Medical Affairs: Pharma’s best-kept secret?

As Medical Affairs strives to establish itself as the third strategic pillar, alongside Development and Commercial, a critical challenge remains: ensuring visibility and understanding of its true value and impact.

Our State of Engagement in the Pharma Sector research reveals one perhaps surprising statistic – 38% of pharma employees say they haven’t heard of the Medical Affairs function.

The underlying causes may vary, but there are three fundamental steps that any Medical Affairs function should take to tackle this issue, each based on a commitment to effective internal and external communication:

1. Develop a clear value proposition

This should answer four simple questions:

Who are we?
What do we do?
Why do we matter to our organisation and the patients we serve?

The output should be a compelling narrative that forms the basis of all future communication and serves as a valuable reference when assessing progress.

2. Identify and tailor your communication to all key stakeholders

It’s vital to understand who your key stakeholders are so that you can maximise and target your communication effort, based on the role that each play in the success of your activities. From this, you can select the most appropriate communication channels ranging from face-to-face and one-to-one engagement, through to broadcast and one-to-many platforms.

3. Demonstrate impact

The best way to prove value is through measurable impact. When leaders and colleagues see tangible results, the strategic importance of Medical Affairs becomes much clearer. Don’t be backwards in coming forwards – collect and communicate positive stories; use data and metrics to demonstrate success; focus on real-world examples that solve critical challenges or drive innovation.

Turning awareness into advocacy

Greater awareness and understanding will enhance the profile of Medical Affairs and shed its ‘best kept secret’ label. And the real key is to build advocacy from those within the function who already recognise and champion its value.

Is your Medical Affairs team ready to take the lead?