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Greetings and Felicitations

Greetings and Felicitations: The Future of Healthcare…Is Now: Part 3 – The Specifics of Managing Obesity

What is the future of healthcare and when will it arrive? To explore these and similar questions I visited with Dr. Ben Locwin and Scott Endicott in a five-episode podcast series. Over this series we will explore why the future of healthcare is now; gene and cell therapy, the use and misuse of statistics, Hippocrates and modern healthcare and where healthcare will be headed down the road. In this Part 3, we turn to the specifics of managing obesity.

This episode of the podcast discussed the importance of personal behavioral health in managing obesity, which is a crisis in the US. Starting with the FDA’s Rumor Control Initiative to combat misinformation, Tom Fox, Scott Endicott and Ben Locwin discussed the need for critical thinking when evaluating pharmaceutical products, the importance of involving a healthcare provider in the discussion, and the use of telemedicine to manage obesity remotely. They also suggested that digital fitbits can be used to monitor activity and that physicians can use this data to make recommendations.

The FDA has recently released the Rumor Control Initiative to combat misinformation. This initiative encourages people to check the source of the information and cross-check it with reliable sources, and to look beyond the headlines to get full context. Drug companies are required to list potential adverse effects of treatments, so it’s important to consider the benefits and risks of treatments together. It’s also important to note that people spread misinformation for various reasons, such as wanting to protect those they care about or feeling connected.

Randomized clinical trials are required for all licensed and marketed pharmaceutical treatments. Hypothesis testing, confidence intervals, and analysis of variance are used to evaluate the efficacy of a drug compared to a placebo. Tom suggested that a physician can track a patient’s activity with a digital fitbit and make recommendations during the patient’s 30 days of a month.

It is important to apply critical thinking and use common sense when evaluating pharmaceutical products. Pharmaceutical products are subject to advertising and branding, which can be difficult to evaluate. Pharmaceutical companies used to employ detailers to provide information to healthcare providers and try to get them to prescribe their product, but now they can buy television time to directly advertise to patients. There is a concern that patients may not have the knowledge to understand the biochemistry, biological impacts, and toxicology of the drugs they are taking, so it’s important to have a trusted healthcare advisor and provider to help interpret the data.

Key Highlights

·      Statistics in Healthcare

·      Managing Obesity Remotely

·      Obesity and Behavioral Health

·      Pharmaceutical Advertising

 Resources

Dr. Ben Locwin on LinkedIn

Scott Endicott on LinkedIn

Tom Fox on LinkedIn

Categories
Daily Compliance News

Daily Compliance News: August 2, 2023 – The Connected Cars and Data Privacy Edition

Welcome to the Daily Compliance News. Each day, Tom Fox, the Voice of Compliance brings to you compliance-related stories to start your day. Sit back, enjoy a cup of morning coffee, and listen in to the Daily Compliance News. All, from the Compliance Podcast Network. Each day we consider four stories from the business world, compliance, ethics, risk management, leadership, or general interest for the compliance professional.

  • CCPA to look at connected cars. (WaPo)
  • Audit firms fight expansion of anti-fraud role. (FT)
  • Former AG Lynch to review NU hazing allegations. (Reuters)
  • Singapore PM to discuss corruption scandals. (Bloomberg)
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The Hill Country Podcast

Hill Country Podcast – Loren Steffy on the Texas A&M Kathleen McElroy Hiring Imbroglio

Welcome to award-winning The Hill Country Podcast. The Texas Hill Country is one of the most beautiful places on earth. In this podcast, Hill Country resident Tom Fox visits with the people and organizations that make this the most unique areas of Texas. Join Tom as he explores the people, places and their activities of the Texas Hill Country.  In this episode Tom visits with Loren Steffy about the controversy regarding the announcement of the hiring of Kathleen McElroy to head the School of Journalism and how it all went sideways.

