Key Functions Of Medical Affairs In Companies

Medical affairs have diverse functions, which has been changing in the past and still is evolving.

The changes in medical affairs develop at a different pace in the big pharma compared to a biotech environment. Biotech companies have a flexible structure; their size and culture both serve to adapt faster to the changing environment than big pharma companies.

Typically, the medical affairs department's functions are:

• Provision of information and education
• Management of publications
• Clinical trials input, developing field-based relationships
• Providing both clinical and commercial support

Apart from the above functions, the key responsibilities of medical affairs also depend on the size and location of the company. The activity across the industry varies significantly between companies. These activities are mainly around the key function of the physician assigned to a therapeutic area, a specific indication, or a brand.

The functions that most companies include are:

• Publications
• Medical communication/medical information
• Health economics
• Outcomes research (HEOR)

In some companies, these groups are functionally led by the physician of the medical affairs department.

Medical affairs are increasingly playing a central role in coordinating internal company stakeholders (including commercial, market access, regulatory, clinical development, and drug safety teams) with the needs of external stakeholders. Medical…