Ethical Promotion of Medicines: Latest Developments and Future Prospects

Dr. Sunoor Verma

Executive Director, Geneva Health Forum

Dr. Sunoor Verma joined the Geneva Health Forum (GHF) team in March 2011. At the
GHF, Dr. Verma is responsible for expanding the reach and impact of the Forum through
strategic planning, strategic partnerships and strategic communication. He oversees the
operational side of the GHF as well. A senior development expert, Dr. Verma has worked in
emergency, conflict and post-conflict situations. He has set up programs across sectors –
Education, Health, Protection, Injuries, Sanitation, HIV/AIDS, Harm Reduction, Conflict
Resolution, Refugees, Internally Displaced Persons, Environment, Culture, Gender, Minority
issues, etc.
Dr. Verma has led the establishment of complex partnerships and coalitions and enjoys
negotiating strategic agreements. He has worked in Western Europe, South East Europe,
South Asia, South East Asia, North Africa and Australia. Among others he worked for
UNHCR, UNICEF, European Centre for Minority Issues, Cambridge University and the
Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons. He was principal consultant of the strategy
consulting practice “ProCube” and is the founder of www.csrforchildren.org.
In a previous avatar, Dr. Sunoor Verma was a practicing cardiothoracic surgeon.

Mr. Russell Williams

Code Compliance Network Chair, IFPMA / President, Rx&D Canada

Mr. Russell Williams is a passionate advocate for innovation in health care and in
economic development. Since joining Rx&D in March 2004, Mr. Williams has promoted
policies that improve patient outcomes by expanding patient choice and access to new
medicines and vaccines. He works tirelessly to ensure that Canada is a world leader in
attracting biopharmaceutical investments, which are key components of the knowledgebased
economy.
Under Mr. Williams’ leadership, the association’s Code of Ethical Practices has been
significantly enhanced to ensure that all member companies adhere to the highest
standards of ethics. He has participated actively in numerous provincial working groups and
task forces aimed at improving the partnership between industry, governments and
stakeholders. In addition, Mr. Williams chairs the IFPMA Code Compliance Network (CCN).
Prior to joining Rx&D, Mr. Williams had a successful career in provincial politics and
community service. For fifteen years, he represented the Montreal riding of Nelligan in the
National Assembly of Quebec. During his career as Liberal MNA, he led numerous public
policy debates on important and complex issues, such as the role of government in research
and development (R&D), compensation for victims of contaminated blood, linguistic policy,
access to services for the disabled, and pre-hospital emergency services. He is well known
for his dedication and perseverance as an advocate for individual rights and government
services focused on the needs of its citizens. He continues active volunteer involvement in
palliative care.

Ambassador Juan José Gómez Camacho

Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Mexico to the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva

Ambassador Juan José Gómez Camacho was appointed Permanent
Representative of Mexico to the United Nations and Other International Organizations
in Geneva in June 2009. He is a career diplomat, having joined the Mexican Foreign
Service in 1988.
He has served at the Embassy of Mexico in the United Kingdom as Head of the Legal
Affairs Section (1994-1997) and at the Permanent Mission of Mexico to the
Organization of American States as Deputy Permanent Representative (1997-2000).
In January 2006, he was appointed Ambassador of Mexico to the Republic of
Singapore and concurrent Ambassador to the Union of Myanmar and the Sultanate of
Brunei Darussalam.
At the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he has held the following positions, amongst others:
Special Assistant to the Legal Adviser, and Deputy Director for International
Organizations and Director of Border Affairs. In December 2000, he was appointed
Director General for Human Rights and Democracy and was responsible for Mexico’s
Foreign Policy on these issues and served as Mexico’s Attorney in international
human rights litigation.Over the years, he has headed several Mexican delegations to
both multilateral and bilateral meetings and negotiations. Moreover, he has
participated as an expert on International Law in numerous academic fora, both
national and international, and has written several articles on the subject. He has also
been a professor of International Law at Iberoamericana University in México.
Ambassador Gómez Camacho was born on 6th October 1964 in Mexico City, Mexico.
He is married and has two daughters.
He holds a Bachelor Degree in Law from the Iberoamericana University in Mexico
City, and a Master’s Degree in International Law from Georgetown University Law
School, in Washington, D.C.

Dr. Otmar Kloiber

Secretary General at the World Medical Association

Dr. Otmar Kloiber is the Secretary General of the World Medical Association. He has been
an international medical relations and collaboration leader for more than 20 years, with
expertise in medical ethics, health policy, government affairs and management of
relationships with patients, other health professionals, manufacturers and other medical
stakeholders. He has been the chief executive of the WMA since 2005.
Prior to his move to the WMA, between 1997 and 2005, Otmar served as Deputy Secretary
General and Secretary of the German Medical Association. During his tenure there, he was
selected as a Member of the Study Commission on the Law and Ethics of Modern Medicine
of the German Bundestag (Parliament), 14th electoral term.
Between 1991 and 2005, he was also a key liaison to the Standing Committee of European
Doctors, the WMA, the International Conference of Medical Chambers, the European Forum
of the World Health Organization and individual national medical associations. In addition,
for six years, he was the foreign relations adviser to the German Medical Association,
focusing on international health and social policy reforms and construction of the German
Health Network.
Otmar holds an MD (1984) and PhD (1986) from University of Cologne, was a postdoctoral
fellow in the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Minnesota, and was a research
assistant at the Max Planck Institute for Neurological Research, engaged in
pathophsyiological studies on brain energy metabolism and cerebral blood flow.
In 2006, he was awarded an honorary doctorate by the Victor Babes University for Medicine
and Pharmaceutics, Timisoara, Romania. He is Clinical Professor in Health Administration
at the Brooks College of Health, University of North Florida.

Mr. David Brennan

Chief Executive Officer at the AstraZeneca

Mr. David Brennan was appointed Chief Executive Officer of AstraZeneca effective 1
January 2006 and is now based at the global headquarters in London. From 2001 until his
appointment to CEO, Mr. Brennan was President and Chief Executive Officer of
AstraZeneca LP, the Company’s North American subsidiary for the U.S. and Canada. He
was appointed Executive Board Director of AstraZeneca in 2005.
Mr. Brennan began his career in 1975 at Merck, where he started as a sales representative
in the U.S. Division and later worked in sales and marketing management in the US and
International divisions. He joined AstraMerck in 1992 and helped to build the joint venture
into a multi-billion dollar business in the U.S. which was then merged to form AstraZeneca in
1999.
He is an alumnus of Gettysburg College where he studied Business Administration.
In addition to his role as Executive Director of AstraZeneca PLC, he is President of the
International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations (IFPMA) since
November 2010. Mr. Brennan has also held the following positions, amongst others: Past
Chairman of the Board of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America
(PhRMA), Member of the Executive Board of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical
Industries and Associations (EFPIA), Member of the European Roundtable of Industrialists,
Member of the National Institute of Health Roundtable on Evidence Based Medicine,
Commissioner of the UK Commission for Employment and Skills, Past Chairman of the
Board of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Chapter of the American Heart Association,
Honorary Board member of the US CEO Roundtable on Cancer, Member of the Board of
the Philadelphia Orchestra.
Mr. Brennan is married with four children and six grandchildren. He enjoys scuba diving,
cycling and is an amateur photographer.