Amgen's Sydney office has hosted industry minister Ed Husic and the seventh cohort of the Bridge Program.
Convened and run by Queensland University of Technology (QUT), the program is a professional development program backed by government and industry, focused on equipping Australia’s best researchers with the knowledge, skills and networks needed to commercialise new pharmaceutical products.
The program aims to bridge the gap between academia and industry in pharmaceutical and medical research, a key issue continually identified as holding the sector back.
Amgen has been a foundational partner of the program since its inception in 2017.
Minister Husic was joined by Amgen managing director Gabi Mittas and its head of government affairs Dr David Thomson, MTPConnect CEO Stuart Dignam, QUT Distinguished Professor Lyn Griffiths and Pfizer’s executive director and emerging science lead Dr Anand Gautam.
The seventh cohort of the program comprises 100 selected participants from around Australia who will embark on a year-long program delivered via online training materials and a series of face-to-face events, activities and seminars.
“Amgen is honoured to host the launch of this year’s Bridge Program and to have welcomed Minister Husic, the 2023 Bridge Program participants and industry partners to our Sydney office for this important event,” said Ms Mittas.
“We are proud to have been supporting this program for the past seven years, and importantly to help facilitate the pathway for the future innovators of our industry,” she added.
Professor Lyn Griffiths, director of the Bridge Program, said, “This highlights the importance of academic researchers working with industry to translate medical research through commercialisation” and emphasised that “the Bridge Program is a key factor in enabling training, networks and collaboration to strengthen the sector through these linkages around Australia.”
The Bridge Program consortium includes AbbVie, Amgen, Australian National University, Pfizer, Roche, Spruson & Ferguson, University of New South Wales, University of Western Australia and the Government of Western Australia. The Federal Government supports the program through MTPConnect, with industry-matched funding from consortium members.