around the world."
Hassan said IFPMA has made major progress in leading improvements to marketing and clinical trial activities, adding that the organization will be working hard to ensure these initiatives are effectively executed.
"As we look ahead to the next two years for IFPMA, we will continue -- and build on -- this organization's intensified focus on patients."
He cited four significant barriers that stand in the way of preserving and improving the health of patients. "By lowering and removing the barriers in these four areas, our societies will be doing the right thing for the health of their people around the world."
The first barrier he cited is access -- including access to health education and information, which can be one of the best ways for societies to reduce health care costs and improve citizens' health.
The second is barriers to innovation. "Today, only a handful of countries contribute the innovation that drives improved health care throughout the world. The U.S. carries a disproportionate load," he said. "Yet all of our societies need new innovations for the big health challenges ahead."
The third barrier to better health lies in the regulatory systems around the world. "The inconsistencies across regulatory systems and the absence of global standards are creating a large barrier to better health for the patient," said Hassan. He said societies can break down this barrier in three ways:
* By requiring that health regulatory authorities be science-based and
politics-free;
* By requiring that regulatory systems practice principles of quality
management; and
* By applying the principles of risk management, which lies at the center
of health care safety. Every effective medicine also has side effects,
and it is impossible to have perfect safety in health care. So the goal
should be to manage risk, to go after the biggest areas of risk, and to
assure that patients get care with the right balance of benefit compared
to risk.
The fourth and final barrier is the barrier to openness, transparency and accountability, he added. "Today, health systems around the world are basically 'black boxes.' They lack openness, transparency and accountability. We need to open up those systems."
Said Hassan: "It is peculiar that consumers today can easily compare the fuel efficiencies of automobiles being considered for purchase or the annual running costs of refrigerators, yet they cannot easily compare the quality of health outcomes delivered by different doctors, hospitals, private health plans or regional state-sponsored health systems.
"We can take a major step in breaking down this barrier by holding health providers accountable for transparent scorecards on key health metrics. In this way, individual patients, citizens and taxpayers will see clearly what are the best investments for delivering quality care -- for the whole patient, over their lifetime of care."
Hassan outlined specific metrics that could be the basis for this scorecard approach, saying they would be related to the percentage of patients treated by payors and providers that reach five medically endorsed goals:
1/ Metrics for health literacy, health promotion and disease prevention.
These metrics should include reduction in obesity and smoking, and
increasing exercise.
2/ Control of high blood pressure.
3/ Control of hemoglobin A1C - a key measurement of diabetes control.
4/ Control of high LDL cholesterol.
5/ Vaccinations - both for pediatric and adult patients.
"In short, a transparent, benchmarked, metrics-based approach to health is the right thing to do for the patients," said Hassan. "By promoting health care innovation and promoting health care transparency and accountability, our societies will get the most value from their health care investments."
The IFPMA is the global, non-profit, non-governmental organization representing the research-based pharmaceutical, biotech and vaccine sectors. Its members comprise 26 leading international companies and 46 national and regional industry associations covering developed and developing countries. The IFPMA Clinical Trials Portal (http://www.ifpma.org/clinicaltrials) and IFPMA activities in Health Partnerships (http://www.ifpma.org/) help make the industry's activities more transparent. The IFPMA strengthens patient safety by improving risk assessment of medicines and combating their counterfeiting. It also provides the secretariat for the International Conference on Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Registration of Pharmaceuticals for Human Use (ICH).
Schering-Plough is a global science-based health care company with leading prescription, consumer and animal health products. Through internal research and collaborations with partners, Schering-Plough discovers, develops, manufactures and markets advanced drug therapies to meet important medical needs. Schering-Plough's vision is to earn the trust of the physicians, patients and customers served by its more than 32,000 people around the world. The company is based in Kenilworth, N.J., and its Web site is http://www.schering-plough.com/.
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