This matter involves a recent controversy at Texas A&M University and highlighted the need for universities to embrace inclusion and create an environment where all students feel welcome and respected. The controversy began when the school attempted to hire Kathleen McElroy, an A&M graduate, to head the journalism program. The job offer was changed from a tenured position to a one-year position with the possibility of being fired at any time, leading to the resignation of the school’s president. This incident has caused a stir, prompting discussions about the importance of diversity and inclusion in higher education and the unique culture of A&M, which is both inclusive and exclusive. It has also raised questions about the university’s hiring practices and whether they have been giving potential employees and students from diverse backgrounds a fair chance.

 Key Highlights

·       Kathleen McElroy’s Initial Hiring

·       It all goes sideways

·      A&M Culture

·      A&M Hiring Issues

·      What does it all mean?

 Resources

Loren Steffy

Stoney Creek Publishing

Texas A&M’s Journalism Fiasco Has Roots in the School’s Conformist Culture by Loren Steffy in TexasMonthly.com

Tom Fox

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31 Days to More Effective Compliance Programs

One Month to More Effective HR in Compliance: Day 1 – The Role of HR in Compliance

When it comes to operationalizing a successful compliance program, HR is an essential part of the equation. HR has many touch points with employees, from interviews to onboarding, and can be used to connect the dots in many divergent elements of a compliance and ethics program. HR can take the lead in operationalizing compliance at each of these touch points, such as pre-employment screening and interviewing, onboarding training, annual assessments and reviews, and promotions to exit strategies.

The Compliance Podcast Network’s One Month to a More Effective Compliance Program provides four steps to ensure an effective compliance program. These steps include establishing a consistent application of disciplinary actions and incentives across the organization, utilizing an incentive system to incentivize compliance and ethical behavior, and providing examples of actions taken, such as promotions and awards denied as a result of compliance and ethical considerations. Additionally, it is important to determine who determines the compensation, including bonuses, as well as discipline and promotion of compliance personnel.

HR can help operationalize a compliance program by getting the message out through their distribution channel. They can also utilize their expertise and talent to more fully communicate compliance concepts. This could include ongoing communications with prospective, newly hired, and seasoned employees about the need for ethical dealings and compliance with company values. It is also important to have a shared commitment requirement found in the commitment of senior management as well as the requirements around incentives and discipline.

The 2023 guidance from the Department of Justice Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs listed several HR touch points as best practices for a successful compliance program. These include senior leaders and middle management stakeholders, such as business and operational managers, finance, procurement, legal, and human resources, demonstrating their commitment to compliance and remediation efforts. HR can be one of the linchpins in spreading a company’s commitment to doing business ethically and in compliance throughout the employee base.

Incentive and discipline processes should involve participants in making disciplinary decisions for the type of misconduct at issue. Reasons for discipline should be communicated to employees. Compliance should be operationalized into the very fabric of a business. Have a cup of coffee with the head of corporate HR to find out what they do, how they do it, and what they do on a daily basis. This will help you to better understand how HR can help operationalize your compliance program.

By following the four steps outlined in the Compliance Podcast Network’s One Month to a More Effective Compliance Program, you can ensure your compliance program is successful and that your employees are aware of their responsibilities. HR can be a powerful tool in operationalizing your compliance program, and by utilizing their expertise and talent, you can more effectively communicate compliance concepts and spread the company’s commitment to doing business ethically and in compliance throughout the employee base.

Three key takeaways:

  1. What are the HR-employee touchpoints at your company?
  2. HR professionals can bring new, dynamic and innovative techniques to compliance
  3. Go down and have a cup of coffee with the head of your corporate HR department. Find out what they do and how they do it.

For more information, check out The Compliance Handbook, 4th edition, here.

Categories
Career Can D0

Redefining Wealth: A Path to Personal Prosperity with Daniel Hall

On today’s episode of Career Can Do, Mary Ann Faremouth hosts a multi-faceted professional who redefines success. Daniel Hall is a USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author, investor and speaker. This episode delves into Daniel’s latest book, The Money Mindset Makeover: Transforming Your Finances From the Inside Out, which promises to change your perception of wealth and personal growth. Daniel shares insights into transforming your relationship with money and why your beliefs play a crucial role in your financial future.

Daniel says that our relationship with money is often mired in notions of scarcity and the belief that money is hard to come by. This mindset is a fallacy, he says; we need a paradigm shift to overcome these negative beliefs and adopt a new set of beliefs that allows us to see the abundant opportunities that life offers. Mary Ann notes that candidates with a can-do mindset are often more successful, despite not ticking every box in terms of required skills. 

