Alumni and current students of the Research, Development and Innovation of Novel Drugs Master Program (R+D+I) of the Faculty of Pharmacy of the Universidad de Navarra had a special date on Thursday, October 6, 2011 at the IESE center in Madrid (Camino del Cerro del Águila, 3).

The programmed schedule included:
· 3-3:15 pm. Welcoming coffee service.
· 3:15-3:20 pm. Welcome speech given by Antonio Monge, Director of the Master Program.
· 3:20-4:30 pm. Conference-Discussion with Javier Ellena. Vice President of Lilly Europa.

Conference given by Javier Ellena
European Vice President for the pharmaceutical company LILLY and President of its branch division in Spain, Javier Ellena spoke of today's worldwide situation of pharmaceutical innovation, insisting on the need for innovating products for the benefit of health. He emphasized the significance of degenerative diseases in a social context in which increased life expectation is important, resulting in an ageing population.

He stated the need for networking in today's context in which it is no longer possible to carry out all the necessary innovation steps alone, from the beginning of an idea to placing a product on the market, regardless of the size of a company. He also pointed out that it is both opportune and intelligent to
gather together external initiatives of interest and incorporate them into the product for the benefit of health.

An international view given by Javier Ellena was of immense importance as he offered ideas from a professional observatory standpoint, directly related to his current work activity throughout all of Europe. One of the highpoints of his talk was the interesting information he provided regarding Eastern Europe and China.