Aspen Ideas Fest: In Great Company

There have been many times in my career when I've been "wowed" by the people I meet. I think about the scientists working in our R&D teams who have spent years dedicated to a single compound, only to be disappointed by data that forces them to end their work on a particular treatment. Yet they still find the motivation to come back to work the next day, with the same level of passion and dedication.

That motivation is the patient who may ultimately receive one of the medicines to come out of this scientific pursuit.

Well, I'm having one of those "wowed" moments right now, as I prepare to attend the Aspen Institute's Aspen Ideas Festival--a week-long summit of innovative thinkers, policy makers, entrepreneurs, designers, urban planners, and more, sharing and speaking on global issues. The collective brain power gathered in the city of Aspen, CO is truly impressive, and humbling.

I'm honored to represent GSK on a panel called "What's Holding Back Medical Progress?" with Margaret A. Hamburg, FDA Commissioner; Tony Coles, Chairman and CEO of the biopharm company Onyx; and Kenneth L. Davis, President and CEO of The Mount Sinai Medical Center. The panel will be moderated by Elliot Gerson, EVP of the Aspen Institute. (In his free time, Gerson is also the American Secretary of the Rhodes Trust and manages the US Rhodes Scholarships).

"The head of the FDA, two pharma execs, and a hospital system chief walked onto a stage..." It could be the opening line of a joke, but it's not -- it's the premise for a very real discussion; one that is desperately needed to bring the best care possible to patients.

We'll talk about why many rapidly-evolving scientific discoveries are not being translated into treatments for the country's most pressing medical needs. We'll also explore how new models of medical product development, regulatory science, and reimbursement can be used to achieve national priorities and why we need to advance medical innovation.

These are topics that are at the heart of our mission as a healthcare company. I'm looking forward to a robust discussion with colleagues from other areas of healthcare. We'll be tweeting live from the panel, so follow @GSKUS to hear where the discussion goes. And join in the conversation using #AspenIdeas!