A common goal for pharmaceutical companies is to develop relationships with healthcare professionals (HCPs), providing them with timely, accurate, and scientifically balanced information. Medical Science Liaisons (MSLs) are the stewards of these relationships and play a key role in providing information to clinicians. But who provides the information to the MSLs? In pharmaceutical companies, the librarian plays a critical role in equipping MSLs with valuable information so that they can perform at their highest level.
How Librarians Prepare MSLs for Success in the Field
Librarians in pharma companies support all functional areas within the organization. The areas with the biggest demand for information are typically Research & Discovery (R&D) and Medical Affairs, representing both ends in the race to developing a product. R&D is at the starting line, gathering and synthesizing information into their research. Once the product is approved and goes to market, the baton is passed to the MSLs to build relationships with key opinion leaders (KOLs) and other HCPs to facilitate scientific exchange and to bring valuable feedback home to the organization.
The primary goal of an MSL is to disseminate scientific information. To ensure that MSLs are prepared for discussions in the field, librarians expertly gather relevant and timely information, from the latest clinical literature to current guidelines and easy to digest data. A librarian’s expertise is invaluable in gathering relevant information from credible sources and then making it easily accessible for those in the field. Credible, evidence-based information is critical to have at hand for interactions with HCPs.
Making Access Easier (and More Compliant) with the Right Platform
For easy access to this type of information while in the field, librarians develop curated collections in platforms like RightFind Suite from CCC. A system like this serves as a central, searchable access point for MLR-approved (medical, legal, regulatory) clinical papers, slide decks, disease state overviews, and congress materials to support their conversations with HCPs. Field teams can quickly locate accurate, relevant content both during and in preparation for these interactions.
RightFind not only serves as a repository for this information but also assists with keeping interactions compliant by reflecting the rights provided under the customer’s copyright licenses, copyright compliance is more easily navigated as well.
In instances where a license must be secured for any external sharing of copyright-protected content, such as including a figure or text from a journal article in a Congress presentation or on a website, Marketplace from CCC is an efficient tool to secure copyright permissions across thousands of scientific, technical, and medical publishers. Users can also use Marketplace to obtain article reprints and ePrints.
The Importance of an Ongoing Partnership
Periodic communication between MSLs and Librarians can improve field interactions. Regular feedback from MSLs on the usefulness and relevance of available content and assessment of gaps in information can help librarians curate the collected resources to address the questions that they are being asked. This ensures that the content library evolves in alignment with real-world field needs and priorities.
Librarians are important strategic partners within a pharmaceutical company. Their expertise enhances that of the MSL so that they are able to quickly access reliable, accurate, balanced and appropriately licensed content while in the field. Through expert content management, real-time data monitoring, tailored resource curation, literature searching and compliance oversight, librarians strengthen the MSL’s credibility and the value of scientific exchange between the pharmaceutical company and the healthcare community.
Visit the RightFind Suite page to learn more about how the platform can make it easier for MSLs to search for and access the content they need.