Partnership for Health
In March, ABPI Scotland launched A Partnership for Health, a manifesto for the Scottish General Election 2003, on behalf of the Pharmaceutical Industry Council and in association with the BioIndustry Association and the British Generic Manufacturers Association. It challenged prospective Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) to maintain Scotland’s competitiveness, ensure patients’ access to safe and effective medicines, promote good health and reduce the burden of ill health, invest in education and training and enhance Scotland as a world leader in science. Subsequently, a survey revealed that ABPI Scotland enjoys a high recognition factor and positive rating among MSPs in the newly-elected Parliament.

Scotland also represented the views of the industry to Scottish politicians through its presence at the Scottish party political party conferences. It hosted a breakfast meeting for the Scottish Liberal Democrats and member companies took part in fringe discussions at the Scottish Labour Party and Scottish National Party conferences.

Promoting health in Scotland
The ABPI Scottish Cancer Industry Group supported the Scottish Parliament Cross Party Group in the Cancer in Scotland conference, while the ABPI Scottish Osteoporosis Industry Group was established to work with the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) and the National Osteoporosis Society to help implement the new SIGN Guideline. The ABPI Scottish Diabetes Industry Group continued to help implement the Scottish Diabetes Framework through its membership of the Working Group set up by the Scottish Executive.

ABPI Scotland’s third Annual lecture, SARS, Syphilis and Smallpox, was given in June by Professor Hugh Pennington. An NHS Health Forum on various aspects of the Scottish Health White Paper, Partnership for Care, was attended by an audience of health stakeholders and decision makers. An Annual Debate in December examined the topic of Patient Involvement And Better Outcomes – Is Knowledge Good For Your Health? for leading figures from the NHS, industry, patient groups and politics.

An end to postcode prescribing in Scotland
ABPI Scotland continued to represent the industry’s views to the Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC), which advises NHSScotland on the availability of new medicines. ABPI Scotland welcomed the announcement in November by the Health Minister Malcolm Chisholm of moves to end the postcode lottery of care by ensuring that Health Boards implement SMC recommendations.

For the first time, ABPI Scotland has secured membership of the New Drugs Committee of the SMC, which will strengthen the industry’s voice.

The publication of A Common Understanding – Guidance on Joint Working Between NHSScotland and the Pharmaceutical Industry sets out a clear framework for joint working between industry and the NHS and provides positive endorsement of the industry’s role as a major stakeholder in the provision of healthcare in Scotland.