Salmaan Naqvi

The National Asthma Council’s updated Australian Asthma Handbook provides a comprehensive guide to asthma medicines, including types of treatment regimens, brand names, single-inhaler combinations, and inhaler types. Asthma medicines are classified by their role in asthma management (preventers and relievers) as well as by their pharmacological and chemical classes. The mainstay of asthma treatment in adults and adolescents is the use of inhaled corticosteroids. This is either in combination with formoterol (anti-inflammatory reliever or AIR-only therapy) as needed in response to symptoms, or as regular maintenance-and-reliever therapy (MART) in combination with formoterol, or as a regular maintenance treatment alone or in combination with a long-acting beta agonist. Learn more in our comprehensive Medicines Guide: https://lnkd.in/gyf9Bdmk

23

Two interesting pieces of analysis of Australia's medicines funding through the PBS this week. First, Amgen's Australian Patient Access Gap Tracker found since January 2021, the average time between the registration of a new 'medicine and population pairing' by the TGA and its funding on the PBS has stretched to 679 days - up from 521 days in Amgen's first report released almost two years ago. Second, AbbVie released results from its Future of Medicines Access Poll based on a survey of 2,000 working aged Australians that found 43% had paid full price for a prescription medicine not covered by the PBS, in some cases being more than $5,000 out of pocket. Australians are borrowing money, fundraising, and taking on extra work to pay for medicines that are registered by the TGA but not listed on the PBS, growing delays exacerbating the problem. #patientscantwait #patientaccessgap #medicinesfunding #PBS Link to stories in MedNews Aust/NZ (paywall): https://lnkd.in/gcf9BT4i https://lnkd.in/gjWkY9sr

40

4 Comments

What I love most about my job is being part of conversations that are honest, insightful, and truly meaningful. Our joint study with Valeur Consulting , The Uncomfortable Truth, is exactly that kind of work. A big thank you to Bayer for welcoming the Australian Doctor Group and Valeur Consulting into your conference and for being so engaged and interactive with the content. The openness and willingness to explore challenging perspectives made the dialogue both impactful and energizing. If you’d like to learn more about how to better engage with healthcare professionals and create conversations that lead to positive action, please feel free to reach out.

9

GAIASO Theranostics, an Australia-based biotech company pioneering next-generation precision #radiopharmaceuticals for women’s cancers, has appointed Dr. Tracey Brown as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Read more : https://lnkd.in/d5yDuW6D #GAIASOTheranostics #PrecisionMedicine #Radiopharmaceuticals #WomensCancers #BiotechInnovation #NewCEO

29

This week, A/Prof Colman Taylor and HTANALYSTS Patient Engagement Lead Erica Doutty attended four key events in Canberra over three impactful days. The clear takeaway? The gap between patient need and system action remains far too wide. We know what needs to be done and it's now about having the courage to act and to demand progress until the system catches up with patient needs. Thank you to Rare Cancers Australia. Medicines Australia and Patients Australia for hosting powerful conversations that push us forward.

3

Biogen recently participated in PharmAus 2025, the industry’s flagship event at Parliament House, hosted by Medicines Australia. As part of the event, Biogen and fara Australia - Friedreich Ataxia Research Association showcased the ‘Challenge Your Balance’ initiative to Members of Parliament. This initiative was a unique and engaging way to raise awareness of Friedreich ataxia (FA) - a rare, genetic, life-shortening, and progressively debilitating neuromuscular disorder.[1,2] ‘Challenge Your Balance’ is a virtual experience designed to simulate one of the early and hallmark symptoms of FA: impaired balance. FA often begins with progressive loss of coordination, muscle weakness, and fatigue, severely impacting daily life.[3] To help illustrate this experience, a leaderboard at the Biogen stand tracked how many steps MPs could take without losing balance and sparked friendly competition, while driving home the challenges faced by those living with FA every day. Andrew Watt #BiogenANZ #PharmAus References 1. Bidichandani SI, et al. GeneReviews® [Internet]. Seattle (WA): University of Washington, Seattle; 1993–2023. Available at: https://lnkd.in/e5tH8auc 2. Lynch DR, Schadt K, Kichula E, et al. Friedreich ataxia: multidisciplinary clinical care. J Multidisciplin Healthcare. 2021;14:1645–1658. 3. Schulz JB, Boesch S, Bürk K, et al. Diagnosis and treatment of Friedreich ataxia: a European perspective. Nat Rev Neurol. 2009;5(4):222–234.

62

1 Comment

The Real Work Begins When the Conference Ends! We've just dropped our latest article on maximising post-conference engagement in medical communications. We spend thousands getting to these conferences, perfecting our booth setup, and training our teams. But then what, most of us are still recovering from the long walks around the conference floor while our carefully cultivated HCP connections go cold. The 48-hour rule is real. Miss that window, and you may have essentially wasted your investment. The Australian medcomms landscape is evolving fast. It's not about collecting business cards anymore, it's about building genuine relationships that add real value to clinical practice.

16