CLINICAL PR

HELPING THOSE WITH ALLERGIES

Over 60 delegates from Danish pharmaceutical company ALK (Allergology Laboratory Kopenhagen) arrived in Dublin recently for a three-day meeting entitled “Helping more people with allergy get better care”. This was a briefing meeting for the Irish, UK and Benelux teams for the rest of 2022.

ALK is a global, research-driven pharmaceutical company focusing on allergy prevention, diagnosis and treatment. A world leader in allergy, ALK specialises in allergy immunotherapy; which not only reduces allergic symptoms but also treats the underlying cause of specific allergies. ALK has approximately 2,000 employees with subsidiaries, production facilities and distributors worldwide.

This was the first time the teams from these areas have met since 2019 due to Covid travel restrictions. The meeting was also attended by ALK Executive Vice Presidents Søren Niegel and Søren Jelert and Sean Connor, Regional General Manager Northern Europe. Danish Ambassador to Ireland, Lars Theusen, who recently moved from the UK, opened the meeting and welcomed the delegates to Dublin. ALK has had representation in Ireland since 2015, however, in recent years the sales team has expanded. This growth has come as the company successfully secured marketing authorisation for 3 new allergy immunotherapy treatments in Ireland, including one for the treatment of adult allergic asthma. Asthma prevalence in Ireland is among the highest in the world. It is the most common chronic disease affecting children and the most common chronic respiratory disease in adults. There is one death per week from asthma in Ireland.

ALK has also committed to increasing allergy education through the support of an educational grant to University College Cork. The emphasis will be on education through the support of postgraduate allergy training courses. ALK was also one of a small number of companies to sponsor the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology Summer School on Food Allergy. This event was hosted in University College Cork recently with approximately 150 delegates from across Europe in attendance. Sean Connor, UK General Manager of ALK says, “ALK is committed to improving the health of people suffering with allergy across the globe and ensuring that health inequalities are minimised. In Ireland, we see large numbers of people who do not have access to life-changing allergy medications when compared to the rest of Europe. ALK intends to change this injustice and have over the last couple of years registered three new products for which we are actively seeking reimbursement so that all patients can access these medicines.”

Mark Kneen and Mary Martin, ALK with Danish Ambassador to Ireland, Lars Theusen and Sean Connor, ALK For more information about ALK visit https://www.alk.net.

HSE LAUNCHES POLICY AND PROCEDURE FOR SAFE SURGERY

The HSE has launched the revised National Policy and Procedure for Safe Surgery. The policy endorses the principles of the World Health Organisation (WHO) Surgical Safety Check 2008 and the HSE Patient Safety Strategy 2019 – 2024 to ensure that all patients undergoing surgical procedures do so safely. The policy provides guidance for safe practice throughout the surgical patient pathway and introduces key safety steps that can be incorporated into the operating theatre. The critical safety steps proposed are intended to support the development of a safety culture for operating departments and teams. Mr Kenneth Mealy, Joint Lead National Clinical Programme in Surgery, HSE said, “Safe patient care should be central to everything that we do in surgery. Understanding that surgical error often arises from both system and individual failure, the HSE National Policy and Procedure for Safer Surgery 2022 defines ‘best practice’ at an organisational level in order to support surgical teams in their work. While the original WHO Surgical Safety Checklist forms the basis of this policy, the COVID-19 pandemic has reminded all of us for the need to periodically update and adapt all healthcare policies to reflect local use and changing circumstances. I urge all peri-operative governance groups to disseminate this updated Safer Surgery Policy to all those working with patients along the surgical pathway.” The HSE is committed to supporting services to maintain safe practices of care within high risk environments such as surgery, to ensure that the correct procedure is performed on the correct patient and on the correct site on every occasion. Every member of the healthcare team involved in the patient pathway has a role to play in ensuring patient safety.” The policy and procedure outlines the minimum safety steps to be included in the Safe Surgery Checklist based on best practice and evidence. It applies to all patients undergoing surgery in the Irish hospital setting and all healthcare staff involved in the patient pathway. In line with WHO guidance. The policy now includes 5 stages for safer surgery including briefing and debriefing to accompany sign in, time out and sign out. It can also be adapted for all clinical interventions in clinical areas outside of the operating department. The Safe Surgery Checklist plays a key role in improving communication and teamwork in the operating department. It can also assist in changing the culture in operating departments by emphasising the importance of listening to all team members and valuing their contribution. This review was coordinated by the National Clinical Programmes for Anaesthesia in collaboration with the National Clinical Programme for Surgery, the National Clinical Programme for Trauma & Orthopaedic Surgery, Stakeholders and Patient representatives. The revised National Policy and Procedure for Safe Surgery is available to view at https://www. hse.ie/eng/about/who/cspd/ncps/ anaesthesia/resources/

