Thurston County COVID-19 cases on the rise, outbreaks reported in 6 nursing homes KOMO News
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Thurston County COVID-19 cases on the rise, outbreaks reported in 6 nursing homes - KOMO News
New Hanover High has seen the most Covid-19 cases of all the schools, with a total of seven including a new case identified in the last week. (Port City Daily/File)
NEW HANOVER COUNTY With more than 5,500 Covid-19 cases identified in New Hanover County since the pandemic began, it was only a matter of time before the virus reached schools.
During the first three weeks of reopened buildings, 38 cases of Covid-19, both among students and faculty, were identified in New Hanover County Schools. One hundred and thirty-eight people in the districts community have been told since Oct. 12 to undergo precautionary quarantine for exposure at school, including 43 this week.
RELATED: Free Covid-19 tests offered at UNCW through Nov. 24 [Free read]
New Hanover High has seen the most Covid-19 cases of all the schools, with a total of seven including a new case identified in the last week.
The cluster at the high school spawned the second week in Plan B, wherein students are separated into two cohorts. Group A attends in-person classes on Monday and Tuesday, and Group B goes on Thursday and Friday. Wednesday is an at-home learning day for all students. Families were also able to opt for a fully remote option.
On Oct. 20, the school announced a staff member tested positive for Covid-19. The employee had last been in the building Oct. 16.
In the same announcement, the school also revealed a student tested positive and was last on campus Oct. 13.
The week of Oct. 19-23, 77 people at the high school were assigned to quarantine after being exposed to the virus. However, according to the NHCS website, no additional people were placed under quarantine this past week.
In a letter, the principal assured parents that contact tracers identified those who were within 6 feet of the person with or without a mask for more than 15 minutes while they were infectious.
The public can view the number of Covid-19 cases and precautionary quarantines in New Hanover County schools, as well as the central offices, on the NHCS website. The grid is updated weekly on Fridays at 5 p.m.
According to the NHCS website, public health takes individuals out of schools when they experience at least one Covid-19-like symptom. It assigns case-by-case isolation periods that can span up to 24 days, or longer if the person starts showing symptoms during the quarantine.
Below are the numbers of Covid-19 cases reported at schools Oct. 26-30:
ELEMENTARY SCHOOLSBlair 3The International School at Gregory 1Holly Tree 1Johnson Pre-K Center 1Winter Park 2
MIDDLE SCHOOLSHolly Shelter 1Noble 2
HIGH SCHOOLSAshley 1Career Readiness Academy at Mosley 1Hoggard 2Isaac Bear Early College 1Laney 2New Hanover 1Wilmington Early College 1
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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.(KRQE) Election Day is four days away but what happens if youre in quarantine and cant cast your ballot? At this point, its too late to request an absentee ballot, so for people whove contracted COVID-19 and have to stay home, theres still a way they can vote.
She came down with symptoms and had to go to the hospital, said Mario Madrid. Madrids sister was planning on going to the polls to vote in-person in Santa Fe County, but recently, she tested positive for COVID-19.
And she was being transported from a Santa Fe hospital to an Albuquerque hospital, said Madrid. After getting released from the hospital, she still had to quarantine in her home which means she cant go to the polls anymore and its too late to request an absentee ballot. But for people like her, there is a backup plan.
We have something in New Mexico called an Emergency Voting Affidavit and this is definitely applicable for people during this COVID crisis, said a spokesperson for the Secretary of State Alex Curtas.
People can download this affidavit from the Secretary of States website, which requires the voter and their healthcare provider to sign off on saying theyre too sick to go to the polls.
At that point a provisional ballot will be issued to that voter who is too sick to come to the polls, it would be taken back to the voter by that caretaker or healthcare or healthcare provider, said Curtas.
In New Mexicos election code, the voters caretaker or an immediate family member would have to be the one to drop off that ballot. For people like Madrids sister, theyre glad she can still vote.
Its a relief they already have something in place, said Madrid.
In order for that provisional ballot to be counted, it has to be returned to their County Clerks Office no later than 7 p.m. on Election day. KRQE News 13 asked the Secretary of States office how many people have requested these emergency ballots but they did not have the exact number.
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Those who test positive for COVID-19 still have a chance to vote while in quarantine - KRQE News 13
LEWISTON Central Maine Medical Center allowed employees to walk through the hospital without masks, didnt consistently or correctly screen workers and visitors entering the building, and failed to keep its Intensive Care Unit clean even as the hospital was dealing with a COVID-19 outbreak an outbreak that started in the ICU according to state investigators.
