ARE PHARMACEUTICAL CORPORATIONS HEROES OR

VILLIANS?2 Lessons

Learning objectives1. Definitions of TNC, pharmaceutical companies and

tobacco companies2. To research the impacts of these companies in MEDCs

and LEDCs

Starter- Definitions Quiz

1. Define Birth Rate

2. Define Mortality Rate

3. What does AIDs stand for?

4. Define Morbidity

5. What does CHD stand for?

6. What would be a good statistic to use instead of GNP to compare the wealth of two countries with varying population sizes?

Question Papers

• Have a look through your exam paper

• Have a think about what what you answered well and what you need to do to improve

• Any questions, please ask

Today’s Lesson!

Definitions-Please copy down

TNC – Trans National CorporationA company which operates in more than one country

around the world. Often with HQ in MEDCs and branch plants in LEDCs

Pharmaceutical corporation – a company which makes drugs for medical reasons Eg. GlaxoSmithKline

Tobacco industry – a few TNCs produce more than 500 billion cigarettes a year globally such as Phillip Morris and British American Tobacco who have 19% and 17% of world market share

Constant Gardener

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4iTjavIkbk

Positive and negative impacts of pharmaceutical companies

Positive Negative

• Huge profits which can be used to develop countries• Aim to improve Q of L and support UN health goals•Employs lots of people• Involved in R&D to develop new drugs and vaccines – spend lots of money doing this• GlaxoSmithKline

Employ 100,000 people in 117 countries

Involved in HIV and Malaria – 2 of worlds biggest killers

Positive Action Group to work with local communities

Spend £300,000 per hour on R&D

•Drugs are too expensive – especially in LEDCs. 90 – 98% are off patent so other companies can produce them and so should be at a lower price•Corrupt governments not allowing effective delivery of medicines•Inadequate training and education on use of drugs

GlaxoSmithKline

• We are a science-led global healthcare company• We have a challenging and inspiring mission: to improve the

quality of human life by enabling people to do more, feel better and live longer. This mission gives us the purpose to develop innovative medicines and products that help millions of people around the world.

• Headquartered in the UK, we are a global organisation with offices in over 100 countries and major research centres in the UK, USA, Spain, Belgium and China.

• But being a leader brings responsibility. This means that we care about the impact that we have on the people and places touched by our mission to improve health around the world.

American Pharmaceutical Group

• The organisation that represents the nine leading US-owned pharmaceutical companies operating in the UK.

• A key focus for the APG is working to create a better understanding of the role and value of the pharmaceutical industry, and in particular the key part played by US companies, who account for more than half the world's expenditure on new drug development.

Thalidomide• Most people who recognize the name

“thalidomide” associate it with “birth defects.” Introduced in the late 1950s, this drug was marketed as a sleeping aid, sedative, morning-sickness remedy and anti-nausea medication in at least 46 countries. Among the many people who took thalidomide were pregnant women (and women who did not yet know they were pregnant). It was discovered then that thalidomide caused severe birth defects. In many cases, babies affected by thalidomide did not survive; those who did often had shortened arms or legs (phocomelia), deafness, blindness or gastrointestinal anomalies.

Global impacts of tobacco companies

Postive impacts Negative impacts

• Employment of thousands of people

•Some companies (British American Tobacco) only from sustainable sources

•Social Responsibility Programme addresses social and environmental issues such as water conservation, afforestation programmes

• BAT – marketing strategy is about increasing market share and not increasing number who smoke

• BAT opened factories in LEDCs provides employment – at what price?

• Smoking is responsible for 6 million deaths per year and damages health of millions more• Smoked by 1 billion adults globally – biggest market in China where there are 350 million smokers (industry is state owned) and growing market in Africa. Are they exploiting LEDCs to compensate for decline in smoking in MEDCs?• Addictive drug which the companies use to their advantage•Misleading advertising•Tobacco smuggling in Asia•Closure of factories in MEDCs now production costs less in LEDCs = more profit

4 Groups- Research for two Debates. 1=Pharmaceuticals, 2=Tobacco

1. You are GlaxoSmithKline

2. You are an international public health awareness group ‘Global Citizen Corps’

1. You are an environmental action group ‘Greenpeace’

2. You are tobacco giant Benson and Hedges

Cont…

1. You are thalidomide babies (grown up)

2. You are the Indian government

1. You are the American Pharmaceutical Group

2. You are someone who is grieving the loss of your husband to lung cancer caused by smoking (you choose if overseas or the UK)

2 Quick Tables: 4 rows and 2 columns in each