Local Community

In communities both large and small we want to make a significant and long-lasting difference in people’s lives.

Central to Abbott’s responsibilities as a corporate citizen is the role we play in helping to building healthier communities around the world. We seek to have a positive impact on people’s lives and to use our resources and expertise where we can make a difference. Recognising that we cannot do this work alone, we also work with a wide array of credible community based organisations, supporting and encouraging them in their efforts. We ask all our employees to join in this commitment to communities both large and small.

Our community initiatives are focused on four areas:

1. Advancing community healthcare and awareness:

The United Nations estimates that a third of the world’s population lacks access to essential health services. Abbott works to alleviate this problem. For example, each year Abbott donates anaesthetic products to individual volunteer surgeons and organisations such as Operation Restore Hope who provide children in developing countries with life-enhancing surgeries.

Abbott also works with a number health consumer organisations to raise awareness for various diseases in the community, including Arthritis Australia, Crohn’s and Colitis Australia, National Association of People With AIDS (NAPWA) and the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia.

Globally, Abbott and the Abbott fund invested more than $460 million in programs and product donations aimed at disadvantaged communities in 2008.

2. Medical expertise and promoting scientific knowledge

The world urgently needs more well-trained scientists and Abbott is committed to the challenge. Abbott’s regular contribution of science scholarships to young people in our community helps to improve scientific knowledge and excitement in local schools.

Abbott is also proud to be involved in the world-wide Labs are Vital™ initiative. This initiative exists to support laboratory professionals everywhere by celebrating their contributions and extending the lab’s influence within the healthcare community.

3. Engaging Abbott employees in community vitality

Giving back is an essential part of Abbott’s culture and our employees’ generosity mirrors that of our company. Community involvement is important to Abbott and our employees. There are various initiatives throughout the year in which Abbott employees are enthusiastically involved:

• Movember, which supports Beyond Blue and the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia
• Walk to Cure Diabetes & Ride to Cure Diabetes, both of which support the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation
• Regular donations to the Clown Doctors based on our safety statistics
• A gift-giving appeal providing Christmas presents to under-privileged children in the community

We also offer employees the opportunity to make donations to the Sydney Children’s Hospital as well as the Police and Community Youth Boys Club on a regular basis via payroll deduction. During times of need, such as the Black Saturday Bush Fires or the Boxing Day Tsunami, additional deductions can be processed. These deductions occur on a pre-tax basis and eliminate the need to retain receipts or include on income tax returns.

4. Safeguarding the environment

As a global company focused on health and well-being, we work with local governments and community organisations world wide to help enhance and preserve the environment. For example, we are also a member of the National Packaging Covenant (NPC). As a signatory to the NPC, our aim is to ensure the protection and conservation of resources and to raise the environmental awareness of employees.