We announced this morning that Deirdre Connelly will join the company as President, North American Pharmaceuticals, on February 09, reporting to our CEO, Andrew Witty.
She joins us from Eli Lilly and Company, where she has been President of US Operations since 2005. Deirdre started as an Eli Lilly sales representative in 1983 and held a number of sales and marketing roles. In 2003, she became executive director of human resources for Eli Lilly's
Welcome Deirdre!
For the past several years, GSK has offered free screening events for a number of common conditions in communities across the US. After looking at the results (de-identified, of course...these are aggregated results), we found that not only is our population ill (we already knew that, since it has been well-reported that nearly half of us have at least one chronic disease), but many individuals with chronic diseases, like diabetes, thought they were managing their health properly.
It just shows that we can never let our guard down in the fight against the epidemic of chronic diseases. Take a look at the study results in the interactive graphic above (and feel free to share it with others!).
The mood around us was celebratory and reverent at the same time as we all realized that history was being made. President Obama's words were inspiring, and it was a thrill to look down the Mall and see millions of people waving American flags. 
I had the opportunity to witness history yesterday. My daughter and I were on the lawn of the Capitol to see Barack Obama take the oath of office as our 44th President.
The campaign for the White House seemed endless, from the long marathon of the primary season, to the final sprint--and hurdles--from the national conventions to November 4. It could have forced many people to tune out, but it didn't. We saw record-breaking voter turnout, and we had the chance to really learn about the candidates and where they stood on some of the issues--like the need to overhaul our healthcare system.
What I found very hopeful was that the presidential candidates spoke so passionately about the need for healthcare reform. And it was important that they spoke about the need to focus on what is really crippling our healthcare system--the epidemic of chronic diseases.
How frightening is it that nearly half of our population has at least one chronic disease, such as asthma, diabetes, or heart disease? What's more, 7 out of 10 deaths are attributed to chronic diseases, and $3 out every $4 that we spend on healthcare goes toward treating chronic diseases.
If we are going to reform our healthcare system, we need to make sure that it works smartly and efficiently to save money and improve our health. That can only be done by focusing on preventing people from developing chronic diseases--through healthy lifestyles and regular health screenings. If they do become ill, we need to make sure that people manage their diseases through diet, exercise, following their doctors' orders, and taking medication as prescribed. And we must continue the search for new and better treatments and cures for these diseases. If we don't address the underlying problem, reform will not be sustainable.
The new administration and Congress have an enormous amount of work to do on many fronts, from the economy and foreign policy to crumbling infrastructure and healthcare reform. Many of these issues are interrelated. But one thing is clear: our healthcare system needs help. It was reassuring to hear HHS Secretary nominee, Tom Dashcle, focus on prevention and chronic disease management in his confirmation hearings, and that the new stimulus package has money for prevention. This is a great beginning, and I hope that we see support for innovative research for diseases such as Alzheimers Disease, which threatens to overwhelm our healthcare system as our nation ages.
I've read a few opinion pieces recently asking if we should maybe lighten up on President Obama's lighting up during times of crisis.
Really? With all of the evidence linking smoking with chronic diseases, like lung disease and heart disease, as well as cancer--and with all of the attention paid to the health of a potential President during the campaign--I find this surprising. Instead, we need to encourage positive behaviours that prevent these chronic diseases from ocurring or worsening--and quitting smoking (or never starting in the first place) is essential.
Rather than enable the President's dangerous habit, let's support his efforts to quit. I mean, he does have a bit on his plate at the moment, and could probably use our encouragement.