In a report issued in August and released this week to the Sun Journal, investigators said the hospitals actions put people in immediate jeopardy, causing a situation in which a patient already had or likely could die or suffer serious injury. CMMC was ordered to quickly fix its problems, and hospital officials say they have.
CMMCs COVID-19 outbreak began the third week of July and lasted well into August. In all, 17 people were infected, including 15 employees and two patients. According to the hospital, almost 50 people had to quarantine, most of them connected to the ICU.
The 32-page report details what CMMC did and didnt do during that time:
It did not implement all the infection control strategies it could have in order to prevent and control the transmission of COVID-19, nor was it monitoring the strategies it did have;
It did not keep the ICU clean. Investigators noted dirt build up, overflowing trash, a dirty towel on the floor, splatter stains and brown stains on the floor, and IV tubing touching the floor, among other sanitation issues. Some dirty areas were in the hallway, others were in rooms.
Investigators said they were told housekeeping staff did not clean any room that had a COVID-19 patient in it. Investigators also said the system director of infection prevention told them that she had not seen the condition of ICU, the unit where CMMCs outbreak began;
It did not screen everyone who entered the building, despite U.S. Centers for Disease Control recommendations to do so. Temperature taking and screening questions were haphazard for both employees and visitors and nonexistent at some entrances, even as the hospital was in the middle of an outbreak;
It did not monitor all entrances or ensure that only employees used employee entrances;
It did not stay up to date on U.S. CDC guidelines. Hospital leaders told investigators they thought a fever was anything over 100.4 degrees, but the latest CDC guidelines set a COVID-concerning fever at 100 degrees;
It did not screen employees once they got to their units, despite what appeared to be a new hospital policy requiring it.
We used to get screened before coming into the hospital, but now we wear a mask and if we dont have any of the symptoms, we are good to work. It is an honor system for screening in the morning. There is no screening to come onto this unit or for the lab, a phlebotomist told investigators;
It did not adequately document what was going on;
It did not have enough signs with instructions about face coverings and hand washing;
It did allow at least some employees to screen just once in June and then forgo future screening.
After that date (June 25), we had the employees sign an attestation form one time, electronically, and then the only thing they do daily when they come in is get a new mask, if they dont have one, and complete hand hygiene, the hospitals regulatory compliance coordinator told investigators;
It did allow some employees to enter the hospital and walk through the building without a mask.
When the investigation started, CMMCs outbreak included 12 staff members and one patient. By the time the investigation was over, three more employees and one more patient had the virus.
John Alexander, chief medical officer for the health system, said CMMC immediately fixed the issues raised by investigators. The report acknowledged that CMMC officials quickly created a plan of correction and fixed the problems.
Those fixes include better screening for employees and visitors, as well as entrances that are restricted and monitored.
Weve really enhanced our processes to the point where we feel we have one of the best screening standards in the state, he said.
Alexander said some of the issues within the ICU, such as cleanliness, were the result of the outbreak, which caused dozens of ICU workers to quarantine and miss work. Without those staff members, he said, some paperwork fell behind.
It wasnt so much that we werent maintaining the environment, it was more that we werent maintaining the documentation to support how we were maintaining the environment, he said. And thats an important part of what we do.
Alexander also said checklists werent being maintained, which meant employees coming on shift didnt know what had or hadnt been done by the previous shift. When asked why staff members couldnt see on their own that trash needed to be emptied or the floor was dirty, Alexander said, I cant answer that.
Alexander said the state investigators, who work on behalf of the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, or CMS, had been inspecting all Maine hospitals and arrived at CMMC as part of a routine screening. However, the report notes that investigators were there because a complaint had been filed against the hospital.
Alexander said he considers investigators to be good partners.
We rely on them as another set of eyes to help us find areas where we may have opportunities for improvement, he said. We look forward to when those situations occur so that we can correct them and we can make sure we continue to work toward patient safety.
CMMC has been the subject of a number of investigations in recent years, including last year when CMS investigators found a series of problems so serious that CMS threatened to stop paying for Medicare and Medicaid patients to go there. The hospital fixed those problems and did not lose payments.
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State: CMMC failed to take precautions during COVID-19 outbreak - pressherald.com
The World Cities Report 2020, released on Saturday, showcases the value of sustainable urbanization and how it can contribute to global efforts to build back better after the crisis.
The World Cities Report 2020 convincingly affirms that well-planned, managed, and financed cities and towns create economic, social, environmental and other unquantifiable value that can vastly improve the quality of life of all, said Maimunah Mohd Sharif, the UN-Habitat Executive Director.
Urbanization can be leveraged for the fight against poverty, inequality, unemployment, climate change and other pressing global challenges,
Globally, around 55 per cent of all people live in urban areas: a figure that is expected to rise to nearly 70 per cent by 2050, according to the United Nations.
