I don't think many would dispute the fact that as an industry, we've done a poor job of explaining the work that we do and the people with whom we work. This includes our interactions with groups outside the walls of our offices, such as patient advocacy organizations and healthcare professionals. Today, GSK published its first-ever report of grants and sponsorships provided to US healthcare organizations. The report follows our announcement last summer that we intended to share information about grant funding through quarterly reports.
We provide grants and sponsorships for programs and organizations that foster increased understanding of scientific, clinical, and healthcare issues, and contribute to the enhancement of patient care. These types of grants can range from supporting runs and walks to raise money for cancer or diabetes research to helping fund brochures and educational programs for patients. We also sponsor independent medical education programs, commonly referred to as
There will always be critics who say that we are only doing this to sell more of our products. But supporting educational efforts in our community and showing our support to patients and healthcare professionals are an important part of our corporate mission to improve the quality of human life by enabling people to do more, feel better and live longer.
While we are not the first company to publish these reports, we surely won't be the last. In fact, we believe that each sector of the healthcare industry needs to do its part to improve transparency. In the future, we look forward to making more information about the ways in which we work available to the public. For instance, later this year, we plan to begin publishing a report of payments provided to US healthcare professionals.
We know that we need to earn the right to operate as a pharmaceutical company, and our ever-evolving business model and policies reflect our willingness to respond to the needs of society. It's important that we do more to ensure that patients and the general public understand the types of programs that GSK supports--and why. Today, we are taking another step in the right direction.
Amen, Michael. Now if you can find a way to deal with these physicians or researchers who seem to pop up every so often in negative stories about being paid by GSK and not revealing it to the public. They are putting you folks in a bad spot and hurt your credibility.