BSR Insight Articles About Health Care
We found 21 BSR Insight articles on this topic; most recently published at the top.
Improving Partnerships to Solve Global Health Challenges
Mark Little, Director, Healthcare, Advisory Services
BSR's new report on global health partnerships—an evaluation of 220 programs in more than 160 countries—reveals the challenges and success factors in partnerships between the pharmaceutical industry and NGOs, governments, and academia. Read more
Why Health Care Needs a New Business Model
Mark Little, Director, Healthcare, Advisory Services
For years, stakeholders have pressured health care companies to expand access to their products and services and do more to support global health goals, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. Some critics have fingered patents, or state-granted intellectual property rights, as the culprit. While companies consider patents their reward for taking significant investment risks in research and development, critics question whether the companies are truly committed to serving the broader public—or just trying to protect profits as long as they can. These are not new issues. Lately, however, even the critics have acknowledged that health care companies are finding profitable ways to address the world's health needs—at least when it comes to noncommunicable diseases like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer, which are among the world's biggest health concerns. China, for instance, has the world's highest incidence of diabetes—with a prevalence rate in children four times higher than in the United States—and, at the same time, the country has experienced a remarkable rise in living standards. The bottom line: While income growth fuels obesity and associated health burdens, it also means the Chinese market can pay for treatment. Unfortunately, this win-win is not the case for certain types of diseases, or for certain markets. And while it is not the primary responsibility of industry to ensure access to health (that is the role of government), it is evident that the industry's predominant business model could be further adapted to meet five key access challenges affecting low- and middle- income countries. Declining margins brought by pricing pressures, patent expiries, and costly R&D cycles are forcing health care companies to explore growth opportunities in non-Western markets. But given the outstanding challenges (below), it's time for the industry to ask itself: Is our business model broken? Read more
The Case for the Responsible Use of Antibiotics in Food-Producing Animals
Roger McElrath, Manager, Advisory Services
For years, antibiotics have been administered on meat-producing farms to treat sick animals or prevent infections when there is a known disease risk. The meat industry also uses antibiotics for non-therapeutic purposes to grow animals faster or to compensate for the effects of overcrowding or unsanitary conditions. According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the use of antibiotics in food-animal production accounts for approximately 80 percent of all antibiotics sold in the United States. Recently, experts have concluded that there is a direct link between the use of antibiotics in food-producing animals and the growth of antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria. At the same time, a growing number of consumers are making buying decisions based on the health, environmental, and social attributes of food—including whether the animals that were used for their meat were administered antibiotics. In many respects, the U.S. meat industry has provided a safe and economical supply of meat protein to satisfy the increasing demand of consumers. But underlying that success has been an industrial-scale approach to raising food-producing animals that has created social and environmental challenges, including the need for and/or generation of large amounts of water, waste, and greenhouse gases. While these issues are well-known, less understood are the impacts of the industry's antibiotic usage. Read more
BSR’s HERproject Launches Open-Source Curriculum for Workplace Health Trainings
Elissa Goldenberg, Associate, Advisory Services
BSR's HERproject--a factory-based women's health education program--has launched a new curriculum for women's health trainings in the workplace. Developed with funding from the Levi Strauss Foundation, the HERproject curriculum covers topics ranging from nutrition and waterborne diseases to HIV/AIDS and family planning. For each topic, the curriculum provides unique resources for interactive, one-hour training sessions to address sensitive and critical issues in the work environment. Additionally, each health topic includes a health manual, additional training materials, and a post-training quiz. Based on HERproject best practices and in partnership with leading public health and development organizations, BSR developed the open-source curriculum for a wide group of users, including nonprofit organizations working on community-based health education, factory or farm human resources staff, and health clinic professionals. The language is clear and simple, and the directions for how to implement the training programs are thorough enough for less-experienced trainers to understand and implement. All materials are available for download on the HERproject website. For more information, contact Jennifer Schappert. Read more
Simple Changes for Health and Wellness
Mark Little, Director, Healthcare, Advisory Services
"We can all live longer lives by focusing on what we eat, and how we manage stress, and by engaging in moderate physical exercise and connecting with the people around us. It's simple, it doesn't cost very much, and the only side effects are good ones." --Dean Ornish, founder and president, Preventative Medicine Research Institute, in his keynote speech at the GBCHealth Conference. Behavior change has been shown to play a critical role in preventing and mitigating the health impacts of non-communicable diseases (e.g., cancer and cardiovascular disease). Companies also have a role to play in supporting health and wellness in society and among their employees. Since Dean Ornish's plenary at the BSR Conference 2011, BSR has seem more companies become interested in how they can promote health and wellness through their sustainability programs. For more information, contact Mark Little. Read more
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