EUROPEAN COMMISSION APPROVES UPADACITINIB

FOR THE TREATMENT OF ADULTS WITH MODERATE TO SEVERELY ACTIVE ULCERATIVE COLITIS

This medicinal product is subject to additional monitoring. This will allow for quick identification of new safety information. Healthcare professionals are asked to report any suspected adverse reactions via HPRA pharmacovigilance website www.hpra.ie . Reporting suspected adverse reactions

after authorisation of the medicinal product is important. It allows continued monitoring of the benefit/risk balance of the medicinal product. AbbVie (NYSE: ABBV) has announced the European Commission (EC) approval of Upadacitinib (45 mg [induction dose] and 15 mg and 30 mg [maintenance doses]) for the treatment of adult patients with moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis who have had an inadequate response, lost response or were intolerant to either conventional therapy or a biologic agent.* “Our years of experience and longterm investment in IBD research have given us invaluable insights into the challenges that ulcerative colitis patients face, and a deep understanding of the ongoing need for additional treatment options to help those still suffering,” said Andres Rodrigo, General Manager of AbbVie in Ireland. “We celebrate the approval of Upadacitinib by the EC as it meaningfully expands our ability to help indicated patients in need of relief from ulcerative colitis.”

The EC approval is supported by data from two induction studies, U-ACHIEVE induction and U-ACCOMPLISH, and one maintenance study, U-ACHIEVE maintenance.2 Statistical significance was achieved for the primary endpoint and all secondary endpoints with Upadacitinib 45 mg in the two induction studies and both Upadacitinib 15 mg and 30 mg in the maintenance study. Clinical Remission† • During the U-ACHIEVE and U-ACCOMPLISH induction trials, 26 percent and 33 percent of patients treated with Upadacitinib 45 mg achieved clinical remission at week 8, the primary endpoint, compared to 5 percent and 4 percent of patients who received placebo.2,11,12 • During the U-ACHIEVE maintenance trial, 42 percent and 52 percent of patients treated with Upadacitinib 15 mg or 30 mg, respectively, achieved clinical remission at week 52, the primary endpoint, compared to 12 percent of patients who received placebo.2,13 • Additionally, 57 percent and 68 percent of patients receiving Upadacitinib 15 mg or 30 mg, respectively, achieved corticosteroid-free remission, defined as clinical remission (per Adapted Mayo Score) and corticosteroid free for ≥90 days immediately preceding week 52 among patients who achieved clinical remission at the end of the induction treatment, compared to 22 percent of patients on placebo.2,13 Clinical Response & Mucosal Healing‡§ • Seventy-three and 74 percent of patients treated with Upadacitinib 45 mg achieved clinical response (per Adapted Mayo Score) at week 8 compared to 27 and 25 percent of patients receiving placebo during the U-ACHIEVE and U-ACCOMPLISH induction trials, respectively.1,2,11,12,14 • In both trials, a significantly greater proportion of patients experienced clinical response per partial Adapted Mayo Score (symptomatic response) as early as week 2 (U-ACHIEVE: 60 percent vs 27 percent and U-ACCOMPLISH: 63 percent vs 26 percent).1,2,11,12,14 • Mucosal healing was observed in 36 percent and 44 percent of patients treated with Upadacitinib 45 mg in U-ACHIEVE and U- ACCOMPLISH, respectively, at week 8, compared to 7 percent and 8 percent of patients, respectively, who received placebo.1,2 • In the maintenance study at week 52, mucosal healing was observed in 49 percent and 62 percent of patients treated with Upadacitinib 15 mg and 30 mg, respectively, compared to 14 percent who received placebo.1,2,13

