This issue of HMPI draws insights about health challenges and opportunities from multiple countries. George Stalk and Joe Manget describe healthcare disruptions that can improve access, quality, and efficiency, using examples from Canada. Elizabeth Ndichu and Kevin Schulman use evidence from Nigeria to highlight the need for cross-national regulatory initiatives. Andrea Prado, Priscilla Rodriguez, and Alvaro Salas describe the transformation of Costa Rican health care into a high-performing system. Will Mitchell highlights the role of generic and biosimilar drugs in providing pricing discipline in Europe, North America, and elsewhere. Indira Laothamatas and David Nash describe initiatives to improve leadership training of physicians in multiple countries. Together, the articles offer insightful pathways to seizing robust opportunities for building stronger healthcare systems.
A thread that links these arguments is the need for organizational innovations that break down national and international silos in health and healthcare. This is a challenging task, but one fully within the competence of existing healthcare and life sciences policy and commerce. Our highlighted case in this issue, “Apple Health Records”, offers one step toward feasible integration, based on commercial innovation in electronic data systems.
As always, the solutions to our health care challenges will stem more from organizational gains than simply from technological improvements. The opportunities for these organizational solutions lie very much within the reach of leaders in the health policy and commercial life sciences sectors. HMPI seeks to provide insights that will help leaders act strongly and effectively.
As a teaser for the next issue of HMPI, please stay tuned for our special issue on bipartisan solutions to health care reform in the U.S. We are excited about the strong set of perspectives and suggestions that are in the line-up.
Will Mitchell
Professor of Strategic Management
Anthony S. Fell Chair in New Technologies and Commercialization
Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto