J-Pharma announces that Mr. Haruki Kusaka, the Director of Clinical Development, has obtained an international certification as a Specialist in Medicines Development

March 17, 2023
J-Pharma Co., Ltd.

J-Pharma Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Tsurumi-Ward, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture, President & CEO: Max Yoshitake, hereinafter referred to as J-Pharma) announces that Mr. Haruki Kusaka, the Director of Clinical Development, has obtained an international certification as a specialist in drug development and has a designation as a “Specialist in Medicines Development” (SMD). Mr. Kusaka is in an exceptionally distinguished category because in Japan only 11 persons in the pharmaceutical industry and academia have obtained such a SMD certification.

＜Career＞

Mr. Kusaka has worked in clinical pharmacology as a contract CRO; clinical development as a dispatched CRO; and manufacturing quality control as an in-vitro diagnostic drug manufacturer. After joining J-Pharma, in addition to the operational work mainly focused on clinical trial monitoring, he is involved in a variety of drug development tasks from drug discovery to market launch, such as the management of all areas related to clinical development and LCM planning for compounds under development. He completed the Pharma Train Centre of Excellence course in March 2021 (sponsored by Osaka University and co-sponsored by the Japanese Association of Pharmaceutical Medicine) and acquired a pharmaceutical medical certificate in March 2022. (The Japanese Pharmaceutical Medicine)

In the increasingly challenging international competition for pharmaceutical development, the acquisition of the SMD certification by our Director of Clinical Development demonstrates that he is a professional who can make a wide range of evaluations and differentiations in the development process for the enhancement of our pharmaceutical development programs and non-financial value. J-Pharma will continue to refine our advanced technological capabilities in drug development while maintaining a global perspective and contributing to the provision of valuable products for patients.

＜Reference＞
Specialist in Medicines Development (SMD):
The SMD program consists of the International Federation of Associations of Pharmaceutical Physicians and Pharmaceutical Medicine (IFAPP), European NPO (non-profit organization) Pharma Train that promotes and raises awareness of pharmaceutical medicine that leads to the proper use of pharmaceuticals in the market, starting with the development of pharmaceuticals, and pharmaceutical education courses in each country. It was launched in 2016 as a joint project by the accredited European NPO Pharma Train.
Unlike conventional educational courses, which focus on classroom lectures to acquire basic knowledge, this program evaluates and nurtures participants’ competencies in the workplace. As a result, accreditation is issued to individuals who meet the international curriculum standards set by IFAPP and Pharma Train.
Initially, the SMD program was launched in 2016 as a co-sponsored project by the Japanese Association of Pharmaceutical Medicine and the ACRP Japan and the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers’ Associations (EFPIA-JAPAN), but from August 2020 （management has been transferred to the Institute for Medical Development (JI4PE), which is promoting the acquisition of SMD certification. (Quoted from the homepage of the Institute for Medical Development and Innovation)

[Inquiries regarding this matter]
J-Pharma Co. Ltd.
Administration Dept.
Public Relations
Tel: 045-506-1155
Fax: 045-506-1156
info@j-pharma.co.jp