MEDICINE >>>

- Centre of excellence for healthcare and research -

Two miles from the ‘Loop’ – the area encircled by the route of the Transit Authority’s elevated train – is the huge research centre of Illinois Medical District (IMD), credited with helping to revitalise the west side. In an area of one square mile, around 40,000 doctors, nurses, research scientists, academics and technicians are employed at IMD member organisations, their joint payroll amounting to $750 million. They are reckoned to contribute $5 billion to the local economy. The IMD has come a long way since it was founded 60 years ago by the University of Illinois as an institute of medical teaching and research. Executive director Thomas Livingston says the original idea “was that people would spend most of their time in the laboratory, and the mission was to bring intellectual property rights back to the university. “It would also serve as a regional economic development asset for the state,” providing new jobs and opportunities.

The IMD has been developed through the cooperation of the public sector and private enterprise. Mr Livingston says the partnership has worked for practical reasons: “The private sector seems to have greater acumen in running the hospital whereas public institutions have an ability to put together excellent academic programmes.” The district is also home to the Chicago Technology Park, the state centre for hi-tech, biotech, cancer research and health-related environmental development. “Management of the technology park was turned over to the IMD,” says Mr Livingston. “We manage it and market it, and the collaborations that have flowered out of this have been wonderful. We are very pleased with it.” The area is also home to state, county and university public health facilities, where 70 per cent of the population of Illinois receives medical care. Every year, about $250 million in federal funds and research grants is poured into the region. Some of the biggest names in the pharmaceutical and healthcare business have a well-established presence such as Baxter International, Pfizer and Glaxo-SmithKline Beecham.

Abbott Laboratories, among the top three companies in Chicago, is one of the largest employers in the city. Founded as a pharmaceuticals firm, it now provides medical treatment. “We are a very large, very strong and diverse company,” says chairman Miles White. He aims to turn Abbott into a world leader in the healthcare industry. “To do that, you must make significant investments in science. We looked for opportunities that fitted our strategic mission.” The firm puts its considerable financial strength into the research and creation of medicines, forms of treatment and scientific innovations. “Developing new drugs is expensive and challenging, but they hold great promise in terms of their impact on treating people and improving health,” says Mr White. “Medicines and devices make a huge difference in the treatment of patients – you can extend the lives of people who might otherwise not have lived very long.”