Programs & Initiatives
Young scientists face some tough decisions when they graduate from college. Will they use their degree to enter a science-related field? Go to grad school? Forge a new path entirely?At Pfizer, a two-year program allows a handful of recent graduates to “try out” different jobs across the drug development process and learn more about career choices — and themselves. Associates accepted to the R&D Rotational Program immerse themselves in four rotations of their choosing for six months each. “I see...
Programs & Initiatives
Marginalized communities in the United States have faced generations of health inequities due to systemic discrimination embedded into our healthcare system. Life expectancy in the U.S., for instance, masks significant racial and ethnic disparities – the average life expectancy for non-Hispanic American Indians or Alaska Natives is seven years lower than it is for non-Hispanic whites.1
Programs & Initiatives
While many Pfizer colleagues worked to, develop and manufacture a vaccine for COVID-19, one Pfizer team was hard at work monitoring the safety of the COVID-19 vaccine trial. And they did so while also maintaining safety monitoring operations for more than 1,000 other products in the Pfizer portfolio.Pharmacovigilance is the name for the area of science which scientists and medical professionals monitor medicine and vaccine-related safety issues. “Medicine and vaccine safety is one of those...
Programs & Initiatives
Clinical trial participants are at the heart of medical research, and it’s with their help that Pfizer is able to bring life-changing treatments to patients.But, until recently, clinical trial sponsors like Pfizer have not been equipped to provide participants with their own personal clinical trial data when a trial ends. Pfizer’s team of clinical trial experts have worked for many years to change that by launching the Clinical Trial Participant Data Return Initiative.This first-of-its-kind...
Programs & Initiatives
Wait, Marvel? On Pfizer.com?For some, comic books may seem to be simply a form of entertainment featuring fantastical characters and mythical plots. However, through the years, they have proven to reflect and even influence our society. World War II, the Cold War, the Civil Rights Movement, AIDS, and 9/11 are only a few of the meaningful moments in our history that comic books have explored.So, it’s not so unusual to find Pfizer and BioNTech collaborating with Marvel Comics to create a story...
Programs & Initiatives
Credit: Brent Stirton/Getty Images for ITI Imagine an infection that causes your eyelids to turn inward, so that your lashes—intended to protect your eyes—scrape against the sensitive outer surface of your eye every time you blink. The pain is excruciating and constant. Your eyes water. Your lashes scratch and scar your cornea, the clear tissue covering your eye. Your vision becomes increasingly hazy. That’s reality for nearly two million people. According to the World Health Organization (WHO...
Programs & Initiatives
Bacterial meningitis strikes fast. Within hours, a fever, headache, nausea, and stiff neck can lead to brain damage, hearing loss, and other permanent disabilities, and potentially even death.1,2 Meningitis stems from infection in the fluid around the brain and spinal cord, causing inflammation to the membranes surrounding them, called meninges.1,3 Bacterial meningitis is the most common form of the illness. As its name suggests, bacteria like Haemophilus influenzae (type B), Streptococcus...
Programs & Initiatives
In 2020, as Pfizer and BioNTech were still developing the COVID-19 vaccine, Julie Jenson was thinking about how to distribute that vaccine to every country around the world, regardless of that country’s means. Jenson, who is Director of International Product Access for Pfizer’s Global Health and Social Impact Team, knew even in those early days that the ultracold storage demands and shipping requirements of the vaccine could pose challenges in reaching people living in remote areas of low- and...
Programs & Initiatives
The images, unfortunately, have been too common for far too long: people young and old, refugees whose lives have been upended by forces beyond their control, fleeing their homes for safety. Watching it as it unfolds can make someone feel powerless. But what can one person do to make a difference? That was the question Mona Babury asked herself in August 2021 when the Taliban seized control in Afghanistan. From her home near New York City, as she watched footage of Afghan refugees, the trauma...
Programs & Initiatives
After Pfizer and BioNtech signed a letter of intent in March 2020 to work together on a vaccine, two Pfizer facilities were swiftly selected for developing the processes and manufacturing the product at an industrial scale. Located in Puurs, Belgium, and Kalamazoo, Michigan, both plants had the space, the know-how, the people, and the equipment to get to work right away. Their locations in the U.S. and Europe positioned them well for global distribution.But even with all the right components...
Programs & Initiatives
It was December 15, 2020 when Melissa French got the message: Pfizer needed large quantities of something called a cationic lipid that was critical to the COVID-19 vaccine. “This isn’t an everyday lipid that's readily available,” says French, who is a Project Manager with Pfizer Global Supply, and handles lipid production at a facility in Kalamazoo, Michigan. She was being asked to lead a team in producing large amounts of this important raw material.The call wasn’t a complete surprise. A number...
Programs & Initiatives
On a Sunday afternoon in May of 2020, Amy Genest’s phone rang. She recognized the number immediately and excused herself from her young daughters and her husband to take the work call. On the line, a colleague at Pfizer told her she needed help in securing contract manufacturing organizations (CMOs) to assist with vaccine production, when—and if—Pfizer and BioNTech were authorized to manufacture a COVID-19 vaccine.That task was nothing new for Genest, who at the time served as New Products Lead...
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