By Imari Patel, MPH, Research Associate
Although healthcare reform will take years to implement and the changes may not be visible instantaneously, this is a perfect time
for the pharmaceutical industry to prepare for the changes yet to come and think prospectively. It is important to remember that while healthcare reform will reduce the number of uninsured Americans, it will not provide “universal” coverage. This brings us to the first point:
- After the reform takes place, an estimated 8% of Americans will be uninsured in the year 2020 instead of 19% if reform did not take place. Although not every American will be insured, an additional 30 million Americans can potentially become prescription drug consumers. This has major implications for drug production (especially certain orphan drugs or drugs that we have a shortage of right now). This will also influence cost and access to drugs.
- Although prescription drug costs comprise only 10% of overall healthcare expenditures in this country, costs are increasing at a rapid rate. This is a major concern with regards to affordability and access to drugs even after the healthcare law goes into effect. Drugs being sold at a higher price in the U.S. compared to other countries are a concern for consumers. Obtaining prescription drug coverage takes care of affordability and access to some extent, but does not mean that these issues will be resolved by any means. The option of importing drugs to be sold at lower prices also introduces safety concerns. What is a happy medium between reducing costs for the consumer, increasing safety/efficacy, and the high cost of drug development?
- There may be more movement towards smaller biotech companies that focus on drug discovery and development in specific areas like orphan drug development. Companies that focus on specific therapeutics may fare better due to the drive to cut costs. There will be a shift towards “high need cure” drug development so that drugs for diseases and conditions that otherwise would not be researched, due to marketing and profit incentives, can be developed.
- Healthcare is not the only thing that needs to be reformed. The methods in which pharmaceutical companies marketed in the past such as making physician office visits, sponsoring continuing education programs, and providing gifts or drug samples will change as well.
- Healthcare reform will move towards increased access to low-cost generic drugs. Preventing brand name drug manufacturers from changing drug labels and therefore extending the patent of a brand name drug, will occur. Approving generic drugs as soon as a brand name drug’s patent is expired will be necessary for this change.
These are only 5 changes that may take place when healthcare reform goes into effect. Other ways in which this reform will affect the pharmaceutical industry remains to be seen.
By Kelly J. Hill, MS CRDSA, Director, Project & Account Management
In the Part 1 we discussed the characteristics of highly collaborative project teams. In addition to team collaboration, it is also important to discuss the need for team members to have shared goals and objectives.
Project team goals are intended to act like a roadmap outlining the project results you are looking for and the action steps required to complete the work. Without a shared goal even though team members may be motivated, collaborative and hard-working they may be headed in different directions with each trying to accomplish a different result. This can lead to multiple project delays, team member frustration, project re-work and may ultimately result in missing the end goal entirely.
One of the tools we use at MMS to aid in project goal setting is the Project Summary Sheet (PSS), where all project deliverables along with their target completion dates are listed. It is the duty of a pharma project manager to complete this tool. The PSS tells us where we are headed and also provides us with a high level description of how we should get there (by using client template and style guide, completing full or partial QC, etc). Where projects are more complex and additional detail is needed, other project documents may be created to further detail the team goals.
Teams come together much more quickly when they have meaningful and attainable, but challenging, goals that each team member is committed to achieving. If your project goals, requirements or path is not clear be sure to ask questions internally in your organization. The Project Lead and Project Manager, with inputs from the sponsor where necessary, can help to ensure that you and the rest of the team are all headed in the right direction.
Consider these SMART goals to help develop you own roadmap.
SMART Goal Format
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S
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Specific – What exactly are we looking to deliver?
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M
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Measurable – How will we know when we reach our goal?
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A
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Attainable – We are able to reach this goal (possibly with a stretch)
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R
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Relevant – Why is it important to complete this work as described and within the timeframe requested?
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T
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Time Bound – When should our goal be reached?
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What else do you do as a pharma project manager do to communicate goals effectively with your team?
To view the first part of this discussion click here.