ARE PHARMACEUTICAL
CORPORATIONS HEROES OR
VILLIANS?
2 Lessons
Learning objectives
1. Definitions of TNC, pharmaceutical companies and
tobacco companies
2. To research the impacts of these companies in MEDCs
and LEDCs
Starter- Definitions Quiz
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Define Birth Rate
Define Mortality Rate
What does AIDs stand for?
Define Morbidity
What does CHD stand for?
What would be a good statistic to use
instead of GNP to compare the wealth of
two countries with varying population
sizes?
Question Papers
• Have a look through your exam paper
• Have a think about what what you
answered well and what you need to do to
improve
• Any questions, please ask
Today’s Lesson!
Definitions-Please copy down
TNC – Trans National Corporation
A company which operates in more than one country
around the world. Often with HQ in MEDCs and branch
plants in LEDCs
Pharmaceutical corporation – a company which makes
drugs for medical reasons Eg. GlaxoSmithKline
Tobacco industry – a few TNCs produce more than 500
billion cigarettes a year globally such as Phillip Morris
and British American Tobacco who have 19% and 17%
of world market share
Constant Gardener
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4iTjavIkb
k
Positive and negative impacts of
pharmaceutical companies
Positive
Negative
• Huge profits which can be used to
develop countries
• Aim to improve Q of L and support UN
health goals
•Employs lots of people
• Involved in R&D to develop new drugs
and vaccines – spend lots of money doing
this
• GlaxoSmithKline
Employ 100,000 people in 117 countries
Involved in HIV and Malaria – 2 of worlds
biggest killers
Positive Action Group to work with local
communities
Spend £300,000 per hour on R&D
•Drugs are too expensive – especially in
LEDCs. 90 – 98% are off patent so other
companies can produce them and so
should be at a lower price
•Corrupt governments not allowing effective
delivery of medicines
•Inadequate training and education on use
of drugs
GlaxoSmithKline
• We are a science-led global healthcare company
• We have a challenging and inspiring mission: to improve
the quality of human life by enabling people to do more,
feel better and live longer. This mission gives us the
purpose to develop innovative medicines and products
that help millions of people around the world.
• Headquartered in the UK, we are a global organisation
with offices in over 100 countries and major research
centres in the UK, USA, Spain, Belgium and China.
• But being a leader brings responsibility. This means that
we care about the impact that we have on the people
and places touched by our mission to improve health
around the world.
American Pharmaceutical
Group
• The organisation that represents the nine
leading US-owned pharmaceutical
companies operating in the UK.
• A key focus for the APG is working to
create a better understanding of the role
and value of the pharmaceutical industry,
and in particular the key part played by US
companies, who account for more than
half the world's expenditure on new drug
development.
Thalidomide
• Most people who recognize the name
“thalidomide” associate it with “birth
defects.” Introduced in the late 1950s,
this drug was marketed as a sleeping
aid, sedative, morning-sickness remedy
and anti-nausea medication in at least 46
countries. Among the many people who
took thalidomide were pregnant women
(and women who did not yet know they
were pregnant). It was discovered then
that thalidomide caused severe birth
defects. In many cases, babies affected
by thalidomide did not survive; those who
did often had shortened arms or legs
(phocomelia), deafness, blindness or
gastrointestinal anomalies.
Global impacts of tobacco
companies
Postive impacts
Negative impacts
• Employment of thousands of people
•Some companies (British American
Tobacco) only from sustainable
sources
•Social Responsibility Programme
addresses social and environmental
issues such as water conservation,
afforestation programmes
• BAT – marketing strategy is about
increasing market share and not
increasing number who smoke
• BAT opened factories in LEDCs
provides employment – at what price?
• Smoking is responsible for 6 million
deaths per year and damages health of
millions more
• Smoked by 1 billion adults globally –
biggest market in China where there are
350 million smokers (industry is state
owned) and growing market in Africa. Are
they exploiting LEDCs to compensate for
decline in smoking in MEDCs?
• Addictive drug which the companies use
to their advantage
•Misleading advertising
•Tobacco smuggling in Asia
•Closure of factories in MEDCs now
production costs less in LEDCs = more
profit
4 Groups- Research for two Debates.
1=Pharmaceuticals, 2=Tobacco
1. You are
GlaxoSmithKline
2. You are an
international
public health
awareness group
‘Global Citizen
Corps’
1. You are an
environmental
action group
‘Greenpeace’
2. You are tobacco
giant Benson and
Hedges
Cont…
1. You are
thalidomide
babies
(grown up)
2. You are the
Indian
government
1. You are the American
Pharmaceutical Group
2. You are someone who
is grieving the loss of
your husband to lung
cancer caused by
smoking (you choose
if overseas or the UK)
2 Quick Tables: 4 rows and 2
columns in each