Copyright scotsman
Whilst it embraces its world-class research, clinical leadership, and a vibrant biotechnology scene, the pharmaceutical and clinical industry faces significant challenges. Yet, these challenges present Scotland with a unique opportunity - to harness the power of collaboration across the NHS, industry, and academia—the “Triple Helix”—and create a tech-enabled, data-driven research landscape capable of leading a four-nation solution for the UK Life Sciences industry. IQVIA is a leading global provider of clinical research services, commercial insights and healthcare intelligence to the life sciences and healthcare industries and is headlining this year’s Scotsman Life Sciences Conference in Glasgow on November 27. We asked them to explain what are the challenges facing the pharmaceutical and clinical industry and how they see Scotland not only overcoming these challenges but pioneering a new, and better way of working to drive growth in the sector, and improve outcomes for patients. Slow and uneven access to innovation: Only 28% of medicines available to European patients are fully accessible in Scotland, compared to 75% in England and 100% in Germany with an average wait of 374 days for new medicines to become available after licensing. Fragmented data and digital infrastructure: Scotland’s health data is rich but fragmented and underused and currently suffers from the lack of a national GP data platform Declining clinical trial activity: The UK has slipped from 4th to 8th globally in phase III clinical trial delivery and commercial trial participants decreased by nearly 14,000 between 2017/18 and 2022/23. Regional variation and bureaucratic barriers: Conflicting local guidelines and processes creates uncertainty and guidance is often not adopted locally, leading to inconsistent access. The unique opportunity for Scotland The Triple Helix Advantage: Scotland’s strengths in clinical leadership, academia and biotechnology position it to lead in life sciences. The “Triple Helix” model—collaboration between NHS, industry, and academia—can drive innovation from the lab bench to the bedside, creating an end-to-end life sciences ecosystem that attracts inward global investment and delivers better health outcomes for NHS patients. Data and digital empowerment: Scotland’s cradle-to-grave datasets offer a foundation for tech-enabled research. A national data strategy can transform diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring. Industry investment and infrastructure:- The Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicines Pricing, Access and Growth (VPAG) fund and CATALYST programme (developing NHS Research Scotland’s commercial clinical research services) are building world-class trial infrastructure and have now established four Scotland-based Clinical Research Delivery Centres to drive growth. In 2022, global commercial clinical trials contributed £7.4 billion GVA to the UK economy and supported 65,000 jobs. Commercial Clinical Trials generated £1.2 billion in revenue for the NHS and supported 13,000 NHS jobs. Collaboration and connectivity Building a connected life sciences ecosystem: In order to do this we need to create a ‘Once for Scotland‘ strategy to roll out new innovations across the whole country, rather than individual health boards. Strengthening partnerships: IQVIA says we need to: Embed partnership guidance across all Health Boards, publish transparent performance data on commercial clinical trial delivery bi-annually and reinvest NHS revenues from industry trials back into improving commercial clinical trial infrastructure and staff in Research Centres within NHS Hospitals Enabling a four-nation solution: This would involve creating a single point of entry for global companies to access Scottish health data and pioneering data access and governance models. The vision for Scotland’s life science future Scotland’s unique cradle to grave health data, underpinned by its community health index number (CHI), differentiates and enables AI data-driven life sciences research to become an innovation superpower. Scotland can deliver rapid, consistent patient access to innovative and life improving medicines, attract global investment, and use data and digital tools to accelerate diagnosis, prevention, treatment, and innovation uptake. Like all western health systems, Scotland’s health system and life sciences sector faces real challenges, but with bold choices and a commitment to collaboration, it can seize the opportunity to become a global leader. The Triple Helix model—uniting NHS, industry, and academia—offers the blueprint for a tech-enabled, data-empowered future. Join the conversation - shape the future The upcoming Scotsman Life Sciences Conference on November 27 at the Social Hub, Glasgow, is your chance to be part of this transformation. Whether you are a researcher, clinician, industry leader, policymaker, or innovator, your insights and expertise are vital. Register now to connect with peers across the NHS, industry, and academia, and help define Scotland’s next chapter as a global leader in life sciences. For more information and to secure your place at the Scotland Life Science Conference, visit the website here or contact the conference organisers directly here.
