Purpose & Ideals
Recently, Ellen Gerstein, Pfizer's Senior Director of Digital Communications, visited Africa as part of our Global Fellows Program. She shares her experience in this article.At Pfizer, we’re driven by our Purpose—to deliver breakthroughs that change patients’ lives. That Purpose has never been more clear to me than during my experience partnering with North Star Alliance through Global Health Fellows—Pfizer’s signature skills-based volunteering program.Since 2003, Global Health Fellows has...
Purpose & Ideals
Every day, across the United States and around the world, scientists are developing potential new medicines and vaccines that could change lives. But to get medicines and vaccines to the patients who need them most, they must first undergo a clinical trial, which is a research study that seeks to understand how potential medicines and other medical treatments work.These studies depend on the generosity of participants, who volunteer to be a part of the trial. Depending on the type of trial...
Purpose & Ideals
Currently, regulatory agencies may take up to seven years to approve essential medicines and vaccines in low- and middle-income counties (LMICs) from the time those same treatments were first approved in high-income countries, if they are approved at all.1 The burden remains disproportionately higher in low-income countries.2 Lack of access to quality healthcare is related to healthcare inequities in LMICs and hinders equitable access to safe and effective treatments.2Those living in LMICs...
Purpose & Ideals
For many cancer survivors, life splits into two stages: before cancer and after cancer. That’s been the case for Lynette Bojko, Pfizer’s Head of Strategic Sourcing & Business Management. She was diagnosed with breast cancer just before her 40th birthday. “Unfortunately or fortunately, cancer is a lot of my identity,” she says. When treatment began, she didn’t want to hide what she was going through at the office, so she talked about it. That openness allowed her to connect with colleagues who...
Purpose & Ideals
One billion people worldwide live with migraine; that’s about one in seven. At those odds, there’s a high probability that each of us works with someone who experiences migraine. And if you’re an employer, this could mean that migraine in the workplace could have a significant impact on your workforce.Migraine is a debilitating neurological disease that causes intense pain in the head, as well as other sensory and/or motor dysfunction. Migraine attacks usually include symptoms like nausea...
Purpose & Ideals
Most people already use artificial intelligence (AI) in their daily lives, sometimes without even thinking about it as being AI-driven. Global positioning systems (GPS) are AI-based navigation applications, for instance, that help us find the quickest route between Points A and B and suggest alternate routes when an accident has jammed up traffic. Artificial intelligence speeds up online shopping by remembering our shopping preferences and recommending similar and complementary products. Artifi...
Purpose & Ideals
Prostate health is not a popular topic of conversation. Even in healthcare settings, patients and providers might be hesitant to discuss prostate health or cancer screening. But talking openly is not only the key to destigmatizing an important topic, it’s one of the first steps in addressing global health inequities that impact those diagnosed with prostate cancer.“In the past 10 years, we have seen advances in the treatment of advanced prostate cancer (aPC), but some people are still being left...
Purpose & Ideals
Cory Lewis has sickle cell disease. Some days, the pain from the blood disorder hits him hard. Even on days without pain, he worries about his future and the health conditions that might arise. “It’s definitely 365 for me,” he says. As a program coordinator with Sick Cells, a sickle cell disease advocacy organization in Washington, D.C., Lewis regularly educates people about what it’s like to live with this disease—a rare, inherited condition, predominately (but not exclusively) impacting Black...
Purpose & Ideals
When Rady Johnson contemplates the importance of diversity and inclusion in the workplace, he thinks of his son, Michael. Michael, who is 31, has worked as an office assistant at a travel agency for about 10 years. In the summer, he also works on a maintenance crew at a beach. “He's just the hardest worker that you'll ever see,” says Rady, who is Pfizer's Chief Compliance, Quality & Risk Officer. Michael also lives with an intellectual disability. Rady and his wife, Diane, adopted Michael from...
Purpose & Ideals
In an expensive healthcare system, everybody wants more affordable medicine, but at what physical or emotional cost? If you get caught in a medical fraudster's trap, that cost may be steep. By taking counterfeit prescription drugs (which look real but aren't), you not only run the risk of not receiving the benefits of the intended medication, but fakes can also harm you. Unsuspecting buyers may experience allergic reactions, overdose, or other adverse effects caused by unapproved ingredients.1...
Purpose & Ideals
Every morning, as you greet the day and shake your prescribed medicine into your hand, you're trusting that they’re authentic. Worldwide, though, counterfeit medications are more common than some might think.Studies show approximately 10-40% of medicines sold in low- and middle-income countries are counterfeit. In the United States, less than 1% of medicines sold in retail pharmacies are counterfeit.1By that comparison, the chances of your medication being fake are small, but there's still a...
Purpose & Ideals
People all over the world rely on medication for things like managing chronic illness, preventing pregnancy, and treating life-threatening diseases.Yet people unknowingly consume counterfeit drugs every day, even in developed countries with well-regulated healthcare systems. They put their lives at risk for something they should be able to trust. The pharmaceutical industry and global drug regulators are constantly working to keep any below-standard and fraudulent drugs out of circulation. But...
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