CHANGING TOMORROW™ unites everyone at Astellas behind an invigorating purpose to redefine tomorrow’s care. Just as great patient care relies on a multi-disciplinary team, we rely on multi-disciplinary teams to come together to deliver our shared purpose. Colleagues from across our diverse UK teams tell us about how our vision inspires them every day.
Delivering new sources of hope
We know that for some people, routine access to our treatments could potentially save lives. With this knowledge, we work in close partnership with health bodies such as the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and NHS England to secure NHS reimbursement for our innovative medicines as efficiently as possible.
We also commit to exploring options to make our investigational treatments available for UK healthcare professionals to use, by assisting them to launch clinical trials, or by providing them early access, upon request, prior to regulatory approval for patients who have limited options.
“We develop solutions where patient need is high, often in under-served disease areas and for life-threatening or life-limiting conditions. CHANGING TOMORROW™ means accelerating access to our innovative treatments to get them into the hands of healthcare professionals at the point that they need them. It has the potential to make a real difference to patients’ lives in the future,” said Nick Powell, UK Market Access Lead.
Listening and supporting the patient community
Living with an illness is not a homogenous experience. People experience their illnesses differently. We actively seek out and listen to the patient community, allowing us to identify and deliver solutions with them front of mind.
We ensure the patient voice is heard in our discussions with national bodies, such as NICE. By sharing their views, the potential value of new therapies can be understood, helping to inform decisions on NHS reimbursement. Beyond this, we work to improve disease awareness, drive patient education and help unlock opportunity in care pathways.
“We believe that creating solutions for patients, means creating solutions with patients. We strive to understand what is going on for people living with a disease, and how we can be part of improving experiences along their entire journey. CHANGING TOMORROW™ reminds us that for some people living with underserved conditions, tomorrow can sometimes seem far away. We are working to change that.” said Sara Boughton, UK Advocacy Manager.
Supporting the medical community to create the best care pathway
We work with healthcare professionals, listening to their hands-on knowledge of management to help us respond to their needs – with information, professional education or tools to identify value or capacity improvements. Combined with a holistic vision that incorporates the patient’s perspective, we help to unlock capacity and deliver the best care pathway.
“CHANGING TOMORROW™ is the collaborative spirit that drives us”, said Hanna Sodatonou, Therapy Area Medical Lead, Astellas. “We are all aware of the unprecedented challenges frontline health workers have faced in treating COVID-19, and balancing the continuing care for the millions living with other medical conditions in the UK. At the start of the pandemic we heard the medical community’s emerging needs and worked swiftly with the NHS to implement emergency plans that would free up hospital resource to treat COVID-19 patients, and reduce patient need to visit hospitals. It’s examples like this that make tangible differences to healthcare professional and patients’ lives.”
Building teams for success
To effectively shape tomorrow means having the right team to deliver upon it. Our people are our driving force. We aspire to bring on board some of the UK’s brightest minds, and through initiatives such as our Stellar Women UK Leadership Programme we seek to empower and accelerate talent wherever it may lie within Astellas. It takes every one of our employees in the UK, with their unique skills, diverse backgrounds, and personal experiences, to help us make a tangible difference to patients’ lives.
“For me, CHANGING TOMORROW™ is continuing to foster agility, passion and a relentless challenger spirit in people by harnessing development that helps our people grow; equipping them with the tools and resources to excel. Pivotal to this is our creation of a culture that fosters a holistic approach to wellness and success, both inside and outside the office,” said Claire Robb, UK HR, Astellas.
At Astellas, CHANGING TOMORROW™ unites us behind an invigorating purpose to redefine tomorrow’s care. Ultimately, it is how we can make a meaningful difference to the lives of people who need it most.
NON_2021_0059_UK, July 2021