Universitat Internacional de Catalunya
Introduction to Biomedical Companies
Introduction to Biomedical Companies
6
13487
2
First semester
OB
FROM RESEARCH TO THE PATIENT: TRANSFER AND INNOVATION
Main language of instruction: Spanish
Other languages of instruction: Catalan, English
Other languages of instruction: Catalan, English
Teaching staff
Questions that students may have will be resolved before or after class in person, or via email through direct contact throughout the course.
Introduction
The course is aimed at giving students a complementary view of science that allows them to be informed and, where appropriate, make decisions in relation to the development of a career in the field of creation and management of biomedical oriented companies and R&D. It is presented at an introductory level, as within the curriculum there will be core and optional subjects that will develop in depth some of the issues raised.
Pre-course requirements
None.
Objectives
- Provide students with the basics to understand the complexities involved in developing and marketing a drug (including determining its price), beyond the scientific aspects associated with its mechanism of action in relation to the disease.
- To present the biomedical company as a necessary instrument for the transformation of scientific knowledge into socio-economic value, in the form of services or products that improve the quality of life of patients.
- To offer students an overview of the different types of biomedical company and the professional profiles that can be integrated into them, with special emphasis on recent cases of local companies created and stemming from academic research.
Competences/Learning outcomes of the degree programme
- Recognize the different areas and dynamics of the biomedical company in which a graduate in Biomedical Sciences can practice.
- Identify the stages of the process of basic knowledge transfer in a product, technology or service as well as the methods for entrepreneurship and innovation that facilitate the stages of knowledge transfer.
- Develop the ability to organize and plan appropriately at the time.
- Develop the ability to solve problems.
- Develop the capacity for analysis and synthesis.
- To be able to pitch a biomedical project to a naif audience
- Be able to carry out autonomous learning.
- Be able to work in a team
Learning outcomes of the subject
At the end of the course, the student will:
- Learn about the value chain from the generation of new ideas in the biomedical research laboratory and the development of clinical trials to the creation of a new drug, technology or service to assist patients.
- Become familiarised with the different types of biomedical company, their business models, partnership profile, etc., and be able to match existing companies with their type.
- Meet the main players in the Spanish and Catalan biomedical sector.
- Understand the importance of non-scientific elements in the development of new drugs or biomedical services: industrial and intellectual property, legal and regulatory aspects, financing strategies, non-scientific communication, industrial development (scaling and quality control).
- Know the main elements that condition the price of a biomedical service or product (introductory notions of "market access").
- Become familiarised with the current trends in biomedicine: precision or personalised therapy, gene therapy, cell therapy, immune-oncology.
- Knows basic elements of pitch communication in order to capture investors' interest
- Become familiarised with the different professional options (“job descriptions”) offered by the biomedical company to graduates and doctors in biomedicine
Syllabus
- Basic definitions, what a company is, governance structures, basic management. Basic concepts in business biomedicine. The aim is for the student to become familiar with everyday concepts and to use them in subsequent classes. There will also be a "glossary" of basic terms to help throughout the course.
- Drug / device development. The aim is for students to know the timelines, risks and costs of developing biomedical products and services, including regulatory, industrial and legal aspects, in addition to demonstrating the effectiveness and safety of a new treatment.
- Transmission of the concepts that define companies that use biomedicine as a central part of their existence: what is meant by biotech, MedTech, pharma, generic, biologists, etc.
- Case method discussion using the web pages of different companies defined in the previous section.
- Case method: the example of the discovery and development of penicillin will be used to introduce the four key factors that affect the success of a biomedical development, technical, industrial, regulatory and commercial, with a focus on the importance of the existence of incentives associated with an unsatisfied need, the most obvious symptom of which is the financial incentive.
- Monographic workshop to introduce the concept of patents (the importance of which will have been pointed out in the case of penicillin), in an open case format in which the different options that exist for the protection of the industrial property are covered, including basic definitions of what a patent is.
