For so many MSLs, their purpose was clear when they were practicing healthcare professionals or in the lab. But then, after moving to ‘the dark side’ of pharma, as their friends often quipped, they started to second guess their purpose. The question, “how do you live your purpose as an MSL and find meaning and joy at work?” may be daunting. If it sounds like too big a question, … [Read more...]

Many articles you’ve read recently or will read shortly will always have a rich part centered on the complexity of the medical landscape increasing including the number of treatment options available to patients continuing to expand and how this is changing the MSL function globally. I’ll not spend more time on that because it is evident enough, that, there is a growing demand … [Read more...]

Digitalization is changing the healthcare space, and the COVID-19 pandemic has been responsible for it in some ways. As innovation in biosciences and technology is advancing rapidly, top life sciences companies are gearing up to discover and launch new drugs or products. When any new drug or a product is discovered and goes through its product life cycle, life sciences … [Read more...]

Medical Science is a highly sought-after profession but it isn’t an easy career.  In order to advance your pathway in this space, continued education and career experience should be prioritized throughout your career in order to maximize what you can accomplish.   Medical Science Liaisons are leading experts in the field of biotechnology and pharmaceutical sciences, and in … [Read more...]

Introduction: The global outbreak of COVID-19 has had deleterious and substantial effects on the conduct of scientific research over the last few years. The pandemic-induced stalling of drug development efforts worldwide has led companies to make urgent strategic amends to recoup from the delays and economic losses suffered. Meanwhile, the interaction of healthcare … [Read more...]

Let me start this article by telling you a story. 25 years ago, when I was working on my thesis, I could not make any sense of some of the data that my experiments generated over the last three years. I was not able to connect the dots; I was not able to analyze the contradictions and the conflictual information that was in front of me. At one point, I simply concluded that … [Read more...]

It is well known that originally the role of the MSL is purely scientific, but with the development of various business models, it is forced to embrace new skills to generate value under a broader strategic perspective. This post is for those who aspire to be MSLs and those who, being MSLs, may wonder if it's okay to take on some new role. Doctors in Latin America are … [Read more...]

According to a 2021 survey, Doctors of Pharmacy (PharmD) make up approximately 42% of all medical science liaisons (MSL); another statistic highlighting the evolution of pharmacists away from traditional dispensing roles.¹ While pharmacists add value to a variety of roles, their skills align closely with those required by MSLs. A PharmD degree is typically obtained after four … [Read more...]

The medical science liaison (MSL) is emerging as one of the most important roles in the modern pharmaceutical industry¹. The role requires a unique set of skills and competencies that can only be fully developed through experience in the field, so there is interest in MSL onboarding strategies that build confident, field-ready MSLs and put them on the path to long-term success. … [Read more...]

There are a lot of new things that you have to learn when you first break into the MSL role. It can be a bit overwhelming when you’re also trying to learn about disease states, novel products, and what seems like every SOP ever written at your new company. But there are a few tools that you can use that will make your life a bit easier, which are detailed in this article. This … [Read more...]

New medical science liaisons (MSLs) and MSL managers face a variety of challenges in their new roles and may benefit from seeking advice and insights from their more experienced counterparts. To help facilitate this, the Medical Science Liaison (MSL) Society offers an MSL Mentor Program for new MSLs or MSL managers. Their mentor/ mentee program assembles new and experienced … [Read more...]

For those that attended the 2022 MSL Society National Meeting in Las Vegas, you met Don Sandel, founder of GoPositiv and author of the new book Positive Mindshift.  If you were there, you know.  You know how Don has researched how positivity impacts our learning and development. During his keynote, he shared with us how a positive mindset enables the brain to be more effective … [Read more...]

This is the second half of the recommendations, focusing on advisory board execution and debrief strategies; for information on planning an advisory board, please see Part I in the July 2022 MSL Society Journal. Meeting Content Meeting content will be specific to the company, product, and intentions of the advisory board; this content should be defined in the Needs … [Read more...]

Yes, it is clear to all of us now that Medical Affairs has become a strategic function within the pharmaceutical industry, and from this point, I can tell you that the MSL role is much more important than ever before! But is it only because of the strategic role of the function? No, it is also due to the evolving technological advances and digitalization, along with the … [Read more...]

Introduction Effective performance evaluation helps leaders identify strengths and weaknesses relative to the overall mission; through careful evaluation of what is working and not working related to achieving goals, one can focus on areas for improvement, create benchmarks for achievement and provide data to make informed decisions.   Performance evaluations create a snapshot … [Read more...]

The 2022 MSL of the Year Awards were announced during the 10th annual MSL Society conference in Las Vegas, September 6th-8th. The purpose of the awards is to recognize excellence within the MSL Profession and is open to all MSLs and MSL Managers globally. During the Awards Night Celebration on September 7th, 39 finalists from eight countries were acknowledged, and a winner … [Read more...]

Mentoring has always played a crucial role among the activities of MSL professionals. Through mentors, aspiring MSLs are guided on how to break into the MSL role, and MSLs are coached properly with advice on how to further their careers.  The MSL Society recognizes the value of mentoring MSL professionals, hence its dedicated Aspiring Mentorship Program. This unique program … [Read more...]

Dear Readers, It is that time of year again when we look back and reflect on all we have done and aspired to do over the past year!   2022 has been a journey through the winding trail of the recent pandemic, where we find Covid is still with us and that we have all successfully adapted to life, finding new ways to conduct business and make an impact on patient care which is … [Read more...]