Jayasree K. Iyer to address World Health Summit 2018 on antimicrobial resistance

Jayasree will join a Keynote Session on Antimicrobial Resistance, together with Prof. Dr. Jeremy Farrar, Prof. Dr. Lothar H. Wieler, Prof. Dr. Rolf Müller and Thomas B. Cueni. The session will be chaired by Dr. Georg Schütte, State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Education and Research of Germany.

The World Health Summit, organised by the M8 Alliance of Academic Health Centers, Universities and National Academies, brings together experts from academia, industry, politics and civil society and aims to improve health all over the planet, catalyzing that process through collaboration and open dialogue, and steering tomorrow’s agenda to improve research, education, healthcare, and policy outcomes. The event is held under the continuous patronage of the Chancellor of Germany, the President of France, as well as the President of the European Commission.

In her keynote speech, Jayasree will present the Antimicrobial Resistance Benchmark, the first independent assessment of how pharmaceutical companies are tackling the rise of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). It found that some companies are active on many fronts, including antibiotic research & development and AMR surveillance, while others are taking smaller steps. The Access to Medicine Foundation has started the methodology reviewfor the next Antimicrobial Resistance Benchmark – by consulting a wide range of experts and stakeholders to refine its analysis of pharmaceutical company responses to antimicrobial resistance. The new Antimicrobial Resistance Benchmark will be published in early 2020.

Workshop on Access to Essential Medicines
On 16 October, Jayasree will join a session on “Access to Essential Medicines” to discuss the work of the Foundation on evaluating pharmaceutical company approaches to improving the accessibility and availability of medicines in low- and middle-income countries. The session, which will be moderated by Greg Perry, Assistant Director General of International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations (IFPMA), aims to shed light on the recent progress in a number of countries showing that access to essential medicines can be improved through stronger partnership among governments, pharmaceutical companies and civil society, including consumers, working together to ensure universal access to essential medicines. Other speakers Helen McGuire, Dr. Frédérique Santerre, Subhanu Saxena, Dr. Mariângela Simão, and Prof. Dr. Gerald Yonga.