48 GHP / Q3 2021 GHP / Q3 2021 49 , , Jun21450 Creating Value Through Collaboration The Institute of Health Economics (the IHE) is a non-profit research organisation that was founded in 1995 on the belief that the best solutions to healthcare problems are the result of a collaborative approach, with all stakeholders at the table sharing insights and information. Global Health & Pharmamagazine has recognised the IHE as theMost Trusted Health and Economics Institute 2021, so we take a closer look. The IHE vision is to be “widely recognised as a leader in supporting decision-makers and industry innovators to get the most value from the health system and to wisely prepare for the future.” (ref IHE 2021-24 Strategic Plan). The IHE actively seeks clients from the public and private sector but with core foundational funding through multi-year grants from the public sector. Senior public servants and representatives from academia and executive health system management sit on the IHE Board of Directors. They define themselves as being ‘critical friends’ and ‘honest brokers’ to health system decision-makers. ‘Evidence’, ‘Economics’ and ‘Engagement’ are the three Es which drive their programmes. While directly serving its own health system, the IHE has deep international connections and serves as the secretariat for the International Network for Health Technology Assessment Agencies. The IHE is creating a hub of economic talent, starting with its own organisation and also leading the Network of Alberta Health Economists (NOAHE) (www.noahe.ca ). It is university- affiliated but not a university research centre, and not a for-profit consulting company which combines the best of both: academic rigour and ability to deliver bespoke policy products and research in a responsive manner. However, the IHE, along with all public and private sector organisations, is facing the challenges brought about from the current global pandemic. It is a time of unprecedented opportunity and urgency. Although, with these challenges also come opportunities as there has been acceleration in the need for better value for money from health system investments and supporting the health sector in contributing to economic growth. Public sector core funding has been foundational to the IHE stability but there are plans for ongoing diversification of funding. The IHE feels this addresses potential risks in financial stability but also diverse funding can support independence and ability to provide objective advice. With efforts to expand diversity in funding, the IHE is acutely aware of the need for clear and transparent management between public and private sector interests and where they need to be separated and where they may overlap. Some exciting programmes include the Health Technology Innovation Programme (www.ihe. ca/research-programs/innovation/ htip) which is a collaboration with key industry partners and public payors to develop new approaches for assessment and reimbursement of innovation. The IHE wants to find way to say yes to valuable innovation and to jointly develop ways to reduce uncertainty and manage risk across partners. It needs innovation in technologies but also ongoing innovation in policy to assess and pay for technologies. Another leadership area of interest for the IHE is pandemic preparedness and collaborations across disciplines to serve decision-makers. The IHE is leading the One Society Network (www.onesocietynetwork. ca/about) which is bringing economics and modellers from all sectors of society to collectively assess the impact of policies in one sector across others (education, transportation, health, economic development, etc). Ultimately, independence is a major IHE asset that has been identified by its stakeholders and they consider this foundational to the organisation’s impact and success. The IHE is committed to continue to produce products and programmes which can withstand critical appraisal and be supportive of balance and evidence-informed analysis and advice. Company: Institute of Health Economics Contact: Dr Christopher McCabe, CEO Email:
[email protected] Website: www.ihe.ca Jun21381 Not an Agency, but a Partner Elevate HealthcareMarketing has been named ‘Pennsylvania’s Most Innovative Healthcare Marketing Company’ for 2021 for its tenacity, dedication, and constant commitment to bettering itself. Since its inception in 2015, it has built a teamaround it of industry professionals who constantly impress its clients, and become the go-to solution for pharmaceutical, biotechnological, andmedical device companies looking to change up their operations in order to streamline and grow. A strategic communications agency, Elevate Healthcare Marketing is a specialist in turning product objectives into sales and strategies for its clients. Focusing on creating strategies that are actionable, profitable, and sustainable, Elevate Healthcare Marketing guarantees that a client will find it drives only the best commercial results after working with it. It serves the industries of pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, and medical devices with pride in order to identify what about a client’s operations could have the fat cut from it, making their operations leaner and more conducive to further development going forward; a mission that it has held to since its earliest days. Therefore, its lean and experienced team of strategists have earned Elevate Healthcare Marketing renown over time. They work to translate, transform, and elevate a client’s businesses, allowing healthcare challenger brands to respond to the ever-changing dynamics of the industry with sophistication, allowing those same challenges to become opportunities. This business’s work allows client, in essence, to become vessels of positive market disruption. This was made possible by the co-founders Frank X Powers and Lorna Weir, two professionals who understood the importance of sticking to a mission – and the importance of driving change, not just responding to it – which led them to create an answer to healthcare’s need for building brands, and helping clients adapt to modern markets. Elevate Healthcare Marketing, in this manner, became the champion guiding biopharma and medical device companies through the minefield that is trying to set yourself up in the modern industry. From overcoming powerful competitors to market limitations and internal obstacles, it will not rest until a client is satisfied that they have achieved what they set out to. The past year also put Elevate Healthcare Marketing’s strategy and model to the test. Like any industry, the pandemic rattled those who work within it, and it worked with its usual elegance and tenacity in order to not just weather the storm, but to help its clients do the same. Having been named the best place to work in PA, a big part of what allowed this was of course its exemplary team; having a ‘not an agency’ model, it isn’t bound by the need to constantly push its talent into burnout by demanding they meet loftier and loftier goals. It recruits to upskill, build relationships, and create a truly exemplary team, one which was tested by the trials of Covid-19 and proved itself highly capable time and time again. All in all, the team has benefitted from the lessons it taught Elevate Healthcare Marketing as it made them better communicators, something it is excited to bring to its clients as it moves forward towards the future. Moreover, the lessons it has learned since its inception from the adaptations to remote work to how to lead and cultivate a healthy staff, will empower it to keep looking for assignments where there is a good fit between itself and the potential client, where the philosophies and goals align in order to create exemplary working partnerships. As it moves forward, it will be working to welcome in the new era that has been ushered in, promising to keep applying itself and bettering itself whilst striving to shape the future of the biopharmaceutical and medical device world. Company: Elevate Healthcare Marketing Contact: Frank Powers Website: elevatehc.com