I have been working on several blogs this week and while many will resonate quite well with most if not all of us in this industry, I had to pull back and really ponder on one topic that has had me thinking a lot lately. The question of why we are in this industry and our reasoning’s behind it and I want to get some info from you the reader about your motivations for being in this industry.
A lot of this has stemmed from some of the shows that have been airing on TV about the events of 10 years ago this Sunday, September 11 and they have got me thinking about many things, the greatest one being compassion and integrity as well as other factors that motivate our behaviors. People do things in life for several reasons; fear, comfort, greed being some of the biggest but also selfishness and selflessness. Our industry gets an unfair target painted on it as, well lets face it, many people only see the big almighty dollar as the motivating factor behind our actions and intentions. I will not argue at all that I enjoy being able to make a living and be comfortable in my life, but its not the reason that I do this work. I have always been one that is motivated by science, it pervades my life and will continue as it satisfies my curiosity for how things work and why sometimes they don’t. It has led me from research to now, the clinical trials world.
And now… Why?
Why are you here? No am not trying to get on a philosophical journey and navel contemplation, but merely what brought you to this industry and why do you stay?
I want to believe though that most of us are in this field in order to serve the public good, to help get treatments moving along on the long path of approval faster. Clinical trials are about finding either a cure or for finding ways to alleviate suffering. They are the only true way to provide concrete, irrefutable evidence of whether or not a therapy is effective or not. The process is monitored constantly and generally is one that is safe and effective. But when a trial goes wrong, the process gets maligned in the press, especially when it leads to an unfortunate suffering or death. This leads to fear and that leads to finger pointing and anger at our industry.
What we do though is needed and necessary and while there are some pitfalls in the process, the overwhelming majority of trials are handled in a highly professional manner and serve great purpose.
I joined this company for several reasons, the biggest is that I could be part of something that will change the process of clinical trials for the better. Our namesake, Balto the sled dog, was part of a race to get critical medicine to people that needed it the most. That group of individuals used the tools and processes of the day to change the way that that medicine was delivered, as we are using the tools and technologies of our day to bring about a better way to help deliver medicine faster. Get the therapies through the process of a trial faster and you help that company either potentially get a drug closer to being an approved compound, or help them fail faster so they can work on another avenue for treatment. The underlying principle though should always be to help mankind. It a simple concept and while some may think that I am trying to stand on a soapbox/pedastal/etc., that belief is one that should be at the core of our beliefs and motivations for our work.
We all have some yardstick against which we measure ourselves as well as a event that caused us to become interested in or stay in clinical. Whether it is from the professional part of your life or one that relates to personal, tell me what motivates you? Am sure that it will spur others on to look at what they do and reflect why, and I ask again for you to share it here in this forum. Personally I would like to see Alzheimer’s research move faster. After watching a family member succumb last year I will never ever have the belief that its harder for the ones around them. Watching someone constantly, repetitively try to reset that reptilian core of ones brain is heartbreaking.
In Closing
So earn a living, enjoy your life, be happy. Be part of this industry and be humble and have humility by thinking about why you do this. There is no greater gift then to give to serve the common good. Our industry is after all, at the end of the day about just that, to serve the ones that need help. As always I thank you for reading and I welcome and look forward to your comments.
About the Author
Leif Erickson is a Director of Business Development at goBalto. He has over 19 years of experience in the pharma and biotech industries, including 5 years of research at 2 La Jolla based biotech companies and helped start the Diversa Corporation. To learn more about what we do and how we want to help the clinical study startup please contact Leif.
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
HI there Lief. Many of us are aware of the importance of clinical trials and the need for them. That is rarely the issue when there is frustration and anger in the community (although there are a few out there that believe we are wasting out time and money with these trials). However, you may be here for altruistic reasons and for good, but is everyone in your industry, including upper management and board of director of big pharma driven the way you (and myself) are? I doubt it. Profits win the day. Failures of clinical trials are rarely if ever reported…that would help the industry a great amount. Data can and is often manipulated in clinical trials…as you know, statistics are only as good as the interpretations that are made…and often, for profit reasons, are exaggerated or tweaked to suit the needs of the company.
We do need clinical trials and they are important. But, we need more than that. We need honest, clarity, and openness that is still missing from big pharma. Scientist are generally altruistic (they follow their hearts as long as the grant money allows them too) but pharma follows purse strings…this is a fact…good and bad.
Thanks for asking this important question, but I doubt you will ever get honest answers from less than honest participants in this industry.
Cheers
Charles G (wwww.simplecancer.wordpress.com and auhtor of Cancer Made Simple, website).