 

Daniel describes the transformative power of changing core beliefs about wealth. “It’s like fertilizing a garden,” he says. “You start to really see things start to grow and blossom in this new garden because you’ve made the soil fertile.” He shares success stories of individuals who triumphed over their past to create financial success, including his own. 

 

Mary-Ann comments on Daniel’s book, stating how it doesn’t just tell you where you need to be, but helps you understand how to get there from where you are now. Daniel offers listeners the opportunity to pick up his book, pay what they wish, and take the first steps toward a mindset overhaul. 

 

Maintaining a positive mindset and discipline even during challenging times is crucial. To sustain a money mindset, Daniel suggests being mindful and present in your thoughts, affirming that positive changes in reality can happen if you stay consistent in your efforts. Challenging situations should be seen as opportunities for growth and learning rather than obstacles. We all have the power to decide our perception towards events in our lives, including financial ones. He encourages listeners to frame challenges as opportunities to grow and reach the next step. There’s an abundance of opportunities around us, Daniel says, comparing them to things we couldn’t see before getting a new pair of glasses. He believes that seizing and implementing these opportunities, and drawing from these positive experiences for future successes, leads to a cycle of prosperity. He coins this a “delicious cycle,” where good things continue to happen, expanding in their magnitude.

 

Resources:

Daniel Hall | Money Mindset Makeover

Faremouth.com

Categories
Greetings and Felicitations

Greetings and Felicitations: The Future of Healthcare…Is Now: Part 2- Revolutionizing Healthcare: Personalized Medicine

What is the future of healthcare and when will it arrive? To explore these and similar questions I visited with Dr. Ben Locwin and Scott Endicott in a five-episode podcast series. Over this series we will explore why the future of healthcare is now; gene and cell therapy, the use and misuse of statistics, Hippocrates and modern healthcare and where healthcare will be headed down the road. In this Part 2, we consider personalized medicine.

The use of personalized medicine, such as cell therapies, gene therapies, and digital therapeutics, is revolutionizing the healthcare industry. In this Part 2 of a special five-part series, Tom Fox, Ben Locwin, and Scott discussed the changes to regulatory pathways and expanded access programs to speed up the approval process for drugs and treatments, as well as the long-term risks associated with taking certain drugs. They also provided advice on how to engage with them on the topics discussed, such as using LinkedIn and Google Search, and concluded the episode by inviting listeners to join them for their next episode. This podcast episode provides an insightful look into the future of personalized medicine and the potential risks and benefits associated with it.

Digital therapeutics, for example, have enabled the ability to measure and install a pump that replicates the functions of the pancreas in real time. Regulatory pathways for device and diagnostic approvals have been simplified and expectations and standards have been shifted. Expanded access programs have been created to allow access to treatments between the end of a clinical study and formal approval. These programs have been especially beneficial for rare disease patients and pediatric patients, as well as late stage oncology patients. Advocacy groups have successfully lobbied for access to treatments for MS and other rare diseases. Risk-benefit utility curves can be used to understand the implications of healthcare decisions.

Personalized medicine is defined as medical therapies that are designed specifically for each individual patient to whom they’ll be administered. An example of personalized medicine is personalized dosing of warfarin, which could prevent 17,000 strokes in the United States annually and avoid 43,000 emergency room visits. Cell therapies, such as Chimeric antigen Receptor T cell Therapy (Car T), are personalized using either a donor or the patient’s own blood. Gene therapies are also used in personalized medicine. Supply chain, as it is currently understood, may well no longer  exist in ten years from now and instead it will look a lot more like a disc that is going to be placed into a personalized sort of therapeutic pump that’s attached to your body. Insulin delivery has become extremely personal, used to be broad based, and required separate measurements of blood sugars and titrating a dose based on that. Dexcom has been providing personalized medicine for a number of years.