THE LAUNCH OF SOLFEROL CAPSULES, A PRESCRIPTION RANGE OF VITAMIN D3 MEDICINES

Windzor Pharma Ireland Ltd is please to announce the launch of SOLFEROL Softgel Capsules, a range of Vitamin D3 medicines, for the treatment of Vitamin D deficiency. This brand offers the widest range of presentations on the market 5 different strengths,, including two unique strengths, 400iu for the treatment of pregnant and breast feeding women, and 20,000iu for patients who are severely deficient in Vitamin D3. The demand for Vitamin D3 has grown strongly in recent years due to the Covid pandemic and the need for bone health in elderly patients. Solferol Softgel Capsules were developed in Ireland and are sold all across Europe. The product range is now available in all pharma wholesalers and listed on all software prescribing systems nationally. All five presentations are available on the reimbursement schemes, with a better price for all pack sizes. The full range is as follows: SOLFEROL Softgel Capsules 400iu x 90

SOLFEROL Softgel Capsules 800iu x 30

SOLFEROL Softgel Capsules 800iu x 90

SOLFEROL Softgel Capsules 1000iu x 28

SOLFEROL Softgel Capsules 20000iu x 4.

Full prescribing information available on www.windzorpharma.com.

RUN ‘N’ ROLL FAMILY EVENT

Pictured above are participants at the Irish Wheelchair Association (IWA) Run’n’Roll 5km, proudly supported by Liberty Insurance #MovedByValues. In excess of 380 participants competed in the family fun run (Sunday, 4 September) in Saint Annes Park, Raheny, Dublin 5. The event was designed to support and promote a more inclusive society for people with disabilities. Participants included disability advocates Joanne O’Riordan and Pharmacist Jack Kavanagh. Liberty is committed to greater equity, diversity and inclusion within society, and central to this commitment is greater support and allyship with people with functional disabilities. Due to Liberty’s support, 100% of race registration fees went to the IWA. The event raised over ¤17,000 for the IWA including an additional donation of ¤10,000 from Liberty.

HALEON LAUNCHES CENTRE FOR HUMAN SCIENCES

Haleon (LSE/NYSE: HLN) has launched the Haleon Centre for Human Sciences (“HCHS”), bringing together the expertise of practising health professionals and scientists, to address the behavioural challenges impacting everyday health. Unveiled at the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) congress in Seville, the Centre will operate as a community of health professionals and specialists in behavioural science, health psychology and the social sciences. This collaboration will aim to solve some of the most pressing everyday health challenges. The HCHS is the first major initiative for health professionals since Haleon’s launch as an independent, global leader in

consumer health. Its mission is to support practicing health professionals - pharmacists, pharmacy assistants and dental professionals - in serving their patients and communities. Leveraging Haleon’s competitive advantage of combining trusted science with deep human understanding, the Centre will bring expertise in physiological science together with human sciences to deliver real world-solutions and tangible interventions, resulting in measurable improvements in health outcomes through sustained behavioural change. The launch of the HCHS comes at a crucial time. A recent survey undertaken by Haleon revealed that 90% of pharmacists across Europe and the US believe that the role of the pharmacist has changed, requiring them to have greater expertise in influencing human behaviour and choices in patients’ health.

How It Works

The HCHS community will design, pilot, implement and evaluate solutions in real world settings. It will tackle issues one at a time, starting with pain management for the inaugural programme. Pain is the most common reason people seek healthcare and is the leading cause of disability in the world [Lancet 2021].[i] Haleon has long championed the role of pharmacists and pharmacy services in pain management and strongly believes that with the right support, an enhanced role would be of great benefit to patients and healthcare systems more broadly. Facilitated by Robert Horne, Professor of Behavioural Medicine at UCL School of Pharmacy, pharmacists can expect to see the first solution from the HCHS delivered in 2023.

