Our Commitment to Alberta

GlaxoSmithKline is committed to the development of strong collaborations and vibrant partnerships that improve the quality of life for Canadians and people around the world. Across the country, GlaxoSmithKline works with governments, research institutions, patient groups, health-care professionals and community organizations to provide real solutions to the health-care needs of patients. Together, we can help Canadians to do more, feel better and live longer. 

PEOPLE AND FACILITIES

• GlaxoSmithKline has 50 employees in Alberta, with a corporate office in Calgary, Alberta.

 

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

• GlaxoSmithKline invested more than $178 million in Canadian research and development (R&D) in 2007 alone, ranking it among the top 15 contributors to R&D in Canada, across all industries.

 

• GlaxoSmithKline’s $22 million Pathfinders Fund for Leaders in Canadian Health Science Research was established to help Canada become a world leader in R&D. This initiative encourages health science research and fosters innovation in Canadian medical schools. As part of this commitment:
  
  
  • GlaxoSmithKline provided a $1.25 million endowment to establish the GSK Chair in Airway Inflammation at the University of Alberta.
    
    
  • GlaxoSmithKline established the GSK Professorship in Inflammatory Lung Disease at the University of Calgary with a $1.25 million endowment.
    
    
  • GlaxoSmithKline committed $1.75 million to the University of Alberta’s Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry for the creation of an endowed Chair in Virology.
    
    
• GlaxoSmithKline has also contributed over $500,000 to the University of Calgary to fund a study on the effect of stimulation on respiratory muscle function.
  
  
  

CLINICAL RESEARCH

• In 2007, GlaxoSmithKline invested close to $45 million in clinical trials in Canada, conducting more than 80 trials and enrolling well over 2,900 patients. This represents approximately six per cent of the company’s worldwide clinical trial program. The Clinical Development Group typically works on more than 35 different chemical compounds varying from phase I to phase IV trials.
  
  

• GSK supported 60 academic research proposals in 2007 with physicians across Canada.
  
  

• In 2007, GlaxoSmithKline invested more than $1 million in clinical trials in Alberta.

 

INNOVATIVE PARTNERSHIPS

• PRIISME®, GlaxoSmithKline’s community-based chronic disease management program, helps health-care providers support patients suffering from asthma, diabetes and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). In Alberta, GSK has sponsored nine PRIISME® projects: two projects with the Calgary Health Region in Cochrane and Airdrie; two projects with Capital Health in Edmonton; one project with Palliser Health Region in Medicine Hat; one project with the Chinook Health Region in Lethbridge; one project with University of Alberta; one project with David Thompson Health Region in Drumheller; and one project with Rocky Mountain House Primary Care Network.
  
  

• GlaxoSmithKline created Community Asthma Care Centres (CACCs) in partnership with Canadian hospitals. Operating in more than 50 locations across the country, CACCs help patients to better manage their asthma through education, resulting in significant savings to the health-care system.
  
  
• In Alberta, CACCs are located at the Misericordia Community Health Centre and Northeast Community Health Centre in Edmonton.

 

COMMUNITY INVESTMENTS

• GlaxoSmithKline is committed to giving back to the communities in which our employees live and work, and annually donates a minimum of one per cent of pre-tax profits through The GlaxoSmithKline Foundation and other channels.
  
  

• The GlaxoSmithKline Foundation, in conjunction with the Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association and hospice palliative care organizations across the country, launched Living Lessons®. Established in 1998, the national campaign aims to raise awareness of, and support for, hospice palliative care services.
  
  

• GlaxoSmithKline is a leading contributor to Health Partners International of Canada (HPIC), a charitable organization that provides free medications, medical supplies and vaccines donated by Canada’s research-based pharmaceutical companies to developing world countries and disaster areas. Since 1994, GlaxoSmithKline has contributed almost $23 million in humanitarian product donations.

 

For further information, please contact:
Corporate Communications
GlaxoSmithKline Inc.
Tel: 905 819-3000
www.gsk.ca