Cities have been at the epicentre of the COVID-19 pandemic, UN-Habitat said, with 95 per cent of cases found in urban areas.
The report emphasizes the role of the New Urban Agenda, the UNs 20-year plan for sustainable urbanization, as a road map to achieving sustainable development and combating climate change.
It analyzes the value of urbanization from an economic, social and environmental perspective, as well as what the authors called the unquantifiable value that gives cities their unique character.
When combined, they can drive transformative change, the report argues.
UN-Habitat explained that cities generate economic value when they function efficiently, for example by providing transport options that reduce traffic congestion and shorten travel times, thus allowing for more productive employment.
Environmental value is generated in the case of compact cities that have walkable urban centres, thus leading to a reduction in their overall carbon footprint, the agency added.
Meanwhile, urban policies can reduce social inequalities. Providing housing for low-income residents, or creating safe spaces for marginalized groups such as migrants and LGBTQ+ individuals (lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer), are just two examples.
Furthermore, when cities are well-planned and managed, they also create intangible value by instilling civic pride and serving as centres of cultural traditions, the report added.
The UN-Habitat report was launched on World Cities Day, commemorated annually on 31 October.
In his messagemarking the day, UN Secretary-General Antnio Guterres called for putting communities at the heart of the cities of the future.
When urban communities are engaged in policy and decision making, and empowered with financial resources, the results are more inclusive and durable, he said.
UN Habitat underscored that the value of sustainable urbanization can only be unlocked provided that various planning, finance and governance conditions are in place.
The report calls on Governments to create an environment that empowers local authorities to raise revenue, regulate land use, plan for urban growth, limit urban sprawl and relieve overcrowded housing.
Similarly, local governments also should collect revenue to improve municipal services and public spaces.
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Sustainable urbanization critical to COVID-19 recovery, better quality of life - UN News
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Dexamethasone in hospitalised patients with COVID-19: addressing uncertainties The Lancet
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Dexamethasone in hospitalised patients with COVID-19: addressing uncertainties - The Lancet
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert and a member of the White House coronavirus task force, has recently voiced support for a national mask mandate. In interviews, Fauci has said that masks are effective, and that Americans should do basic things like wear masks if they don't want to shut down.
When pushed by CNBC's Shepard Smith on Wednesday about whether or not we need a national mask mandate, Fauci said, "We do."
"If we don't get one, then I would hope that the governors and the mayors do it locally, if it's not done nationally," Fauci said during the televised interview.
Smith again pressed Fauci, asking: "Are you still in the president's ear, or no? And if not, who is?"
Fauci said he hasn't "spoken to the president in quite a while about the situation with regard to the outbreak."
"But I can tell you right now, regardless of that, what we do need is adherence to mandate or not if mandate is needed, let's do a [mask] mandate," Fauci continued, before Smith interrupted him to say: "You're the one who decides what's needed, Dr. Fauci."
"It's pretty urgent, doc," Smith said.
"No, it is very urgent. And that's the reason why I have been urgently saying every day that we have got to do things that have not been done uniformly and consistently throughout the country," Fauci said.
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Live Updates: COVID-19 news from across the United States - CBS News
The ambitious drive to produce Covid-19 vaccine at warp speed seems to be running up against reality. We all probably need to reset our expectations about how quickly were going to be able to be vaccinated.
Pauses in clinical trials to investigate potential safety issues, a slower-than-expected rate of infections among participants in at least one of the trials, and signals that an expert panel advising the Food and Drug Administration may not be comfortable recommending use of vaccines on very limited safety and efficacy data appear to be adding up to a slippage in the estimates of when vaccine will be ready to be deployed.
Asked Wednesday about when he expects the FDA will greenlight use of the first vaccines, Anthony Fauci moved the administrations stated goalpost.
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Could be January, could be later. We dont know, Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said in an online interview with JAMA editor Howard Bauchner.
On Tuesday, front-runner Pfizer revealed in an earnings call that the first interim analysis in its Phase 3 clinical trial has not yet occurred. That means there hadnt yet been enough Covid infections among the trial participants to take a first stab at analyzing whether the people randomly assigned to receive vaccine were infected at a lower rate than people who were assigned to get a placebo injection.
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Its possible that the company will cross that threshold sooner rather than later. But Pfizer, which has been one of the most aggressive players in the vaccine race, had earlier predicted it would know by the end of September if its vaccine worked an estimate that was later pushed back to late October. The company now projects that it could apply to the FDA for an emergency use authorization for the vaccine, which it is developing with BioNTech, in mid-November.