- Evolution of the biomedical industry, from a single model (2000) to a diversified model (2019).
- Description of the current technologies that are creating the most expectations for the health of the future (gene editing, CART, ehealth, oncoimmunology, precision medicine, cell therapy and healing ...). The class will be used to work for the first time on the controversial issue of the price of health and medicines, as an introduction to pharmacoeconomics. Value of an R&D project: cost / benefit / profitability. Temporary value of money and expected value Practical project evaluation exercise (in groups) Basic principles for financing emerging biomedical companies.
- The concept of the generation and sale of future expectations, its analogy with the market of financial futures and capital and the difference between a purely speculative market and the risk financing system of the biomedical sector will be fundamentally worked on.
- Economic assessment of health interventions (pharmacoeconomics) Practical exercise in economic assessment of health
- Technology transfer models based on biomedical research of academic origin
- Concept of stakeholders, or interest groups, which is fundamental to understanding the economic levers of the biomedical sector
- General review of the main concepts of the subject and review of possible career opportunities in the sector
- Case methodology and visits The practical classes will be complemented by visits from professionals from the local environment who explain their professional trajectory and the business model of their company. Each visit will be associated with a theoretical topic, and the set will be the subject of the elaboration of a short presentation (pitch) of free orientation within the topic and the visit, so that each case session will open with 3- 5 "pitches" and there will be an open discussion about the material presented by the students
Teaching and learning activities
In person
Master classes: presentation during 2 sessions of 50 minutes of a theoretical topic by the teacher.
Practical classes and case methods (CM): Approach to a real or imaginary situation. Students interact directly with those involved in the creation of biomedical companies in Spain and Catalonia, and work on the questions in small groups or in interaction with the teacher and discuss the answers. The teacher and the speakers take an active part and, if necessary, contribute new knowledge.
Virtual Education (VE): Online material that the student can consult from any computer, at any time, that will contribute to the self-learning of concepts related to the subject
Evaluation systems and criteria
In person
Evaluation parameters in the first call: 20% Attitude and participation 20% Pitch 20% Partial exam 40% Final exam (first call) Attendance of less than 80% of the classes will result in a penalty of 10% of the overall grade obtained Evaluation parameters in the second call: In the second call, the part of the mark regarding the attitude and participation in class will be saved, as well as the qualification of the pitch and the attendance. The final grade, then, will be as follows: 20% Attitude and participation (saved from the first call) 20% Pitch (saved from the first call) 60% Final exam (second call) Class attendance, the penalty criterion is maintained in case of not having attended at least 80% of the classes (both master classes and the case method): Attitude and participation in class and cases: subjective assessment by teachers and speakers, based on: Predisposition to learning and a positive and constructive attitude Proactivity in discussion dynamics Active participation in the questions posed by the teacher / speaker Asking questions or doubts throughout the sessions Respect for ideas expressed by classmates Exams: You must get a grade of 5 or higher on the exam to average the final grade Partial examination 60% of the mark: Test with 20 multiple choice questions, 4 answer options. Rating +1 in case of correct answer. The incorrect answer does NOT remain in the note. 40% of the grade: 2 development questions (15 lines): critical explanation of a news item (to choose from 2 options) Explanation of the activity profile of a company or case discussed in class, including pitches (to choose between 2 options seen in class). Final exam (first and second call) 60% of the mark: Test with 30 multiple choice questions; 4 answer options. Rating +1 in case of correct answer. The incorrect answer does NOT remain in the note. 40% of the grade: 2 development questions (15 lines): explanation of the activity profile of a company (to choose from 3 options for class visits) explanation of a theoretical concept described in the master classes.
Bibliography and resources
Ciencia y Negocio, una visita a Businesslandia. Luis Ruiz Avila, Editorial EUNSA, 2020.
Evaluation period
E: exam date | R: revision date | 1: first session | 2: second session:
- E1 11/01/2023 A09 16:00h
- E2 16/06/2023 A09 18:00h