Medical Research Agency New partners join the Warsaw Health Innovation Hub - News

The Warsaw Health Innovation Hub is a first-of-its-kind initiative in Central Europe that brings together the public sector and business to create innovative medical, technological and legal solutions for improving patient health and increasing the efficiency of the Polish healthcare system.  During the inauguration, five companies joined WHIH: AstraZeneca, EIT Health, Microsoft, Polpharma and Roche. Today, four more global companies have joined the WHIH and signed collaboration agreements.

- Today we are talking about a precedent-setting moment in which we jointly create a platform of trust where public and business partners jointly define goals for the optimization and development of the health care system in our country. We are creating a gas pedal for the development of innovations in the healthcare sector that will give us a chance to implement the highest quality digital, hardware and medical solutions which, I hope, will soon be delivered to Polish patients, ensuring a higher quality of treatment - said Radosław Sierpiński, MD, President of the Medical Research Agency.

During the October Polish-Austrian Economic Forum "Green Future" which was attended by the President of Austria Alexander Van der Bellen and the President of Poland Andrzej Duda, President of the Medical Research Agency Radosław Sierpiński, MD, PhD signed an agreement with Thomas Schantel, Member of the Management Board of VAMED Polska on cooperation and the incorporation of the Austrian company into the Warsaw Health Innovation Hub. The agreement is the beginning of international cooperation and exchange of experiences between both countries. As the President of the Republic of Poland emphasized during his speech concluding the Forum, "I hope that your presence here will contribute to the success of your companies and building even stronger economic ties between Poland and Austria.

- I am glad that VAMED joins the global project, which is the Warsaw Health Innovation Hub. We want our know-how to be reflected in the implementation of complex hospital projects in Poland. We believe that our international experience will contribute to standardization in this field, aiming at introducing effective and innovative solutions in Polish hospital treatment and public health care system - stressed Thomas Schantl, Member of the Management Board of VAMED Polska. 

Takeda Pharma has also joined the WHIH. The signing of the cooperation agreement took place at the Medical Research Agency in the presence of Mr. Akio Miyajima, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to Poland and Ms. Tae Sato-Takita, Second Secretary and Head of the Economics and Economic Cooperation Section of the Japanese Embassy. The cooperation agreement on behalf of Takeda Pharma was signed by Mr. Jean-Luc Deley, Head of Central South East Europe Takeda.

- It is my great pleasure to participate today in the signing of the agreement between the Medical Research Agency and Takeda Pharma. The Covid-19 pandemic is a major challenge to the world reminding us how important the quality of the health care system is to the safety of our social and economic activities. However, history teaches us that difficult times become times of opportunity. In the future, we can use this as an opportunity to create innovation through advanced technology. As Japanese Ambassador, I am delighted and proud that Takeda one of the global biopharmaceutical companies is signing an agreement with ABM and will contribute to the development of new technology and research in health care in Poland that can be used in the future. I wish you much success. Japan and Poland are two countries of flourishing friendship," said H.E. Mr. Miyajima, Ambassador of Japan to Poland.

- Central Europe is an increasingly important area for companies in our sector. This is due to the dynamically developing economies, well-educated employees and increasingly better conditions for partnerships between business and science. Poland's recent history is a history of success; by investing here and supporting innovation in the healthcare sector, we want to be a part of it, so that we can have an impact on improving patients' health. I believe that the cooperation established by Takeda within the Warsaw Health Innovation Hub will result in successful projects which will help many patients and contribute to further modernization of the Polish healthcare sector," said Jean-Luc Delay, Head of Central South East Europe Takeda.

Merck, which has been operating in Poland for nearly 30 years, has also found common ground and joined the Warsaw Health Innovation Hub, and the agreement was signed at the Medical Research Agency by Phil Krzyzek, President of Merck Sp. z o.o.

- For over 350 years, our passion for science and technology has been at the heart of what we do. It's what allows us to find answers to today's biggest challenges and create solutions that make life more sustainable. We support patients at every stage, with an eye toward beginning, quality, and length of life. We support the scientific community. Our tools, services, and digital platforms make conducting research easier, delivering results more accurate, and delivering breakthroughs faster. We support companies that are at the forefront of the world's digital revolution. We are excited to join the Warsaw Health Innovation Hub, where we bring our diverse experience in the Healthcare, Life Science and Electronics sectors. We have conducted 45 clinical trials in Poland to date. It is also home to one of only three Merck Business Service Centers in the world. This latest partnership is another milestone in our nearly 30-year history of operations in Poland," explains Phil Krzyzek, president, Merck Polska.

IQVIA is a global company which has been involved in initiatives aimed at improving the efficiency of the healthcare system for years. IQVIA operates in many countries and has experience in cooperation with the public sector. This kind of partnership is becoming more and more popular, especially when implementing new technologies and innovations. IQVIA will bring such experience to the Warsaw Health Innovation Hub.

- IQVIA has joined this unique project because we identify with all of its statutory objectives, i.e. improving diagnostics, improving prevention, minimizing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, using e-health, or maximizing the benefits of using Real World Data when implementing Value-Based Medicine. Especially in the area of the use of Real World Data (RWE) we have considerable experience and resources in Poland, which implement projects in this area all over the world. As a partner of WHIH, we want to actively participate and share our experience in order to optimize the costs and time of innovation implementation. We look forward to close cooperation with other partners and we believe that our joint commitment will translate into real effects, in particular the increase of innovation and digitization of healthcare in Poland - explained Aniela Hejnowska, General Manager, IQVIA Poland.

Representatives of all 9 companies participated in the second meeting of the WHIH Council. During the meeting each of the companies presented its plans and proposals for activities within the Warsaw Health Innovation Hub.