It is important to note that, to date, none of the vaccines being developed for the U.S. market has been proven to be effective in preventing Covid-19 disease. Early stage clinical trials have shown what appear to be promising signals; multiple vaccines have triggered production of important antibodies in people who have been immunized.
But data generated in a few hundred people arent enough to determine whether a vaccine will actually fend off illness. That answer comes from large, Phase 3 trials, five of which are now underway in the United States. Their findings will ultimately tell us how soon vaccines may start to be rolled out to the masses.
The administration has been saying for months that vaccine would be ready for deployment before the end of the year. In fact, President Trump had been hinting vaccine could be pushed out before Election Day, which it will not be; at a campaign rally on Wednesday night, he said vaccine would be ready momentarily.
Other officials have been bullish in their own right. Just last Friday, Paul Mango, deputy chief of staff for policy for Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, reiterated the administrations projection that all Americans who want to be vaccinated against Covid-19 will have that opportunity by the early spring.
We believe before the end of this year we will be able to vaccinate our most vulnerable citizens, Mango told journalists in an update on the work of Operation Warp Speed, the governments effort to fast-track Covid-19 vaccines, drugs, and diagnostics.
By the end of January, we believe well be able to vaccinate all seniors. By the March and April timeframe, we believe well be able to vaccinate any American who desires a vaccination, Mango said.
In reality, that timeline has always been aspirational probably excessively so. While Warp Speed and vaccine manufacturers and others involved in the effort have moved heaven and earth to accelerate vaccine production, at the end of the day, developing, testing, and manufacturing vaccines takes time. Vaccines are difficult to produce and there are always bumps in the road.
While its unfortunate, I dont find it surprising that the timeline is being moved back, said Michael Osterholm, director of the University of Minnesotas Center for Infectious Diseases Research and Policy. Clinical trials like this routinely have unexpected occurrences that delay planned timelines. Its just not unexpected.
As for the idea that all Americans will have had a chance to be vaccinated by the early spring, Osterholm suggested it is going to take longer.
For many of us, we never thought that that was doable, he said. I commend Operation Warp Speed for what it has accomplished in the time it has, but to have vaccinated the U.S. population by March in my mind was never a realistic goal.
Two of the vaccines being supported by Operation Warp Speed have seen their Phase 3 trials paused to investigate unexpected illnesses among a small number of trial participants.
AstraZeneca, which in June projected it could begin to supply up to 2 billion doses of vaccine in September, instead saw its Phase 3 trials in multiple countries put on hold when a participant experienced neurological symptoms that chairman Pascal Soriot said were consistent with transverse myelitis, a serious inflammatory disorder. While regulators in Britain, India, and South Africa quickly cleared Phase 3 trials to resume enrolling volunteers, the U.S. trial was paused for five weeks.
Johnson & Johnson, the only manufacturer among the major vaccine makers testing a one-dose Covid vaccine, also saw its Phase 3 trial paused for two weeks after a male volunteer in his 20s suffered what the Washington Post reported to be a stroke.
After an investigation, the FDA allowed J&J to resume the trial.
Another manufacturer, Novavax, has pushed back the start date for its U.S. Phase 3 trial to the end of November; it had earlier said the trial would start this month.
Anna Durbin, a vaccine researcher at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said the public needs to understand that Covid vaccines may be a bit further off than people have been led to believe.
We may see efficacy in one or more trials by the end of 2020, but that doesnt mean were going to have a vaccine available at the end of 2020, she said.
I think what people can take from this is that the process is not being rushed. Thats a good thing, Durbin said. And certainly, I think the other message that has to be heard loud and clear is that even when an [emergency use authorization] is issued, were not going to have enough vaccine for everybody [immediately].
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It may be time to reset expectations on when we'll get a Covid-19 vaccine - STAT
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By Alaina G. LevineOct. 30, 2020 , 2:00 PM
In a year like no other, 2020s Top Employers Survey not only highlighted the best working environments in pharma and biotech but also addressed some of the unique issues that arose this year, such as how to respond to a pandemic.
When an employee boasts that your business, Vertex Pharmaceuticals, is the best company Ive ever worked for, you tend to take note. This was just one of hundreds of comments from respondents to Sciences 19th annual Top Employers Survey. Another observation concerning Vertex, a Boston-based firm that moved up four places from last year to No. 8, states that Vertex puts its employees first. I am so proud to work here.