Personalized medicine is revolutionizing the healthcare industry, and it is important to understand the long-term risks associated with taking certain drugs. It is also important to understand the regulatory pathways and expanded access programs that have been created to speed up the approval process for these drugs and treatments. With the right resources and guidance, individuals can make informed decisions about their healthcare and take advantage of the many benefits that personalized medicine has to offer.

Key Highlights

·      Cell and gene therapy

·      Personalized medicine

·      Risk-benefit utility

Resources

Dr. Ben Locwin on LinkedIn

Scott Endicott on LinkedIn

Tom Fox on LinkedIn

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Report from IMPACT 2023

Report from IMPACT 2023: Carsten Tams on Designing Engaged Compliance Solutions

ECI’s IMPACT 2023 was one of the leading compliance events in 2023. At this conference, Tom Fox, the Voice of Compliance, was able to visit with several of the speakers, exhibitors, participants and one group of ethically minded Girl Scout Troop. In this limited podcast series, Report from IMPACT 2023, Tom explores many of the most cutting-edge topics in ethics and compliance through short podcast episodes. Check out the full series of interviews. You will be enlightened, informed and come away with a fuller and more thorough understanding of the most cutting-edge topics in ethics and compliance. In this episode, Tom visits Compliance Maven Carsten Tams on how to design an engaging compliance system.

An effective, ethical business requires more than just compliance – it requires engagement. Tom Fox and Carsten Tams discussed how to design solutions that resonate with employees and meet their needs in this podcast episode. Mary Gentilly’s book emphasizes the importance of giving employees an opportunity to express their values and create a social ethical fabric that leads to resilience against misconduct. Design thinking is a key tool in creating tailored solutions to meet the needs of employees, ensuring engagement in compliance and ethical culture. This podcast episode is essential for any business owner looking to create a successful, socially and environmentally conscious enterprise.

 Highlights include 

·      Engaging Compliance

·      Ethics and Engagement

·      Design Thinking in Compliance 

Resources 

Carsten Tams on LinkedIn

Categories
Daily Compliance News

Daily Compliance News: August 1, 2023 – The Accident Waiting to Happen Edition

Welcome to the Daily Compliance News. Each day, Tom Fox, the Voice of Compliance brings to you compliance-related stories to start your day. Sit back, enjoy a cup of morning coffee, and listen in to the Daily Compliance News. All, from the Compliance Podcast Network. Each day we consider four stories from the business world, compliance, ethics, risk management, leadership, or general interest for the compliance professional.

  • Binance founder draws scrutiny from German regulator. (WSJ)
  • Lead FBI agent talks about Householder case. (Columbus Dispatch)
  • US asks SCt to delay Purdue Pharma settlement. (Reuters)
  • eBike for adult or motorcycle for kids: disaster in the offing. (NYT)
Categories
Data Driven Compliance

Data Driven Compliance: eCom Surveillance and Cybersecurity Data Management

Are you struggling to keep up with the ever-changing compliance programs in your business? Look no further than the award-winning Data Driven Compliance podcast, hosted by Tom Fox, which is a podcast featuring an in-depth conversation around the uses of data and data analytics in compliance programs. Data Driven Compliance is back with another exciting episode The intersection of law, compliance, and data is becoming increasingly important in the world of cross-border transactions and mergers and acquisitions.

Data has become much more ubiquitous and needs to be incorporated into business processes. AI data cleansing helps to reduce false positives and provides context to alerts generated by the system. AI capabilities are divided into three categories: removing duplicative content, detecting risk, and providing context. AI-powered data cleansing strips out non-human generated content and focuses on what was sent by an individual. This helps to lower false positives in alerts generated by the system.

The need for eCom surveillance is increasing as communication sources become more varied. Slack, Zoom, Teams, Bloomberg chat, and Ice chat are all becoming commonplace, and companies need to be able to capture data from these sources. Artificial intelligence and machine learning models are being deployed to empower a compliance officer to focus on what’s important and be risk-based. Companies that have been hesitant about the cloud are now moving their data to the cloud.

The amount of voice business that is happening over Zoom and teams and other voice channels has skyrocketed. Regulators have been very clear that you need to capture and record that voice data. Customers have asked for more and more data sources to capture, including audio. Compliance teams need systems to manage collaboration, case management tools, and review tools. Technology allows compliance teams to no longer use Excel or SharePoint to manage their own internal processes.

