A SciComm Veteran Explains the Role
Jul 26
Scientific Communications
Sally Farrand is a Scientific Communications veteran who has worked in the pharmaceutical industry and a number of companies, both large and small.
She describes Scientific Communications (SciComm) as a pivotal function within the pharma industry. “It is the way pharma companies grow. What is created and distributed by Scientific Communications describes why you want to invest in a company and why a physician wants to prescribe a therapy developed by the company”
However, the function’s importance is frequently overlooked because other functions such as Clinical Development and Marketing are more visible. Scientific Communications can get lost and there can be a lack of appreciation for the role SciComm plays.
Regarding physicians working in SciComm, she shared that a physician can have a significant impact because of their credibility and training. However, she identified a few challenges for MDs to be aware of if they are considering a role in SciComm:
A challenge is knowledge of the regulations the pharmaceutical industry works under. Even with publications experience, such as abstracts, presentations and manuscripts, the physician in an academic setting is not held to the important industry and government regulations that are required of the pharmaceutical industry. Thus, the writing and publishing experience is transferable but appreciating the regulatory environment is typically not something to which a physician will have been exposed. The nature and implementation of those regulations is something you learn on the job and must be aware of. Some of the regulations come from associations such as PhRMA, some are editorial guidelines developed by professional medical journalist organizations (e.g. ISMPP) that have been adopted by leading medical journals, and some are country regulations. Despite this, a physician does not have to have a certificate of any sort, or participate in a specific training to add to their resume for a SciComm role.
Sally describes the day-to-day work in SciComm as “fun and challenging”. In this function, she focuses on strategic and tactical alignment; something she believes physicians would find interesting. The strategic alignment involves taking the data generated by clinical trials and aligning a publication strategy around the corporate goals and then developing tactics that comply with the regulations and advance the scientific knowledge base and corporate interest. It is a highly cross-functional role and she interacts frequently with research scientists, Clinical Development, Medical Affairs, Medical Science Liaisons (MSLs), Marketing, and Biostatistics to name a few. In these discussions she is listening to the perspectives these team members bring from both an external and internal audiences and incorporates these inputs into the strategic plan. She also gets to educate her peers on appropriate utilization of publications and protect the company’s primary data to insure it is shared at the highest level and most premier platform.
Some of the projects she might consider in any given day include contributing to the outline for abstracts and manuscripts, creating the scientific messages that are used commonly throughout the company, building the scientific platform, mapping the critical congresses where the company needs to have a presence. In addition, she is interacting with global KOLs (key opinion leaders) who are often MDs or PhDs. “There is a psychology you bring to each KOL relationship to be able to work with the expert to get the publication completed”. Those interested in SciComm have to be able to work with varied personalities well and consider that cultures ex-US are different than in the US and appreciate how different cultural backgrounds may influence these relationships.
As part of the SciComm strategic publications plan she evaluates the gating or timing of data release and presentation for the highest possible impact. As she said, “it’s not just hurry up and get the data out, there is a plan and cadence involved for maximal impact”
“The function of SciComm is to help everyone else do their job”
and
“it’s fun because it is so collaborative”
For a physician interested in SciComm, she reminds us that you will be hired because of your training and clinical background. You still have to prove that you are a “decent person and team player”. You have to build trust with colleagues.
“You can’t be right all the time and they can’t be wrong all the time”
Understand your own motivations and personality and how to make those characteristics work in an environment where there is a lot of pressure; pressure that is different than clinical medicine pressures.
The reward of Scientific Communications is when, after months of collaborative teamwork effort, groundbreaking research is presented in a leading medical journal or at a professional conference to enable physicians to help their patients
Scientific Communications and Medical WritingResources:
PhRMA Codes & Guidelines
ICJME (International Committee of Medical Journal Editors)
ISMPP (International Society of Medical Publication Professionals
ISMPP Good Publication Policies-3 (GPP3)