Novartis renews partnership with Philippine Heart Center as Center of Excellence in Clinical Trials
- Novartis Healthcare Philippines and the Philippine Heart Center (PHC) renewed their partnership in maintaining the hospital’s status as a center of excellence in clinical trials. The agreement aims to provide continuous support in the research and development of medicines as well as to enhance PHC’s capabilities Center of Excellence in clinical studies and research in the Philippines.
- The innovative partnership is in line with the Novartis commitment to strengthen the country’s clinical research capabilities and enhance Philippine health care.
Quezon City– Novartis Healthcare Philippines and the Philippine Heart Center (PHC) have signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) to renew their partnership in maintaining PHC’s status as a Center of Excellence in Clinical Trials.
“Novartis Healthcare Philippines is pleased to renew our partnership with the Philippine Heart Center in maintaining PHC’s status as a Center of Excellence in Clinical Trials. We renew our commitment to support the research and development of essential medicines and vaccines as well as to enhance the capabilities of PHC as a Center of Excellence in clinical studies and research in the Philippines,” said Ms. Cheryl Maley, President and Managing Director, Novartis Healthcare Philippines.
“As the country’s leader in upholding the highest standards of cardiovascular care, the Philippine Heart Center welcomes the renewal of our partnership with Novartis. Our continuing collaboration will enable the PHC to provide compassionate and expert cardiovascular care enhanced by world-class education and research, and to responsibly disseminate scientific and lay information to the public,” said Dr. Joel M. Abanilla, PHC Executive Director.
Leveraging its institutionalized R&D process, Novartis has extensive experience in conducting clinical research on a global scale and has one of the pharmaceutical industry’s most respected development pipelines, with more than 200 projects in clinical development (as of December 31, 2017). Many of these projects include the development of new molecular entities, existing products with additional indications and different formulations for marketed products—all could significantly advance treatment standards for patients worldwide.
To date, Novartis has invested approximately USD3.95M in clinical trials in the country. Among pharmaceutical companies operating in the Philippines, Novartis currently has the most number of active recruiting trials in cardiovascular medicine with increasing number of pulmonary medicine trials. The Philippine International Clinical Research Operations (ICRO) started its operations in 2008, with the allocation of two clinical trials on hypertension and type II diabetes mellitus. Since then, 38 global Clinical Trials have been conducted in the country in the last three years in Cardiovascular, Respiratory, and Integrated Hospital Care, enrolling 2,425 patients in over 215 sites.
Research papers written by PHC specialists are regularly published in the Philippine Heart Center Journal, Philippine Journal of Cardiology, Philippine Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Inventory of Health Research, Journal of Radioisotope Society, and publications of the Department of Science and Technology. At any given time, the PHC conducts at least 10 major research studies as a result of the revival of its Experimental Surgery and Research Laboratory and its renewed focus on the importance of research in cardiovascular science. In partnership with the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI), the PHC is conducting an onsite nutrition and cardiovascular disease investigation in the Bicol Region to determine the relationship of coconut oil intake and blood cholesterol levels.
Under the MOA, Novartis will prioritize PHC as a site for its clinical research projects that will be conducted in the Philippines while PHC will consider Novartis as a preferred research partner. Clinical research activities will focus on the following areas: innovative research, Good Clinical Practice (GCP), Institutional Review Board capacity building, and Registry development.
Novartis first signed a MOA with SLMC in 2014. Other Centers of Excellence supported by Novartis are located in the National Kidney and Transplant Institute (NKTI), St. Luke’s Medical Center (SLMC) and Lung Center of the Philippines (LCP).
About Novartis
Novartis provides innovative healthcare solutions that address the evolving needs of patients and societies. Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Novartis offers a diversified portfolio to best meet these needs: innovative medicines, cost-saving generic and biosimilar pharmaceuticals and eye care. Novartis has leading positions globally in each of these areas. In 2017, the Group achieved net sales of USD 49.1 billion, while R&D throughout the Group amounted to approximately USD 9.0 billion. Novartis Group companies employ approximately 122,000 full-time-equivalent associates. Novartis products are sold in approximately 155 countries around the world. For more information, please visit http://www.novartis.com.