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Hats off to... Arnaud Vaissié is made an Officier dans l’Ordre National du Mérite Arnaud Vaissié has been awarded the insignia of Officier dans l’Ordre National du Mérite for his distinguished contribution to French education abroad and in recognition of his entrepreneurship achievement as cofounder Chairman and CEO of International SOS, the world’s leading medical and travel security risk services company. He received the award from the French Ambassador to Great Britain, Mr Bernard Emié, at his Residence on 5 February 2013. As Chairman of the Collège Français Bilingue de Londres, Mr Vaissié was instrumental in setting up the new French school in Kentish town (CFBL). This is the first French secondary school to open in London since the creation of the Lycée français Charles de Gaulle in 1915. For more than 25 years, International SOS has helped organisations manage the health and security risks facing their international travellers, expatriates and local employees. The group is the worldwide leader in its field and operates with more than 10,000 employees, including 1,200 physicians and 200 security specialists. I
Michele Jackson
Michele Jackson is made a Chevalier dans l’Ordre National du Mérite For the last 40 years, Michele Jackson has served her country by actively promoting and developing relations between France and the United Kingdom, working for French organisations such as the Brittany Chamber of Commerce and Promosalons. In 1987 she was appointed Deputy Manager of Promosalons UK and became General Manager of the company three years later. ‘I have always enjoyed my work and to receive the prestigious Insignes de Chevalier dans l’Ordre National du Mérite and have my life’s work recognised in such a formal manner by my country, is an absolute privilege. I feel very honoured,’ Michele said. I
Christopher Viehbacher, CEO of Sanofi, new President-elect of EFPIA Sanofi’s CEO, Christopher Viehbacher, has been selected by the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA) as its new president elect, replacing Sir Andrew Witty in June 2013 for a two-year term. Richard Bergström, Director General of EFPIA said: ‘Chris Viehbacher is well placed to take over the leadership of EFPIA. Chris was involved in the high-level group G10 Medicines and has shown his ability to engage with policy makers worldwide.’ Christopher Viehbacher was made a knight of the French Legion of Honour in 2003 and in 2012 received the prestigious Pasteur Foundation Award, recognising his leadership role within the pharmaceutical industry’s support of research & development. I Christopher Viehbacher
Steve Oldfield
Sanofi’s Steve Oldfield to co-chair UK Medicines Access Group Steve Oldfield, Managing Director at Sanofi UK, will work alongside the Department of Health’s Giles Denham to lead the Medicines Access Group (MAG). MAG meets four times a year to discuss high-level medicines access issues, and includes stakeholders from NICE, the National Commissioning Board and patients groups, in addition to industry and government members. Oldfield has previous experience in UK medicines access at a national level, helping to develop the National Metrics Report, which evaluated NICE-approved medicines, and their uptake within the NHS. CEO of the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) Stephen Whitehead said Oldfield will do an ‘outstanding job at representing our industry’. I info - march / april - 25