Tess Player, VP Global Head of Expert/Health Professionals at Haleon, said, “As a global leader in consumer health, Haleon’s purpose is to deliver better everyday health with humanity. We know that some of the barriers to that are behavioural. The potential for the application of human sciences to help improve people’s health by influencing behavioural change, is astounding. The key to unlocking this lies with health professionals. While primarily students of medicine, their changing roles requires them to become experts in influencing patient behaviour. This is where we can help. We have long heard from practising health professionals that they would benefit from greater opportunity and resources to upskill themselves in behavioural and social sciences in an easily accessible way. 91% of pharmacists would like more support to develop strategies for helping patients adopt new and sustainable health behaviours. With the launch of our Centre for Human Sciences, we are committing to removing this barrier so they can focus on improving everyday health outcomes in the communities they serve.” “Through a deep understanding of the human factors behind health decisions and behaviours, and the development of practical solutions, the Centre’s community can tackle some of the very real challenges pharmacy professionals experience. This is just one example of how Haleon is delivering on its purpose and raising the bar in the level of support for health professionals, patients, and everyday health.” [i] The Lancet , Series - Chronic pain. Available here: https://www. thelancet.com/series/chronic-pain

BEACON LIMERICK OFFICIALLY OPENS

Limerick’s most advanced private Cardiology, diagnostic imaging and health screening centre, Beacon Limerick, was officially opened last week by Limerick’s Senior Hurling Manager John Kiely. Beacon Hospital is renowned for its dedicated teams of highly skilled medical professionals, and its world leading technologies and equipment. The new satellite clinic on Barrington Street offers stateof-the-art healthcare services including a comprehensive Cardiology Service, Diagnostic Radiology, Vascular Services, HealthCheck, Endocrinology and a minor surgical day unit. The Team of Consultant Cardiologists at Beacon Limerick provide comprehensive cardiac consultation and diagnostics services including, ECG, Echocardiograms, Stress ECG, Pacemaker Checks and Holter Monitoring. Beacon Limerick offers an extensive diagnostic imaging service using the most technologically advanced radiology equipment in Ireland. It is run by a team of experienced Limerick-based Consultant Radiologists and Radiographers offering cardiac CT (only centre in the Mid-West), general CT, Ultrasounds, DEXA Scans, vascular scanning and X-Rays. Additionally, Beacon Limerick’s HealthCheck offers a premier health screening service enabling patients to take a proactive approach to their health in order to help identify and make any changes necessary to stay well. Michael Cullen, CEO of Beacon Hospital said, “We’re delighted to officially open Beacon Limerick today. The clinic is equipped with state-of-the-art modern medical and surgical equipment. Our consultants, nurses, radiographers, physiologists and administrative staff are top of their field and will bring leading patient care to the people of Limerick and the Mid-West.

John Kiely, Limerick’s Senior Hurling Manager with Helen McCormack, Beacon Director Limerick This marks a significant milestone for Beacon Hospital as we continue to invest and expand in both our Dublin campus and our regional satellite clinics, with Beacon Limerick a key part of our future.”

CROÍ WELCOMES MEASURES IN BUDGET 2023 TO IMPROVE DIAGNOSTIC SERVICES FOR HEART VALVE PATIENTS

Following the announcement of Budget 2023, Croí, the cardiac and stroke foundation, has welcomed measures that will improve access to diagnostic services, such as echocardiography, for patients with structural heart conditions, including heart valve disease. The announcement comes following a Croí report which highlighted inequalities in the availability of echocardiography services and making clear and achievable recommendations to improve access. The report published by Croí earlier this month also outlined the need to meet additional demand through recruitment, training, and upskilling of the workforce. Specifically, a structured postgraduate

programme in echocardiography aimed at the 35% of cardiac physiologists not yet trained in this important test. In a positive move, the Government has allocated ¤47 million to facilitate GPs in accessing diagnostic tests, with major implications for access to radiology tests as well as up to 266,500 tests across areas such as echocardiography, spirometry and natriuretic peptide blood tests. The current budget estimates do not include provision for workforce planning however, which will make it more challenging to achieve the best outcome from the funding allocated by the Department of Health. The charity launched the report, based on data from the National Survey on Echocardiography Services in Leinster House to an audience of TDs, Senators and political staff. The report highlighted enormous disparities in terms of access to echocardiography services for public and private patients, and recommended GP direct access, via resourced community diagnostics, as a means to address them, reduce waiting times and lower the burden on hospital services. Neil Johnson, Croí Chief Executive responded: “Croí believes that all patients requiring echocardiography services should have equitable and timely access. Our report provided an evidence base to uphold our values and advocate on them, for the benefit of heart patients. We wish to thank Minister Donnelly for taking on board our recommendations, and also his Oireachtas colleagues who listened so intently to our presentation the week before last. We will continue to work constructively with both the Department of Health, the Department of Further and Higher Education, and their respective Oireachtas committees to deliver the best outcomes for heart and stroke patients.”

