Bristol Myers Squibb is joining the Healthcare Innovation Engine effort at SciTech Scity as the Healthcare Innovation Lead Partner for the Biopharmaceutical Industry, Liberty Science Center announced this week.
BMS will work with the SciTech Scity team to identify how digital health devices can work in tandem with traditional pharmaceutical products to offer a more holistic and personalized approach to patient care.
Alongside other industry leaders and community representatives, this partnership is designed to better understand and address the structural barriers to digital health adoption and identify priority areas for innovation.
This work will be done with startup companies to test and validate specific products and solutions and conduct joint research efforts with the SciTech Scity academic ecosystem to collect the data needed to support broader adoption.
BMS will join innovators at SciTech Scity in public health, health care delivery, digital health technology, entrepreneurship and community engagement to devise and implement multi-disciplinary strategies to improve health equity outcomes in New Jersey and beyond.
The need is there.
After decades of progress, life expectancy in the U.S. has been decreasing since 2014. And while COVID, opioids and gun violence have contributed to this downward spiral, it is chronic diseases – heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, respiratory afflictions, liver and kidney disease and others – that are the greatest culprits.
In the face of this mounting health crisis, Liberty Science Center’s SciTech Scity has launched the Healthcare Innovation Engine to bring together public and private stakeholders to work towards revolutionary solutions that cater to the specific challenges of vulnerable populations with an eye toward disease prevention.
Al Reba, senior vice president, U.S. cardiovascular and established brands at Bristol Myers Squibb and member of the Board of Trustees at LSC, said the company is eager to do its part.
“At Bristol Myers Squibb our mission is to discover, develop and deliver innovative medicines that help patients prevail over serious diseases,” he said. “Digital health technology holds significant promise for transforming healthcare in America, particularly in underserved communities. That’s why we are partnering with Liberty Science Center on the groundbreaking SciTech Scity Healthcare Innovation Engine. By bringing our expertise and resources together with those of the engine’s other partners, we’re confident that we can spearhead bold solutions for a healthier country.”