Career Paths for
Medical Writing
ASPET Diversity Mentoring Breakfast
April 27, 2014
Victoria A. Love, PhD
www.linkedin.com/in/valovephd/
Today’s Agenda
 Present a brief introduction
 Define medical communications and medical writing
 Describe the scope of work encompassed by the field
 Provide information pertaining to how to establish a career in the field
 Discuss my professional journey
 Offer information about resources
 Give an overview of tests developed by medical communications
employers
 Answer any questions
Current Professional Bio
 Scientific Operations; Section Manager of Documentation and
Archiving; Drug Safety Evaluation (DSE)- Allergan, Irvine, CA
 Non-clinical sections for global drug applications
 Non-clinical study related protocols & reports
 Toxicology, Pharmacokinetics, Bioanalytical and Immunology
reports (> 600 annually)
 Support information platforms that support transfer and storage of
electronic documents used by DSE
>20 submissions scheduled for 2014
Current Professional Bio
 Scientific Operations; Section Manager of Documentation and
Archiving; Drug Safety Evaluation (DSE)- Allergan, Irvine, CA
 Facilitates archival of all study and submission related documents
 Manages training curricula for > 200 employees
 Oversee the regulation of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)
and controlled form documents for DSE
 Supports electronic platforms that support transfer and storage of
documents used by DSE
 Coordinates inspections and audits
Life After Academia
Career Options for Scientists
 Patent Law
 Science Research Analyst
 Scientific Consulting
postdoc
 Medical Science Liaison
 Other
Alternative Careers in Science: Leaving the Ivory Tower by Cynthia Robins-Roth
What Do Medical Writers Do All Day?
Medical Communications
 Encompasses the development and production of materials that
deal specifically with medicine or healthcare
 Write, edit, or develop materials about medicine or healthcare
Medical Writing
 is the activity of writing scientific documentation by someone
who is a specialized writer (a medical writer) and is generally
not one of the scientists or doctors whose research it was
Medical Communications:
General Categories
 Materials prepared by medical communicators, collaborating
with others or working independently, include the following:
 Patient education brochures, news articles, Web content,
and books for the general public
 Journal articles and continuing education monographs for
health care professionals
 Regulatory documents for government agencies
 Grant proposals for research scientists and institutions
 Sales training and marketing materials for the
pharmaceutical industry
Medical Writing: Specific Examples
 Journal articles
 Original research
 Review articles
 Editorials, case reports, etc.
 Abstracts
 Publication in journals
 Submission to medical meetings
 Posters
 Presentation at medical
meetings
Medical Writing: Specific Examples
 Slide presentations




Original research
Symposia
Roundtables
Advisory boards
 Medical education materials
 Monographs
 Training materials for physicians,
other medical professional &
laypeople
 eLearning content
 Prescribing information
Medical Writing: Specific Examples
 Regulatory documents
 Clinical Trial Reports (CTR)
 New Drug Applications (NDA)
 Investigational New Drug Application (IND)
 Marketing materials




Advertisements
Public relations materials
Internet documents
Patient education
Required Skills for
Medical Writing
 Attention to detail
 Excellent writing skills
 Interpersonal skills
 Organizational skills
 Scientific skills
 Ability to work quickly and multi-task
Characteristics of Good
Medical Writing
 Scientific accuracy
 Sufficient references and
documentation
 Clear and succint writing
 Ethical standards and practices
Who Are the Medical Writers?
Education by Degree
Science
English
Journalism
Pharmacy
Medicine
Communicat ion
Ot her
0
5
10
15
20
25
Medical Writers (%)
Gray and Hamilton. AMWAJ, 2004.
30
35
40
Who Are the Medical Writers?
Level of Education
2%
30%
33%
Associate's Degree or
Below
Bachelor's
Master's
Advanced
35%
Primary Employers of Medical Writers
Pharmaceutical
Agency
University
Clinical Research
Publishing
Health Care
Research or Education
Professional Society
Other
0
5
10
15
20
Writers %
Gray and Hamilton. AMWAJ, 2004.
25
30
35
40
Freelance Medical Writers
 1/3 of Medical writers
 Work at home
 Set your own schedule
 Income based upon ability to get
work
 Discipline
 Experience
 Ability to market yourself
Medical Writer Salaries
 Commensurate with experience and
education
 $38,000-100,000+
 Mean income of full-time employees
approximately $80,000
 Pharmaceutical and communication
companies pay best
 “Interesting 6-figure job” as seen on
CNNMoney.com
Gray and Hamilton. AMWAJ, 2004.
Resources
 American Medical Writers Association (AMWA)
 http://www.amwa.org/toolkit_new_med_writers#Getting
Started
 American Medical Association Manual of Style
 International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE)
 How to Become a Competent Medical Writer
 Perspect Clin Res. 2010 Jan-Mar; 1(1): 33–37
Getting Started

Practice writing frequently
 Pay special attention to grammar and style
 www.grammarly.com (for quick feedback)
 Improve writing competency through self-paced and formal
writing courses