The Top Employers Survey was conducted by Cell Associates and Brighton Consulting. This year, the online survey took place from March 3 through May 3, 2020, and included approximately 7,600 respondents from across the world. Typically, the survey has highlighted pharma and biotech companies commitment to innovation and progressive corporate culture as well as advanced technology and cutting-edge techniques, such as the use of CRISPR-Cas9 for genome editing and artificial intelligence, and machine learning for design, development, and manufacture of therapeutics and interventions. Not surprisingly, we saw these trends emerge again. But as we know, 2020 is unlike any other year. Given that the survey rolled out as quarantines were taking effect, respondents were able to provide a peek into the ambitious initiatives their companies were pursuing in response to COVID-19which include everything from developing new work-at-home policies for family-focused employees to rapidly shifting corporate assets to support public health concerns and develop novel therapeutics.
For the companies that emerged in the top 20, remarks from respondents reflected their pride and gratitude in the fact that the organizations they represented had continuously invested in their well-being while still putting science and patients first. When employees see meaningful action by their employers that is designed to empower and support them in every way possible, they respond in kind: They produce their best work. And in the arena of pharma and biotech, that easily translates into better patient outcomes.
Gratitude is particularly strong among respondents whose corporations have appeared on the list before. Being recognized is a great thing, says Herv Hoppenot, CEO of Incyte (No. 2, advancing from No. 3 in 2019), a Delaware-based pharma company. It means a lot to be on the list. Being at the cutting edge of science and having the best people want to work here [gives us] a sense of pride. John Frels, vice president of R&D at Abbott, a Chicago-based medical device and health care company that moved up to No. 14 this year from the No. 17 spot last year, notes the placement validates what I have come to appreciate over my career: This is a company concerned about the long-term sustainability of delivering great value to our patients and customers, and its a great place for scientists to apply their skills. We bring out the best in our scientists over the course of their career.
Explore the profiles of some of 2020's top employers to learn more about career opportunities at these organizations.
Having a work culture aligned with employee values is another important driver for the top employers and is referenced many times in the survey comments. Says one respondent, Vertex innovates with speed and ferocity like no other company, while also putting a priority on culture that is amazingly open and supportive. An employee of Syngenta, the No. 4-ranked Swiss-based biotech firm that focuses on agrochemicals and seeds, notes what they consider to be their companys benefits: Organizational culture, concern with the environment, concern with the well-being of employees. And a respondent referring to Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts (No. 3), practically shouts their answer: GREAT culture!! Collaborative! Inclusive! Exciting!
What is the winning formulation that puts companies on the Top Employers list? Chief among the ingredients is an articulated mission of supporting scientists and science. Almost all of the top employers indicated that they are science- and patient-centered. And over and over again, the survey respondents echoed this philosophy.
Regeneron is built around a science-first approach, says Drew Murphy, executive vice president of research at the American biotech organization based in Tarrytown, New York, which ranked No. 1 in this years survey. Unlike other companies, our commercial people dont tell our researchers what to do. The scientists set the agenda. And if you do science the right way, you never really fail. You either succeed or learn something more valuable. The strategy is clearly working, as the attrition rate of its 8,600 staff (approximately half of whom are in R&D or administration) was less than half the industry average in each of the last 5 years. For example, Regenerons 2019 turnover rate was 7.8% compared to an industry average of 18.7%, with turnover in its R&D organization ranking lowest of all employee groups. (The industry average is based on the Radford 2019 U.S. Workforce Trends Report for life sciences.)
In the life sciences sector, there is a symbiosis between science and patient priorities, and the top employers (and many survey respondents) emphasize this as a marker of a great company. This synergy manifests in multiple ways. bluebird bio (No. 20), for example, hosts Patient Days, in which scientists have the exceptional experience of interacting with those who directly benefit from their outputs and get a taste of the patients journey. You get a window into what its like to be a patient dealing with the challenges we are trying to solve, says Philip Gregory, chief scientific officer of the Cambridge, Massachusettsbased firm that develops gene therapies for severe genetic disorders and cancer. This is one way we connect the employees to the patient, so they can see why they are doing thisit grounds you and reminds you that you have a purpose beyond the one step you are aiming to do.
Abbott also places R&D in front, so that science serves as its fuel for constant growth, scaling, and sustainability. There are ample opportunities to stay with the company, says Frels. You can settle yourself into your career at Abbott, knowing that even if you move to different roles in the company, you can have confidence that what you will do will always be challenging and impactful in the long-term.
Access to professional development goes hand-in-hand with career advancement, of course, and the top employers are generous and proactive in designing and implementing programs that allow for skill building, networking, self-promotion, and leadership development. Abbott offers extensive training, including an engineering rotation program for new hires to learn about different divisions of the business. Its scientific employees are encouraged to produce individual development plans to map out their career, and there are plentiful opportunities for employees to move across departments, functions, and locations.
