“It is our responsibility to help improve access to our medicines and vaccines, especially where access is most lacking. We have the ability to make this possible. As we undertake opportunities to expand the business, we also provide medicines to patients in a fair and responsible manner,” said Chris Tan, Managing Director of Merck Sharp & Dohme (I.A.) Corp. (MSD), the Philippine branch of Merck & Co., Inc.

MSD is engaged in various capacity-building initiatives in developing countries, from enabling mothers to be peer educators to helping increase the capacity of national immunization programs. “Human resource capability-building is a major factor in addressing global health challenges. To boost the capability of community health services, it’s important to cultivate partnerships with government and NGOs,” said Tan.

Through public policy and outreach activities that address barriers and challenges to healthcare delivery and a wide range of public-private partnerships, MSD is advancing access to medicines, vaccines and healthcare. These collaborations spur progress for new approaches for diseases that affect developing and emerging market countries.

For example, MSD and the Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) entered into a collaborative agreement to support the discovery and development of improved treatments for a wide range of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). In March 2009, MSD and Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) also announced a licensing agreement for an investigational drug candidate for the treatment of malaria in the developing world.

MSD is also expanding access to medicines and vaccines through the Merck Medical Outreach Program. The company donates medicines and vaccines through well-established partnerships enabling immunization programs in Central and Southeast Asia and reaching thousands more worldwide through the ongoing medical programs of partner private voluntary organizations. Recently, Merck and QIAGEN N.V. announced their intent to collaborate on a new program to increase access to HPV vaccination and screening in developing countries. QUIAGEN is the leading global provider of sample and assay technologies.

Locally, MSD supports the Department of Health in Diabetes and Cervical Cancer Awareness, Project NARS which deploys nurses to underserved areas, supports disaster relief and special access programs. Employee volunteerism and patient support programs also form the core of its operations.

“We're also focused on expanding our health capacity-building portfolio to include new projects and partnerships focused on healthcare capacity-building in the developing world, continuing our interaction with external stakeholders on key research priorities and opportunities, and supporting those with relevant expertise and resources,” said Tan.

In addition to improving access to medicines, vaccines and healthcare, other priority areas highlighted in the MSD Corporate Responsibility Report are researching new medicines and vaccines to address unmet needs, ensuring confidence in the safety and quality of products, operating ethically and transparently, and managing the organization’s environmental footprint. The report also emphasizes the fundamentals of good corporate governance and accountability, ethical business practices, and transparency.