Pharmaceutical industry and government promote joint working

Public and private healthcare bodies are joining forces in a new initiative developed by the Ministerial Industry Strategy Group.

The Long-Term Leadership Strategy aims to improve relations between the NHS and the pharmaceutical sector and looks to support the research and development of cost-effective treatments.

According to the Department of Health, the joint strategy is to be implemented in response to recommendations from a recent study by Sir David Cooksey which supported the introduction of a new pathway to enable the translation of clinical research into affordable medicines for the NHS.

“We welcome a new, collaborative approach to recognise the value of medicines in terms of their ability to prevent critical health events, rather than being treated as merely an item on the health budget,” commented Dr Richard Barker, director-general of the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry.

The spokesman added that the industry is poised to form a productive partnership with public healthcare services and he agreed with the government’s stated ambition to strengthen the “environment for pharmaceutical innovation in the UK”.

Sir David was appointed by Gordon Brown to lead a review on health research and the NHS in March 2006 and in his pre-budget speech last December, the chancellor accepted the report’s recommendations.