Language matters too. bluebird executives refer to their employees as birds and the firm itself as the nest. They offer leadership development for all staff and have leadership coaches on-site to enable employees to go in the direction they want to. To facilitate better and more meaningful interpersonal messaging, the company uses a psychometric tool called Insights Discovery, which has a four-colored model to help people understand their personal style and preferences, including those related to communication. When you walk by someones desk, you may see a stack of colored bricks on their cubical; the top brick signifies which communication behavior you lead with. For example, Cool Blue indicates a preference for data, structure and/or process. It helps others to engage me, for example, in a way that is most effective. You understand who you are interacting with and their communication preference, says Gregory. It creates a dialogue. And of course, better communication makes a better (and a top) company.
Flexibility is also important, and many companies actively demonstrate this trait, according to the survey. This is clear from the responses to COVID-19, as discussed below, but it is also seen in other ways, especially when it comes to harnessing the power of new and advancing technologies, such as data science. Vertex for example, leverages the kaleidoscope of data science benefits and applications across the enterprise, from human resources to legal to R&D. As David Altshuler, executive vice president, global research and chief scientific officer, explains, We decided to build in an internal data science team and apply it broadly across the business. Each year the executive team picks several areas of the company to focus our data science efforts on, and we would assign it an innovative business leader. This is the secret sauce of Vertexthe urgency of making progress and seeing innovation and business go hand in hand: an alignment within the entire company.
As was done last year, a white sheet describing the survey and project timeline was sent to both public relations and human resources contacts in the biotech and pharma industry from the AAAS database several weeks prior to launching the online survey.
This annual web-based survey was conducted from March 3 through May 3, 2020. The survey was fielded for an additional month based on requests from several large employers due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
A mixed methodology was used again to recruit participants for this year's survey. The first part of this methodology included emailed invitations to roughly 50,000 individuals who were located worldwide; these individuals were AAAS members, Science website registrants, and Science Careers registrants. Several social media posts were also used to promote the survey. The second part of the methodology included several email blasts to approximately 400 human resource (HR) contacts at industry firms and biotech/pharma advertising agencies from the Science Careers sales database.
The total number of surveys submitted this year was similar to last year. This report is based on a total sample of approximately 7,650 completed surveys; 97% of these surveys were a result of the email campaign to HR contacts and advertising agencies while 3% were from the end-user campaign and social media efforts.
One of the parameters that defines a top employer is its devotion to an innovation cultureand employees notice innovation. In fact, one of the most common words survey respondents used to describe their employers was innovative.
Vertex, for example, has its VOICE Challenge, which engages employees so that everyone is included in the innovation mission, says Altshuler. This annual innovation tournament starts with identifying grand scientific and business challenges, which Altshuler describes as things that would make a big difference to what we do. He adds, We invite the entire company to come up with ideas. Last year, we got 360 ideas. Those ideas were suggested by 1,000 employees across all business units (making up about a third of the company). The top suggestions are assigned resources to develop, pitch, and design a program that advances them from conception to implementation. Some recent suggestions that have become reality include Vertexs sickle cell disease and beta-thalassemia research programs, a mobile app and iPad kiosk system to help Vertexians find conference rooms and colleagues at their Boston headquarters, and a commuter bus program to reduce traffic congestion in Bostons Seaport District.
Innovation can come from everywhere, says Natalie Hosea, site head for Takeda California and Drug Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics at Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (No. 18). Our scientists feel empowered to innovate in the space and feel comfortable with idea generation. We are a patient-first company: For every day it takes for an intervention to get to a patent, a patient is suffering. This motivates us. The organizations official innovation framework for research, Portfolio Entry, involves actively vetting ideas and testing hypotheses among its internal scientific community and external collaborators. Data is reviewed in a cross-functional manner, she adds, and feedback is provided as the R&D team reviews cases and narratives to decide what to invest in. The program is robust and fosters an important sense of organizational pride. And here, creativity begets creativity: Takeda focuses on four therapeutic areas, Hosea notes, but when an idea is generated that goes beyond those areas, the company aims high, actively pursuing unique licensing partnerships or other external arrangementsanything to get that solution to the bedside.
Novo Nordisk, an almost century-old Danish multinational pharmaceutical company with over 43,000 employees across the world and R&D centers in five nations (No. 7), recently initiated an R&D ideas challenge, which welcomes proposals for disruption from every employee. Recently, it received 500 proposals for transformational medications or diagnostics. We were going to fund one, but we ended up funding the top five, says Mads Krogsgaard Thomsen, chief scientific officer. They get time off and work in an incubator environment to see if they can validate their idea. We give them the resources for do this for 6 months. The company sees an appetite for repeating this process.
