2020 Biosimilar Awareness Week – Over Half A Million Australians Reached

• Over 540,000 Australians reached with educational messages around biosimilar medicines and their role in the future of a sustainable healthcare system
• Participation from across the healthcare community, including clinicians, pharmacists, professional groups, patient representatives and patients/carers
• Awareness and online engagement generated amongst Australian public via @BiosimilarsAu social channels on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook
• Increased level of visitors head to the Biosimilar Hub – a dedicated place for education on biosimilar medicines and to download resources and assets

GBMA Education Ltd, the educational arm of the Generic and Biosimilar Medicines Association, is pleased to confirm a successful second Biosimilar Awareness Week, which took place 25-29 May 2020, as announced by the Hon Greg Hunt, Federal Health Minister.

This year’s collaborative and digital approach for Biosimilar Awareness Week resulted in shared online information, reaching over 540,000 Australians to raise awareness around biosimilar medicines and their important role in the future of a sustainable healthcare system. Activities were focused online, where the Australian public and healthcare community supported and engaged with a social media campaign led by @BiosimilarsAu across Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.

GBMA Education would like to thank everyone who pledged their support and participated in making Biosimilar Awareness Week such a success – including a broad range of healthcare professionals and stakeholder organisations from the across the medicines industry – Creaky Joints Australia, Crohn’s and Colitis Australia, NPS MedicineWise, the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA), the Society of Hospital Pharmacists of Australia (SHPA) and the Royal Australian College of GPs (RACGP), to name a few.

The Biosimilar Awareness Week forms part of a robust and collaborative Biosimilar Education Program supported by the Australian Government, who awarded GBMA Education Ltd with the Biosimilar Educational Grant in April 2018. During that same period of time, biosimilar medicines have seen an increase in uptake – from approximately 15.4% market share in 2018 to 23.9% in January 2020 as a result of the collective efforts of the wider healthcare industry.

“Biosimilar medicines are becoming increasingly available in Australia. That’s why educational initiatives like Biosimilar Awareness Week are so important – as greater understanding and use of biosimilar medicines can help support the sustainability of the Australian healthcare system”, said Marnie Peterson, GBMA Education CEO. “It is fantastic to see the success achieved this year – and building on this momentum, a range of new educational resources for biosimilar medicines are currently in development and will be made available later in the year. In addition, the International Generic and Biosimilar Medicines Association (IGBA) is looking to support a ‘Global Biosimilars Week’ expected to run later in 2020”.

As part of the broader Biosimilar Education Program for 2020, GBMA Education also look forward to shortly launching a new CPD-accredited on-demand webinar series, incorporating groups of GPs, specialists and pharmacists coming together to discuss their views, the latest insights and experiences around the use of biosimilar medicines. The series panellists include:

• Prof Geoff McColl, Rheumatologist and Executive Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Queensland
• Prof Michelle Leech, Rheumatologist and Deputy Dean of Medicine, Nursing and Health Science Office, Monash University
• Prof Steven Boyages, Endocrinologist and Clinical Professor, Medicine at Westmead Clinical School
• Dr Harry Nespolon, General Practitioner and President, RACGP
• A/Prof Michael Ward, Hospital Pharmacist and Discipline Leader: Pharmacy education, University of South Australia Clinical and Health Sciences
• Dr Shane Jackson, Community Pharmacist and Policy Advisor, PSA
• Anthony Tassone, Community Pharmacist and President, Pharmacy Guild of Australia (Victoria)
• David Ford, Hospital Pharmacist and Executive Director of Pharmacy and Redevelopment, North East Health Wangaratta
• Catherine Bronger, Community Pharmacist and National Councillor of the Pharmacy Guild of Australia

Interested individuals are invited to register on the Biosimilar Hub to ensure they receive regular updates on the broader biosimilar grant activities:

• Healthcare professionals: biosimilarhub.com.au/register/
• Consumers: biosimilarhub.com.au/consumer/stay-in-touch/

For more information visit biosimilarhub.com.au

About GBMA Education
GBMA Education is the educational arm of the Generic and Biosimilar Medicines Association (GBMA), which is the representative body of generic and biosimilar medicine suppliers in Australia.

GBMA Education was awarded the Biosimilar Education Grant by the Australian Government in April 2018. The purpose of the Grant is to increase confidence in the use of biosimilar brands of biological medicines that are listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS). Through the increased use of biosimilar medicines, the objective is to support a competitive market for biological medicines via peer-to-peer health communication activities.

GBMA Education acknowledges the provision of funding by the Australian Government for the Biosimilar Education Grant Program.