HAWTHORNE, N.Y. — Acorda Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: ACOR)
announced today that Adrian L. Rabinowicz, M.D., FAAN, has joined the
Company as Senior Vice President and Head, Medical Affairs, reporting to
Thomas Wessel, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Medical Officer. Dr. Rabinowicz will
have responsibility for Acorda’s Medical Communications and Scientific
Affairs departments, medical education programs and the field-based team
of Regional Scientific Managers.
Before joining Acorda, Dr. Rabinowicz spent over five years with Bayer
HealthCare Pharmaceuticals holding roles of increasing responsibility.
Most recently Dr. Rabinowicz was Vice President and Head, U.S. Medical
Affairs – Specialty Medicine and led the central nervous system and
hematology medical teams. In this role, he was actively involved in all
medical and regulatory activities related to Betaseron®,
Bayer’s multiple sclerosis drug. He also served as a member of Bayer’s
Protocol Review Committee, which was responsible for evaluating and
approving all Phase II – IV protocols. Prior to his time at Bayer, Dr
Rabinowicz held the position of Medical Director in Clinical Development
and Medical Affairs at Novartis Pharmaceuticals in the U.S., where he
managed several programs and regulatory interactions in Alzheimer’s
disease, Parkinson’s disease and traumatic brain injury.
“We are very excited to have Adrian Rabinowicz join Acorda’s senior
management team and lead our Medical Affairs group. Adrian’s
accomplishments related to scientific and clinical educational
initiatives in multiple sclerosis are impressive,” stated Dr. Wessel.
“In addition, the breadth of his experience across a range of
disciplines within drug development will be critical to Acorda as we
work to execute a very ambitious agenda this year – the successful
launch and commercialization of AMPYRA™, bringing GGF2 into the clinical
trial stage and evaluating additional neurologic products and
technologies for potential in-licensing.”
Dr. Rabinowicz received his medical degree from the Universidad Del
Salvador, Buenos Aires, Argentina. He completed his residency in
neurology at the University of Buenos Aires and his fellowship in
Epilepsy and Neurophysiology at the University of Southern California,
Los Angeles. Dr. Rabinowicz is Board Certified in Neurology and for
several years served as an Assistant Professor of Neurology and as the
Co-Director of the USC Comprehensive Epilepsy program, a selected NINDS
site for antiepileptic drug development. Subsequently, Dr Rabinowicz
helped establish the Comprehensive Epilepsy Program at the Fleni
Neurological Institute in Buenos Aires, Argentina, that became an
international referral center for patients with refractory epilepsy and
a leading institution for the clinical development of antiepileptic
drugs. Dr. Rabinowicz has received several national and international
awards for his research and is a Fellow of the American Academy of
Neurology. He has published over 70 peer reviewed papers and several
book chapters.
“I’m delighted to be joining Acorda at the launch of an important new
treatment for multiple sclerosis. AMPYRA is the first new therapy
approved for MS in over ten years, and I’m looking forward to working
with the highly experienced Medical Affairs team already in place to
help direct future scientific and clinical initiatives for AMPYRA,” said
Dr. Rabinowicz.
Companies Join Forces to Encourage Patient Compliance
NEW YORK — MedTera™, an integrated marketing solutions company dedicated to
improving education, promotion and communications in the healthcare,
life sciences and pharmaceutical industries, today announced that David
Duplay, the company president, has joined the advisory board for
HealthPrize Technologies, a wellness company and industry leader in
developing technology solutions used to enhance medication compliance.
As a member of the board, Duplay will provide counsel for the company’s
executive team and its direction, specifically driving how HealthPrize
will align itself with MedTera to deliver unique patient education
solutions.
HealthPrize, founded in 2009, is committed to helping people get healthy
and stay healthy by motivating them to properly adhere to prescription
therapy instructions through various incentives. Leveraging a
proprietary technology platform, the company tracks when consumers have
taken their medication and provides them with awards, prizes and
sweepstakes entries for doing so. The HealthPrize system utilizes a
combination of financial incentives, fun and education to motivate
consumers to take better care of themselves by following doctors’
orders. By utilizing Duplay’s expertise in patient education, and
MedTera’s focus on innovative and creative marketing solutions,
HealthPrize will continue to develop new ways to engage patients with
its platform, increasing therapy compliance and improving the quality of
patient’s lives.
“Dave will be a critical member of our advisory board, helping to shape
our direction and go-to-market strategy,” said Thomas Kottler,
co-founder and CEO, HealthPrize Technologies. “The truth is, only 50
percent of patients actually take their medication as prescribed. This
chasm isn’t just bad for their health, but it negatively impacts the
entire healthcare system. Dave brings a wealth of knowledge in patient
education to our team and we’re looking forward to working closely with
him and MedTera.”
With healthcare reform at the top of everyone’s minds, it’s more
important than ever for pharmaceutical companies to invest in quality
patient education, particularly those that communicate the importance of
therapy compliance and adherence. MedTera specializes in helping
companies develop educational tools that are appropriate for a variety
of products and disease states. And with evolving regulatory and
compliance standards around patient education forming, making sure it’s
done right is crucial. MedTera’s patented dimensional designs and
creative online tools, paired with HealthPrize’s leading-edge
technology, are designed to engage patients in an opt-in, long-term
relationship that ensures everyone wins.
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Yes, your dry, blotchy, red skin is trying to tell you something (just in case you were wondering). “Your skin is a reflection of whats going on internally,” says Diane Madfes, M.D., associate professor of dermatology at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York. “When it acts up, thats your bodys way of responding to its environment or telling you to slow down.” In other words, whenever you get tired, stressed or sick, you may see these issues reflected in your skin. Instead of automatically grabbing the closest skincare product you can find, try approaching the problem holistically. Think about your scaly skin or breakout as a response to whats going on with your body both inside and out, then choose gentle, natural skin-care products to help soothe the issues away. “Any changes, such as switching to a new cream or laundry detergent, or even eating a new food, can cause inflammation in your skin,” says Madfes. Rosacea (red inflammation of the cheeks, nose, forehead and chin) is also common this time of year as people spend more time outdoors. Many rosacea triggers come from Mother Nature: A change in temperature, strong winds and UV rays can all cause a flare-up. To soothe general skin irritations, look for products with natural anti-inflammatory ingredients such as green tea and grapeseed extract.
online medical transcription