Clinical Research
Over the last 20 years Ireland has become a location of choice for the international research based pharmaceutical industry. 13 of the top 15 pharmaceutical companies worldwide now have manufacturing operations in Ireland and the country is the largest net exporter of pharmaceuticals in the world. However, by general consensus the future competitive advantage of the Irish economy will depend less on manufacturing than it will on having a reputation as a world class centre for innovation and R&D in areas such as new medicines development. Ireland must move up the global value chain.
A vibrant, research-led pharmaceutical industry will help to create the knowledge-based economy Ireland needs to be successful in the 21st Century.
Industry
The pharmaceutical sector is a dynamic one, and to remain a significant player, Ireland must seek to attract additional elements of the business' value chain such as clinical trials, process development and optimization and activities like shared services centres.
In the future our competitive advantage will depend less on manufacturing and more on building a reputation as a world class centre for innovation and R&D. The Government strategy for science, technology and innovation is a big step in the right direction. The challenge now is to develop the right culture so that innovation can prosper.
Money invested in pharmaceutical R&D directly benefits patients - who receive the latest treatments - and it supports the Irish scientific community who are critical in moving Ireland further up the international value chain.
Build a World Class Hub
For Ireland to achieve world leader status in clinical research there are five clear recommendations for the State*:
- Standardise Ireland’s system of Ethical Review Committees and remove their unpredictability.
- Create formal career structures for health professionals interested in research, especially (but not only) for research nurses.
- Integrate internationally accredited training in Good Clinical Practice into medical and nursing education at all levels.
- Introduce practical and standard indemnity arrangements for clinical trials, in particular for non-commercial clinical research.
- Make research a core value in healthcare.
…and one overarching recommendation:
- Appoint a clinical research “supremo” in the Department of Health and Children – along the lines of the UK’s Director of NHS R&D – with the power to remove the roadblocks and create and deliver a research strategy for health in Ireland.
If these steps are not taken not only will Ireland fail to attract significant new trials but it will also see existing levels of trials put in jeopardy. Innovation and R&D activities will become the key drivers in bringing Ireland’s pharmaceutical industry to its next level of competitiveness in what is truly a global industry. Ireland has the potential to be a world class hub for the conduct of internationally recognised clinical research that not just benefits the economy but patients all over the world by providing new and better treatments.
By building on Ireland’s success as a pharmaceutical manufacturing base, our technical capabilities and our skilled labour force we can make it possible to shift away from a manufacturing-led economy and reinvent ourselves as a truly knowledge-based economy.
* Recommendations from the IPHA / IPPOSI Clinical Research Infrastructure in Ireland - Remaining Barriers, Potential Solutions Conference which was held in May 2008.
IPHA / IPPOSI Clinical Research Infrastructure in Ireland Conference Report (1.47 MB, Adobe PDF)