Biocon Limited (No. 5) takes a decidedly entrepreneurial approach to impassioned innovation, says Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, founder and executive chairperson of this Bangalore, Indiabased institution. Its victorious innovation program, Novel Biologics, acts like an incubator inside its R&D division, has regularly achieved key business and scientific benchmarks, including the creation of new assets within the portfolio of the company, and, not surprisingly, spin-off startups. In fact, one of the spin-offs has its own incubator. One example of their success with the Novel Biologics group is an immuno-oncology program focusing on development of novel bifunctional fusion antibodies, which is now housed in Biocons wholly owned subsidiary Bicara Therapeutics, based out of Boston.
Other companies, while still championing innovation, do not have formal programs to spur it. Regenerons leadership prefers to capitalize on organically generated discoveries. Innovation is so rooted in the way we do everything, we dont need an artificial mechanism to try and instill it, says Murphy. We dont formalize this, and a lack of formality and being able to go off script allows us to pursue and pressure test ideas. The culture at Regeneron is such that employees have autonomy to discuss hypotheses. We dont like people hiding the idea until they get all the data, he says. Its like the Beatles lyric Take a sad song and make it betteryou have to talk these things through. We encourage people to be generous with their ideas.
Not every industry gives its employees the privilege of being able to improve human health, and very few organizations are agile enough to grant their staff the opportunity to shift their focus and assets to confront an emerging plague. The pharmaceutical and biotech enterprises on this list are the notable exceptions. And those companies have quickly embraced the chance to serve humanity by fighting COVID-19.
Abbott has extensive experience in infectious disease diagnostics; it delivered the worlds first HIV test in the 1980s. Soon after SARS-CoV-2 was identified, Abbotts scientists swung into action, initiating the fastest diagnostic product development campaign in the companys history. We leveraged next generation sequencing and informatics tools to rapidly design prototype tests, explains Frels. Our scientists collaborated quickly and effectively to help accelerate product development. By the end of March, the teams had developed and launched laboratory and rapid point-of-care molecular diagnostic COVID-19 tests. This was followed quickly in mid-April with the launch of the first large-scale, high-throughput laboratory COVID-19 serology test. Since then, the teams have continued their work, developing and launching additional laboratory-based and rapid diagnostic tests. Weve had high-level management support and leadership through it all, explains Frels, and together with committed teams of staff from across Abbott working 24/7 shifts, weve made it happen.
Incyte mobilized its resources to enable employees to work from home. While working remotely after March 13th, we launched a new product and in addition realized that two of our established products could be helpful with the respiratory issues attached to COVID, shares Hoppenot. We had our teams on nights and weekends putting together a clinical program to send to the FDA [U.S. Food and Drug Administration] and get it approved. All of this was done remotely and was an enormous amount of work. Having an active role in the fight against COVID was important for all of us, and being able to do it while working remotely was even more motivating.
Takeda reacted to COVID by focusing its efforts in five areas: research to address future pandemics; working with the CoVIg-19 Plasma Alliance to develop a plasma-derived hyperimmune globulin therapy for COVID; repurposing approved products or assets in development; data and information sharing; and establishing R&D partnerships. Takeda already has a culture that fosters external collaborations, so they were poised for this type of pivot. One of the companys areas of expertise is in therapies derived from blood plasma. By May, the firm had joined with nine other biotechs to form the CoVIg-19 Plasma Alliance, described on its website as an unprecedented partnership of the worlds leading plasma companies, spanning plasma collection, development, production, and distribution. Furthermore, Takeda has taken a leadership role in the establishment of the COVID-19 R&D Alliance, which includes other top employers Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (No. 3), AbbVie (No. 12), Pfizer (No. 17), and Novartis (No. 19). One of the R&D Alliances projects is the development of an external-facing, data communication platform. We are focusing on ways to share data and get it out to the public domain faster, says Hosea. And in collaboration with this alliance, Takeda carefully examined their portfolio to see what approved products or assets in development could be pursued to treat COVID-19.
But COVID response didnt just mean pumping out new medicines. At bluebird, it involved a lot of employee care. The company enacted an extra day off per month for every staff member, provided open Q and A sessions at open mics to converse with the entire leadership team on a regular basis, and organized support programs for baby birds (the children of employees) to help parents and caregiversactions that were all in line with its core values.
While these companies have waged war against a microscopic virus, a macroscopic issue has come to light, as social justice conversations in the United States have reinforced many organizations commitment to provide nurturing, inclusive spaces for all employees. Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs are closely tied to company cultures. Scientists look for such programs as signs of a place where they can thrive, where their inputs are seen, and where their voices are heard. Over and over again, survey respondents mentioned their gratitude to employers for building programs that buoy these critical efforts.