Become informed about the field

Join a professional society like AMWA
 Attend local and national meetings

Networking
 Find mentors (at meetings, LinkedIn, etc.)
 Request informational interviews

Have your writing evaluated by professional writers
 Formal writing courses
 Self-paced learning (grammar, statistics & writing guides)
 Keep a science blog
 American Journal Experts (http://www.aje.com)
 Potential to earn a small wage in grad school/or postdoc while gaining writing/editing experience
Getting Started
Professional documents
 Curriculum Vitae
 Science CV is not equal to the medical writing CV
 These documents highlight vastly different skills and experience
 Ask feedback from a professional medical writer
 Cover letter strategies
 Tailor to each specific position
 Clear, concise, error-free
 Attempt to address letter to a person
 Find HR rep for company via Linkedin at the very least
 Address the cover letter to ―Dear Hiring Manager‖ if attempts to identify a
specific contact fails
Always print and proof read documents prior to submitting applications
Long-term Training
Certificate, Undergraduate and Graduate Programs
 American Medical Writers Association (AMWA)
 University of Chicago
 University of the Sciences in Philadelphia
 Johns Hopkins University
 Tufts University School of Medicine
 University of California San Diego
 UCSD Extension School
 Many other professional programs
 Some programs offered online
Writing Samples
 Content produced in graduate school/postdoc
 Peer-reviewed journal articles
 Internship with medical communications company
 Maintain a science-related blog
 Produce content for a newsletter
 Take a medical writing course
Crooked Path to Medical Writing
 Strong life-long interest in writing
 Gravitated towards grant and report writing
in graduate school
 Enjoyed writing manuscripts,
presentations, patent and regulatory
applications, protocols and SOPs when
working as a scientist
 Motivation to transition from the bench
 Paid for a course and worked as a
contractor for Emma Hitt, PhD.
 www.hittmedicalwriting.com
 Applied for and accepted medical writing
positions
Scientific Career
 San Diego State University (B.S. 1999)
 Undergrad researcher at Scripps Research Institute
 Harvard Medical School (PhD Immunology 2006)
 Cell and molecular immunology (T cell biology)
 Pfizer, Inc. San Diego, CA (2007-2012)
 Transition away from the bench (2012)
Transferable Skills
Skill
Example
Writing
Peer- reviewed journal manuscripts,
dissertation, protocols, scientific
presentations
Computer skills
MS Office suit, graphing/statistics
software, document formatting
Presentation skills
Lab and departmental meetings,
scientific talks, job talks
Project management
Development, execution and
presentation of scientific projects
Project leadership and mentoring
Mentoring students,
teaching/demonstrating
Team work
Collaborating with colleagues and
research groups
Opinion leader experience
Conversing with experts in your field
Formal Medical Writing Experience
 Hitt Medical Writing, LLC (sub-contractor)
 Projects: manuscripts, medical news, continuing medical
education (CME)
 ScienceMedia, Inc. (full-time medical writer)
 Projects: Immunology and Oncology subject matter expert
(SME)
 Allergan (Section Manager, Documentation & Archiving)
 Direct experience with regulatory writing NDAs, INDs,
MAAs, IRFs, and IBs) —non-clinical sections
Medical Writing Tests
 Power point presentation
 Based on a clinical or scientific paper
 Produce a white paper
 On a topic selected by the potential employer
 Create documents specified by the
employer
 Section of a storyboard
 An introduction
 An abstract
 Time allowed
 1 hour – a couple of weeks
 depends on the employer
Medical Writing Tests
 Tests are not designed to:
 Test level of expertise in a specific scientific area
 Tests are developed to evaluate applicant’s ability to:
 Write (spelling, grammar and flow)
 Follow instructions and meet timelines
 Interpret and assimilate information using materials and
instructions provided for the test
 Some tests are completed:
 During the site interview
 At home
Tips: Keep it simple, use short, familiar words, avoid jargon and
acronyms, be specific and concrete; not abstract
Frequent Writing Problems
Encountered by Editors
Poorly written, excessive jargon
Inadequate/inappropriate presentation
Poor description of design
Excessive zeal and self promotion
Rationale confused, contradictory
Essential data omitted, ignored
Boring
Important work of others ignored
Seldom
Byrne DW, Publishing Medical Research Papers, Williams and Wilkins, 1998
Occasionally
Frequently
On the Job Training
 Gain as much information about the assignment as possible
 Ask questions
 Develop a thick skin
 Work will be reviewed and critiqued by senior writers and
clients
 Be prepared for rounds of revisions
 Be prepared for cuts, scope changes and shifting deadlines
 Focus on meeting or exceeding deadlines
 Get used to multiple competing projects
 Get used to not being ―the owner of the project‖
Benefits of Transitioning to a
Career in Medical Writing
 Love of science x love of writing = interesting career
 Flexibility (as long as timelines are kept)
 Options for entrepreneur and employees
 Highly varied career options
 Highly lucrative career options
 Excellent use of scientific skills
 Writing is a creative endeavor
 Relevant work and exposure to latest information
Acknowledgements
Questions