Right up to the final whistle this was an exciting contest, as more than 14,000 competitors pitted their research skills against each other monthly for a prize of 1,000 Euros, plus a tilt at the grand prize of 10,000 Euros for the most successful overall participant.
For a chance of the prize, every day a new, exciting task relevant to the development, under realistic conditions, of a new medicine awaited the players in their role as project leaders of the virtual pharmaceutical business "Mediforsch".
„Research is the best medicine – the game” provides such effortless opportunity of learning more about illnesses and their treatments and about the development of innovative medicine that the game was fulsomely praised by the German Education Minister, Annette Schavan (Christian Democratic Union). "I find it splendid that players can slip into the role of researcher and get to know about the various layers of research, while simultaneously gaining valuable knowledge about illness, their courses and their possible cures", said Ms Schavan.
In the assignment awarded by the Verband Forschender Arzneimittelhersteller (VFA - the trade association of drug researching medicine manufacturers in Germany), the game “Research is the best medicine” was conceived, developed and realized both technically and in its content by the pharmaceutical and healthcare communication specialists, the Juwi MacMillan Group of Germany.
„Research is the best medicine” uses all of the advantages offered by the internet for personal interaction and for the dissemination of knowledge. Live-chats with professional researchers, medical experts and therapists provide players with information on illnesses, their diagnoses and the various stages of treatment. Flash-games explain clearly the many steps involved in the development of new medicines, from the search for active agents, through the various laboratory tests and subsequently to testing on patients before official approval is given.
Just like in "real" research, the players are constantly confronted with the many hurdles placed on the track of any new medicine:- shortage of time and/or money and/or political decisions affecting their chances of success.
The young people and curious adults interested in research, became, as project leaders in "Mediforsch" medical research, personally involved with various diseases, amongst which were diabetes, breast cancer and multiple sclerosis. Other fascinating subjects came up in the game, too, such as “What exactly are placebos?” (A substance containing no medication and prescribed or given to reinforce a patient's expectation of getting well, or an inactive substance or preparation used as a control in an experiment or test to determine the effectiveness of a medicinal drug).
The players received all of the information necessary for the development of a new medicine directly from the game via participation in live-events, interactive game sequences and chats with real researchers. They could ask and answer questions, make decisions and collect valuable points with the correct strategy.
„Strandlust“, alias Ute Szczepanski, was the delighted winner of the Grand Prize of 10,000 Euros at the end of the year for the most successful overall research. Ms. Szczepanski could scarcely believe her own good fortune: "I thought I might win a monthly competition but I never dreamt of the big prize”. And she only began playing out of curiosity after a friend brought the game to her attention! .
Press contact:
Juwi MacMillan Group GmbH: Anette Vitz, mail: Anette.Vitz@juwimm.com,
Tel: 040 - 226 30 60 160, mobile: 0173 -23 00 468.