Pharmaceutical Medicine
Nature of the work
Pharmaceutical medicine is concerned with the
discovery, development, evaluation, registration, monitoring and
medical aspects of the marketing of medicines.
Working in pharmaceutical medicine
Careers in pharmaceutical medicine relate to
three main groups of physicians:
- those working in the pharmaceutical industry
- those with appointments within medicines regulatory bodies
(such as the MHRA)
- those working in independent clinical research organisations
dedicated to the development of new medicines.
A pharmaceutical physician may be responsible
(alongside his or her team) for the clinical development of one or
more compounds, and the effective evaluation of associated benefits
and risks. This can represent a major challenge in a discipline
which is by definition always working on the frontiers of
science.
The specialty is now evolving rapidly after a
slow gestation. There is increased recognition of the discipline of
pharmaceutical medicine in many countries around the world, and
formal recognition in UK, Ireland, Switzerland and Mexico. There
are many postgraduate training programmes, particularly in Europe,
leading to a Diploma in Pharmaceutical Medicine or a master’s
degree, with or without subsequent accreditation of the
qualification.
The role of the pharmaceutical physician has
widened to cover all areas of pharmaceutical medicine,
including:
- drug candidate selection
- clinical research
- medical marketing
- drug safety and pharmacovigilance
- regulatory affairs
- medical and scientific affairs
- pharmacoeconomics
- societal and public health issues relating to pharmaceuticals
in the wider context of healthcare delivery.
Common procedures / interventions
These include:
- planning, organisation, analysis and reporting of clinical
trials on medicines
- collecting, assessing and regulatory reporting of suspected
adverse drug reactions
- the preparation of product information such as an
investigator’s brochure, a summary of product characteristics or
patient information leaflets
- ensuring promotional material complies with relevant
pharmaceutical industry codes of practice
- preparation of reports such as safety summaries and periodic
safety update reports.
Further information
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