Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Foreword
- Authors' biographies
- Introduction Public engagement in an evolving science policy landscape
- Part I What it helps to know beforehand
- Part II Policy-makers, the media and public interest organisations
- Part III What you can do and how to do it
- 15 Building relations with the various groups
- 16 Finding the right words: how to shine in radio and television interviews
- 17 Nanotechnology and the media: front page or no story?
- 18 The power of the podcast: the Naked Scientists' story
- 19 The social web in science communication
- 20 Dealing with dilemmas and societal expectations: a company's response
- 21 Science festivals
- 22 Things to see and do: how scientific images work
- 23 The Triple Helix: the undergraduate student-run face of science communication
- 24 Public understanding of research: the Open Research Laboratory at the Deutsches Museum
- 25 Imagine: a communication project putting life sciences in the spotlight
- Part IV And finally, evaluating and embedding science communication
- Index
- Plate section
- References
20 - Dealing with dilemmas and societal expectations: a company's response
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 May 2013
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Foreword
- Authors' biographies
- Introduction Public engagement in an evolving science policy landscape
- Part I What it helps to know beforehand
- Part II Policy-makers, the media and public interest organisations
- Part III What you can do and how to do it
- 15 Building relations with the various groups
- 16 Finding the right words: how to shine in radio and television interviews
- 17 Nanotechnology and the media: front page or no story?
- 18 The power of the podcast: the Naked Scientists' story
- 19 The social web in science communication
- 20 Dealing with dilemmas and societal expectations: a company's response
- 21 Science festivals
- 22 Things to see and do: how scientific images work
- 23 The Triple Helix: the undergraduate student-run face of science communication
- 24 Public understanding of research: the Open Research Laboratory at the Deutsches Museum
- 25 Imagine: a communication project putting life sciences in the spotlight
- Part IV And finally, evaluating and embedding science communication
- Index
- Plate section
- References
Summary
Setting the scene
Novo Nordisk is a focused biotech healthcare company founded in 1923. Novo Nordisk combines drug discovery with technology to turn science into solutions for people with diabetes, men and boys with haemophilia, people with growth hormone deficiency and women experiencing the symptoms of menopause. Headquartered in Denmark, Novo Nordisk employs around 30 000 people in 76 countries and markets its products in 179 countries.
The backdrop to Novo Nordisk's operations – and to this chapter – can be provided by a brief analysis of the pharmaceutical industry as a whole. Medicines developed by pharmaceutical companies have greatly contributed to the increase in life expectancy, to the improvement of quality of life and to the eradication of diseases that were previously life-threatening. Key figures indicate that the pharmaceutical industry is a major asset in the economies of Europe, the USA and Japan (e.g. European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations, 2010). Given the nature of its products and the fact that they are most often paid for by public funds, the industry is highly dependent on public trust and customer confidence that it is truly dedicated to saving lives and improving well-being, and that it does not operate just to make profits. However, surveys indicate that public trust in the sector is low relative to other sectors (e.g. Harris Interactive, 2010).
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Successful Science CommunicationTelling It Like It Is, pp. 294 - 311Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2011