The evolving medical affairs function

Helen Kane, Founder and Managing Director of PIVOT MSL, describes how medical affairs departments have evolved and are now uniquely placed to engage as strategic and trusted scientific partners in support of healthcare professionals and their patients.

Recorded 4 April 2018 at a MedComms Networking event in Oxford. Produced by NetworkPharma.tv

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ABSTRACT:

Traditionally, under pressure from regulatory authorities, the pharmaceutical industry has insisted on a clear separation between its medicines development and commercial activities, with the gap between the two being bridged by the function of Medical Affairs. Recently, however, the industry landscape has been rapidly changing, with the voice of the patient becoming increasingly important, and healthcare providers under increasing pressure to do the right thing by their patients. Part of this process has been the rapid evolution of Medical Affairs from its traditional role as a support function towards becoming a critical business partner of external stakeholders. Medical Affairs is uniquely placed to engage as a strategic and trusted scientific partner of healthcare providers, in ultimate support of the patient. However, trust needs to be earned through credibility, objectivity and an understanding of stakeholder needs. Essential competencies have expanded to include scientific knowledge and expertise and business acumen, alongside leadership and communication skills. In this phase of rapid evolution, industry needs to support and develop their Medical Affairs teams so that they can deliver in-role excellence.

Written by Penny Gray, Freelance Medical Writer

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We are building a library of free webcasts, like this one, for the global MedComms Community and others at http://www.networkpharma.tv and we’d welcome your suggestions for new topics and speakers.

Full details of this MedComms Networking event are at http://medcommsnetworking.com/event_0...

Helen’s presentation (PDF format) is at http://medcommsnetworking.com/present...

Helen’s Linkedin page is at   / helen-kane-15b4548  

More about PIVOT MSL can be found at http://pivotmsl.com

Filming and technical direction by Mario Crispino, Freelance Cameraman & Editor

Editorial support by Penny Gray, Freelance Medical Writer

[For the avoidance of doubt: this video is intended to be freely accessible to all. Please feel free to share and use however you like. Cheers, Peter Llewellyn, Director NetworkPharma Ltd and Founder of the MedComms Networking Community activity at http://www.medcommsnetworking.com]