But there is still work to be done. There is a lack of diversity in this industry, admits Hoppenot. Racism and science do not go together. If you are to be successful in science, we cannot have racism. Hoppenot, like many leaders of Top Employer companies, is committed to having the difficult but necessary discussions about race, inclusivity, and diversity, and is already making changes in the company to advance this mission. The firms leadership is reaching out to organizations to assist it with improving the recruiting and mentoring of underrepresented minorities, especially African Americans, in its employee ranks. We have always had this as a top priority, but we realized we needed to include more people in the discussion. To that end, our Inclusion Team is actively working to identify and implement initiatives that increase inclusion and also provide development opportunities for our employees, says Paula Swain, Incytes executive vice president of human resources. We dont want to look at this as a moment in time. Investing in inclusion, mentoring, development, and retention will be part of what we will do as an organization now and in the future.
bluebird bio is one of several organizations that has instituted DEI practices throughout its structure. Our philosophy can be summarized as all birds fly further together. The diversity of the flock is something we measure. We stand for an environment where everyone can be their best selves and know they belong. Diversity and equity and inclusion allow us to dream boldly, says Gregory. He explains that the company has three domains of action and accountabilityinclusive business practices, inclusive workforce culture, and workforce diversityand adds, Our core values are connected to our five nonnegotiables: We challenge our colleagues to be authentic, courageous, humble, caring, and transparent. The DEI initiatives include top-down investments in hiring, retention, and development as well as employee resource groups, such as those that support individuals who are LGBTQ, Black, Latinx, Asian, women, veterans, disabled, and parents and caregivers. The company has a DEI officer on its senior management team and has developed specific programs to support underrepresented employees and foster an inclusive culture.
Regeneron is also willing to scrutinize its own diversity practices. We believe that diversity of employees is as important as diversity of ideas. We are proud of a diverse workforce in terms of immigrants. But we look to do more. We can do better, says Murphy. One example of the companys dedication to this philosophy is its increase in recruitment activities at Historically Black Colleges and Universities. There is more talent. We want to be truly reflective of the U.S. and the world. Biotech is not as diverse as it could be.
Although the MeToo movement has ignited support for gender diversity among several of the top employers, Biocon stands out because Mazumdar-Shaw has always aimed to promote gender parity. Of the companys 12,000 employees, half are in R&D, and over a third of its scientific employees are female. As a woman scientist, I have been driven to make sure the company is supportive of women scientists, says Mazumdar-Shaw, who serves as executive chairman. I wanted this to be a company where women scientists feel comfortable and excited to go to work. As the pandemic anchored her employees to their residences, she launched a listening tour to dialogue with them and find out how they were managing. She noticed that working from home could be leveragedfor the benefit of the staff. Working from home is a boon to our women scientists, she says. To offer better worklife balance, we will give them the opportunity to work from home 2 days a week when things normalize post-COVID.
Top employers continue to look for ways to express their commitment to their communities. Of key importance are environmental and sustainability concerns. At Syngenta, for example, climate change is not just a considerationit is the impetus for innovation to support farmers.
We consider what we do as contributing to the worlds food security and helping agriculture to protect the planet , says Gusui Wu, head of global seeds research. The world faces significant environmental and nutritional challenges, which are magnified in the developing world and recently underscored by COVID. Detailed, rigorous decisions about how to assist food growers in an environmentally friendly avenue is fortified through data science that pervades every touchpoint of the organization. But data doesnt run the show, humans do. From multiple surveys we have done over the years, there is a genuine feeling from our employees that we are proud of what we do because we are contributing to the global food supply. By 2050, there will be a global population of 10 billion, so the world needs to significantly increase its food supply, he adds. Employees know that our continuous work is needed by our customers. Farmers depend on the products and technologies we develop. Our employees are a big part of the ag economy.
Indeed, the future of pharma and biotech industries, and for that matter, science, is decidedly human. And our top employers celebrate this.
Employees drive our business, says Murphy, noting that his company has been on the Top Employers list at either No.1 or No. 2 over the last ten years. Its really important to us. Organizations dont make drugs, people do.
1.Office for National Statistics, Measuring disability: comparing approaches, August 6, 2019, available at http://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/healthandsocialcare/disability/articles/measuringdisabilitycomparingapproaches/2019-08-06#disability-prevalence-by-age.
2. P. Jain-Link, J. T. Kennedy, Why People Hide their Disabilities at Work, Harv. Bus. Rev., June 3, 2019, available at https://hbr.org/2019/06/why-people-hide-their-disabilities-at-work.
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2020's Top Employers: Rapid response to COVID-19, diversity, and innovation - Science Magazine
