HAVE YOU MET ASTELLAS?

 “Tomorrow is our permanent address”…….E.E. Cummings, Selected poems.

IF YOU COULD IMPROVE PEOPLE’S LIVES BY CHANGING TOMORROW, WOULD YOU DO IT?

Please meet female friendly, Astellas, a pharmaceutical global giant that continues to significantly change tomorrow and improve people’s lives.

What Female Competition International continues to seek out and research are organizations that have demonstrated a commitment to bettering the lives of all people with a special focus on the female market. On February 18, 2013, Street and Smith’s Sports Business reported Astellas, a pharmaceutical company making its first sports-related investment will sponsor a series of “Women’s Day” forums across several PGA Tour events.

The daylong executive events will typically be held on Tuesday of tournament week inside the clubhouse and the list of speakers will include a who’s who of female business leaders in the market where the tournament is being held. It’s the tour’s most dedicated effort yet in seeking to attract a larger female audience to its tournaments.

The Tokyo based company with a U.S. subsidiary in Chicago, has signed a multiyear contract to be the umbrella sponsor for all of the Women’s Day events across the tour. Seventeen are planned for this year with more to be added in 2014 and 2015. Terms of the deal were not available.

On April 1, 2013, Astellas Pharma Inc. announced that James Robinson has been named President of Astellas Pharma US, Inc. Reporting to Astellas US LLC CEO Masao Yoshida. Robinson will be responsible for health systems, sales, and marketing spanning a diverse and growing portfolio in oncology, urology, transplant and cardiovascular areas.

Regarding sponsoring The Women’s Forums Mr. Robinson had this to say, ““We’ve been searching for the right partnership, really, for a few years. We haven’t really been in a sports partnership before, but this is a perfect way to reach women, who are the primary health and wellness decision-makers in the house. This is certainly our most comprehensive effort.”

“This is a whole new level of involvement and a whole new type of umbrella sponsor for the tour,” said Donna Fiedorowicz, the tour’s senior vice president of a new division, tournament activation and outreach. Ms. Fiedorowicz played for Central Connecticut State University from 1976-80. Her 1,233 points re-mains 6th on the CCSU all-time scoring list. She twice scored 39 points in a single game and was credited with 138 career steals. Ms. Fiedorowicz is a member of the Connecticut Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame.

If you’re a NAIA student or female wrestler who recently graduated, FCI will continue to present you with more options and choices to meet potential employers and sponsorship partners that might be beneficial to your employment or professional, compensated wrestling future.

You really should meet Astellas. Let’s take a closer look.

According to their website, Astellas is a pharmaceutical company dedicated to improving the health of people around the world through the provision of innovative and reliable pharmaceutical products. Their commitment to changing tomorrow is measured not only by their focus on bringing innovative and effective new medicines to patients and physicians, but also by the importance they place on the impact we can make within the communities where we work and live. Astellas supports many causes and has created two initiatives to demonstrate their commitment: Changing Tomorrow Day, an annual, worldwide volunteer event, and Science WoRx, a nationwide mentoring program and online resource network for science teachers and their students.

Launched in April 2005, Astellas was formed through the historical merger of Japan’s third and fifth largest pharmaceutical companies – Yamanouchi, founded in 1923, and Fujisawa, founded in 1894. Specifically in the U.S., Astellas is intensely focused on five key therapeutic areas: cardiology, dermatology, immunology, infectious disease, and urology which will help strengthen Astellas’ foothold within the U.S. marketplace and support our overall goal of being a globally competitive company respected for its knowledge and innovation in established franchises. Astellas is also committed to advancements within the field of oncology and other emerging therapeutic areas.

Astellas will always be a group of people who act upon these beliefs.
1. High Sense of Ethics
We will always manage our business with the highest sense of ethics.
2. Customer Focus
We will always seek to understand customer needs and our focus will always be on achieving customer satisfaction.
3. Creativity
We will not be complacent and will always seek to innovate to create new value.
4. Competitive Focus
Our eyes will always be directed to the outside world, and we will continue to create better value faster.

Astellas is committed to supporting and maintaining access to therapy for patients who have been prescribed or treated with an Astellas medication. The Astellas Access ProgramSM (AAP) was established to provide Astellas medications at no cost for uninsured and underinsured patients. Patients must meet specific criteria to qualify for assistance. Please visit their website at http://www.astellasaccess.com.

Female Competition International will continue to make an effort to connect with the leadership of The NAIA Colleges and Universities, the female freestyle wrestling community and potential corporate sponsors. In union, all will have the ability to change tomorrow so that women will have more compensated options to wrestle instead of the perceived dearth of activity present today. For example where can a female competitor go today to earn say, $800 for a professional, dignified wrestling event? It’s a difficult question to provide an answer for.

FCI’s goal is to proceed at an even, steady pace, to build trust with all involved through defined behavior. This is consistent with Astellas relationship philosophy. Their website states, “Trust matters at Astellas. We base our relationships with our colleagues on honesty and integrity. Another core value is innovation. As a member of our team, you are encouraged to draw on your creativity to help change patient’s lives for the better.”

HealthyPeople.gov shares some important statistics. The increase in life expectancy during the 20th century is largely due to improvements in child survival; this increase is associated with reductions in infectious disease mortality, due largely to immunization. However, infectious diseases remain a major cause of illness, disability, and death. Immunization recommendations in the United States currently target 17 vaccine-preventable diseases across the lifespan.

Despite progress, approximately 42,000 adults and 300 children in the United States die each year from vaccine-preventable diseases. Communities with pockets of unvaccinated and under vaccinated populations are at increased risk for outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases. In 2008, imported measles resulted in 140 reported cases—nearly a 3-fold increase over the previous year. The emergence of new or replacement strains of vaccine-preventable disease can result in a significant increase in serious illnesses and death.

In the coming decade, the United States will continue to face new and emerging issues in the area of immunization and infectious diseases. The public health infrastructure must be capable of responding to emerging threats. State-of-the-art technology and highly skilled professionals need to be in place to provide rapid response to the threat of epidemics.

This March 5, 2013 warning comes from National Public Radio. Federal officials warned that an especially dangerous group of superbugs has become a significant health problem in hospitals throughout the United States. These germs, known as carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae, or, have become much more common in the last decade, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And the risk they pose to health is becoming evident.

First of all, they are resistant to virtually all antibiotics, including the ones doctors use as a last-ditch option. Second, these bugs can transfer their invincibility to other bacteria. Third, the bacteria can be deadly. Infection with the bacteria has a fatality rate as high as 50 percent. Although the resistant bacteria potentially pose a risk to anyone, people whose immune systems are weaker, such as elderly people, children and people who have other health problems, tend to be most susceptible to infection.

When organizations like Astrellas find solutions to ever increasing infectious disease outbreaks, what a great benefit it is to society as a whole. When they partner with important women’s groups with a goal of reaching out to female markets, this could be beneficial to NAIA female wrestling graduates.

Some dream of changing tomorrow. Some hope to change tomorrow. Astrellas is committed to changing tomorrow by improving people’s lives.

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Sources: Street And Smith’s Sports Business, Central Connecticut State University website, Connecticut Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame, Astellas main website, Wikipedia, Astellas Access Program, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Achievements in public health, 1900–1999: Control of infectious diseases. MMWR. 1999 Jul 30;48(29):621-9., National Public Radio NPR, 2North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, North Carolina Division of Public Health (NDPH). Healthy Carolinians. [Internet]. Raleigh: NDPH; updated 2010 May 3. Available from: http://www.healthycarolinians.org, HealthyPeople.gov