The combination of technology and compliance is transforming the industry. Artificial intelligence capabilities have come a long way in the past few years and are already good enough to provide a lot of value to customers. The innovation over the next few years will be on the defensibility front, proving defensibly why something was alerted on and why something else was not. Technology is available to capture every data source that’s out there, and it is essential for compliance teams to leverage this technology to remain compliant and competitive.

 Key Highlights

·      Ecom Surveillance

·      Cybersecurity Data Management

·      AI and Compliance

Resources:

 Tom Fox 

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Blog

Sustainability Leadership

Sustainability leadership is an important concept that has become increasingly relevant in recent years. Companies have realized the importance of sustainability and have embraced it as an opportunity to increase profitability. I recently discussed the success stories of companies like Nike, Interface, and Unilever, who have implemented sustainability leadership strategies and have seen increased profitability as a result, for our podcast series Sustainability: the Business Opportunity of the 21st Century.

Part of successful sustainability leadership is understanding the concept of materiality. Materiality is a measure of the importance of strategic decisions and their impact on the business and its stakeholders. By analyzing materiality, companies can set priorities around sustainability activities. To do this, companies need to get feedback from stakeholders to determine the importance of issues and the impacts on its stakeholders and the communities they serve. This feedback can be collected through reading reports, getting studies, direct interviews, and other methods.

Richard Blundell, in his article for the Rotman School of Management, highlighted the importance of passion, vision, and purpose for successful sustainability leadership. Ray Anderson, the founder of Interface, created a consulting arm called Rays to help other companies transition to a lower carbon world. In a meeting, the executive present was being very disruptive and obstructive. However, he was struck by the passion and message Ray had created and generated for the purpose of their journey, which he called Mount Sustainability. Anderson created an image of a mountain with seven or eight steps to reach the goal. Paul Pullman said that if you work for an organization with a greater purpose, you get more energy out of the organization.

In 2019, the Business Roundtable released the Statement on the Purpose of a Corporation, which stated that corporations should answer to stakeholders, not just shareholders. It is an imperative to move the discussion to the stakeholders identified by the Business Roundtable.

Sustainability is a mindset first and foremost, and great leaders in this space have viewed it as an opportunity. Transitioning to sustainability can lead to increased profitability and outperforming the market. Companies should strive to leave the business in better shape than when they arrived in the morning. Passion, vision, and purpose are essential for successful sustainability leadership. Communication should be simple, clear, and consistent.

Fossil-based energy companies can extend the life of their fuels by diversifying their fuel base. Climate change is a major factor in the need for sustainability, and CO2 is one of the biggest culprits. Dong Ltd. a Danish based company has transitioned from a 90% fossil fuel-based energy generation business to a 90% offshore wind business in a very short period of time. Neste, a Finnish oil company, is now the largest renewable fuels company. Oil and gas companies have the skills to transition to renewable energy sources. The CEO of Dong was proudest of the transition without losing jobs, upskilling the workforce instead.

Incremental change is very predictable and does not deliver competitive advantage over time. Large transitions, large transformations, and bold strategies are necessary for successful change. Leaders must be passionate about their visions, their people, their customers, and their stakeholders. Tone at the top is essential for successful sustainability leadership. Interface is an example of a company that has successfully implemented sustainability leadership.

Sustainability is a journey, not a destination, and companies like Nike, Interface, and Unilever have viewed it that way. Leaders must commit to action in an environment that is constantly changing. Companies should strive to leave the business in better shape than when they arrived in the morning. Passion, vision, and purpose are essential for successful sustainability leadership.

In conclusion, sustainability leadership is an important concept that has become increasingly relevant in recent years. Companies need to go through a process of analyzing materiality to determine how to set priorities around sustainability activities. Passion, vision, and purpose are essential for successful sustainability leadership, as well as the need for bold strategies and communication to ensure success. Companies should strive to leave the business in better shape than when they arrived in the morning. Transitioning to sustainability can lead to increased profitability and outperforming the market. Interface is an example of a company that has successfully implemented sustainability leadership.