MATER PRIVATE NETWORK TO DELIVER IRELAND’S MOST ADVANCED ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORDS SYSTEM

Mater Private Network (MPN) has embarked on delivering Ireland’s most ambitious and comprehensive Electronic Health Record (EHR) platform, MEDITECH Expanse. Backed by an investment of €26m, Mater Private Network will integrate MEDITECH Expanse across its entire Irish network, including its flagship Dublin and Cork hospitals, the Mid-Western Radiation Oncology Centre, Limerick, both Day Hospitals and clinics in counties Limerick, Offaly, Meath and Louth. John Hurley, CEO, Mater Private Network, said “This investment of €26m demonstrates a significant level of commitment from our shareholder, Infravia, to the integration of transformational technology across the full scope of our network. The ultimate beneficiaries of our investment in digital transformation are our patients. The EHR will facilitate clinical integration across our network, enhance access and patient participation in their own care. Seamless personalised care across our network will further improve our excellent clinical outcomes and patient experience.” Eric Neville, Chief Information Officer, Mater Private Network, outlined his vision saying “Having recently launched the Mater Private Network patient portal/ app, this significant investment in the latest EHR technology is a major leap forward in our Digital Transformation and one we are all very excited about. Being a fully digital Network will be a gamechanger not only for us but for our patients and other healthcare institutions with which we collaborate”.

Lead clinician on the project, Dr. Róisín Ní Muirceartaigh, Consultant Anaesthesiologist and Chief Medical Information Officer, said “Every step in the transfer or communication of medical and healthcare information is a significant contributor to clinical efficiency. EHR is about introducing a single, unified patient record which will encompass the entirety of the patient’s journey with us. It also ensures any information brought in from other institutions has a single, safe, easy to find, digital location in the patient’s new e-Chart, quickly and easily accessed by every professional involved in their care.” Working with their chosen provider MEDITECH, a large multidisciplinary team drawn from across the Mater Private Network will collaborate to deliver Meditech Expanse across its entire hospital network by 2024. The scale of the investment demonstrates MPNs’ commitment to cultivating a sustainable digital connection with its patients and ambition to lead digital transformation in the Irish Healthcare market, which will improve both data accessibility and, through that, will optimise patient care.

TECHNOLOGY LEADING THE WAY

Together, VIGO Health and Abi have developed unique subscription-based virtual health services for the first time in Ireland. Prioritizing your health can be inconvenient and time-consuming, with many young adults admitting they do not have health coverage. To address the gap in the digital healthcare market, VIGO Health has introduced two new, first-ofits-kind* digital health solutions developed with Abi and introduced to the Irish market to provide fast and easy access to healthcare. The Abi proprietary Artificial Intelligence and machine learning architecture powers the VIGO Health telemedicine services including on-demand GP, messaging a doctor, mental health messaging and online prescriptions. CEO of VIGO Health, Ruth Bailey says of the technology, “The Abi Natural Language Processing & Understanding technologies parse, recognise and classify user requests. While, the matching, distribution and optimisation algorithms select the best available HCPs based on a range of factors. Together VIGO Health and Abi are bringing real telemedicine innovation to the Irish market to break down the barriers of accessing immediate affordable healthcare advice.”

CEO of ABI, Kim Schneider said of the partnership, “We are delighted to partner with VIGO Health to bring these innovative digital health solutions to the Irish market. The Abi platform finds the most appropriate healthcare professional for the patient’s medical concerns. A series of algorithms prioritise in real-time our medical staff based on several inputs like the inferred medical speciality, predicted availability and past performance to optimize the patient experience. An important focus of all our patient’s experiences is the privacy protection and security of our data, so we apply advanced techniques of de-identification / anonymization to remove or hide personal information as it flows through the platform. Working with VIGO Health, we are really excited to bring these innovative services to the Irish market for the very first time.” For more information about VIGO Health and its new products visit www.vigohealth.ie

CEO of VIGO Health, Ruth Bailey and Kim Schneider, CEO, ABI