IPhO News

Fellowship Sponsor Company: Myers and Stauffer, LC

Function/Discipline: Pharmaceutical Pricing

Fellowship Years: 2016-2017

Alma Mater: Butler University, Class of 2016

Zack McCormack, PharmD Candidate 2017

Purdue University College of Pharmacy

IPhO National Student Officer of Chapter Development

Now, perhaps more than ever, the pharmaceutical industry is in a state of flux. With increasing pressures to bring medications to market swiftly and cost effectively, companies are looking for ways to more efficiently navigate the drug development process. Therefore, it is not surprising that Contract Research Organizations (CROs) have experienced an increase in popularity. CROs offer the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device industries support in the form of a multitude of outsourced, research services spanning the full range of the drug development and approval process. The CRO market has more than doubled since 2007 and by 2020, the percent of pharma companies planning on sharing trial design responsibilities with CROs is expected to go from its current rate of 17% to over 50%.^1,2 Therefore, it is important to analyze how CROs assist pharmaceutical companies in drug development.

Luke A. Zack, PharmD Candidate 2017

Wilkes University, Nesbitt College of Pharmacy

Regulatory Affairs Intern, Noven Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

IPhO Senior Intern

A strong regulatory strategy is key to maximizing a product’s commercial success, optimizing the sponsor’s drug development efficiency, and enhancing credibility with regulatory agencies. So what tools are used to help build this vital strategy?

Developing a successful regulatory strategy requires the ability to research, review, create, propose, defend, and negotiate key regulatory positions to support product development, approval, and lifecycle management activities in global markets. An efficient regulatory strategy provides direction to support key planning, operational, and financial decisions critical to the sponsor. More importantly, an effective regulatory strategy can provide faster entry into the market while simultaneously providing evidence of meeting efficacy, safety, and benefit-risk standards.

On June 27, 2016 IPhO student pharmacists from Touro College of Pharmacy-New York attended the DIA 2016 Annual Meeting in Philadelphia. This interdisciplinary event brought together professionals from industry, academia, and government agencies. Over 100 students from around the world submitted abstracts and only 27 students were selected to present their posters.

IPhO student pharmacists Adam Chin and Jeffrey Sniggs presented "Analysis of Postmarket Safety Labeling Changes: Comparison of Expedited Versus Standard NDA Approvals," and IPhO student pharmacist Christopher Milan presented "Factors That Affect Market Share of Biosimilars Against Reference Biologics."

We are pleased to formally introduce our 2016-17 National Student Officers. As IPhO continues to grow, nearing 40 Student Chapters, the national organization has also grown in the leadership that supports our national student chapter network, expanding from one national student officer in 2014-15 to three in 2015-2016 and now to six national student officers for the 2016-17 term.

The goal of increasing our organizational leadership is to be able to work more closely with our student chapters to build thriving, highly knowledgeable, and well-prepared industry communities at all pharmacy schools.

Please join us in welcoming these talented student leaders to our growing team!

2016-17 IPhO National Student Officers

Bridgette Tran
Chapter Management
MCPHS Worcester, Class of 2017
bridgette.ipho@gmail.com

Nicholas Heath is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow at Takeda Pharmaceuticals in the Global Pharmacovigilance department. As a member of the MCPHS University Biopharmaceutical Industry Fellowship program, he has taken the initiative to be involved in numerous committees, scholarly publications, and in May 2016 was appointed executive board President. Inspired by the work he has been involved with at Takeda, Nick will be climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro to support the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF). Other participants include multiple myeloma patients, caregivers, and health care professionals.

Mt. Kilimanjaro reaches 19,341 feet and has various climates, wildlife, and hiking conditions for participants to overcome. The hike up the mountain will take just over 6 days and over 60 guides, porters, and local staff. Nick will be one of two Takeda representatives hiking the mountain, following in the footsteps of Ryan Cohlhepp, Takeda’s Vice President of U.S. Marketing, who completed the hike in January 2016 with the MMRF.

Nick has been involved with fundraising for the MMRF since the beginning of his fellowship and constantly finds ways to support a cause that is close to home. Whether it has been a road race, obstacle race, or even hiking Mt. Kilimanjaro, Nick seems to push through the challenge to support those that each event will benefit. As an industry pharmacist, he is able to see how R&D can impact entire patient populations in need. Events like these, either nationally recognized or individually organized, provide support to patients battling disease. As a member of the MMRF Team for Cures, Nick hopes to fundraise over $20,000 to support research being done in multiple myeloma as well as support his teammates, some of which are myeloma patients, up Mt. Kilimanjaro next February.

Please contact Nick at nicholas.heath@takeda.com if you are interested in learning more about his hike and would like to support him.

Company and Department: GSW Advertising, inVentiv Health

Current Role: Associate Scientific Director

Alma Mater: Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy, Rutgers University 2013

During the spring of 2016, I came to a pivotal place in my career path and decided to engage a professional coach at IPhO.

The IPhO Coaching Service helped me clarify my early career goals, customize my CV, review potential positions, and navigate the interview process including reviewing specific job offers.

Jerry Silverman, BS Pharm, RPh and VP of Professional Development and Coaching helped me to thoroughly analyze my professional interests and to establish appropriate short, medium, and long term career goals. I had strong clinical and analytical experiences throughout my pharmacy rotations and was able to secure a 24-month contracted position in drug safety after graduating from pharmacy school. While I could have built upon this initial industry experience to secure another similar position, it became clear to me that I desired to switch tracks and pursue new opportunities in marketing and collaborating with scientific, clinical, and creative teams. In discussing this with my coach he impressed upon me that going directly from a position such as drug safety to marketing was nearly impossible and that we would need to methodically identify the steps over the next several years to make that possible.

Company and Department: Allergan, Medical Affairs

Current Role: Medical Director

Alma Mater: Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy, Rutgers University 2002

Entering pharmacy school, a career in the pharmaceutical industry was not on my mind. During my 4^th year, I realized that I would be interested in a non-traditional role for a PharmD, and I sought out some recent graduates to learn more about potential pathways. I also diversified my experiential rotations as much as possible and spent my “off cycle” at a pharmaceutical company. At that point I knew I wanted to work in the pharmaceutical industry.

As the 2015-16 academic year draws to a close, IPhO would like to express its sincere thanks to the three National Student Officers for their outstanding contributions to the organization.

Kimberly Gittings, PharmD

University of Rhode Island

National Student Officer, Chapter Management

Vineeth Nair, PharmD

Northeastern University

National Student Officer, Chapter Development

Sean Harrison, PharmD

Virginia Commonwealth University

National Student Officer, Professional Development

Their notable accomplishments include: (click or tap "read more" below)

Following a thorough evaluation process, the IPhO National Fellows Council is pleased to present the results of the 2nd Annual VIP Advocacy Challenge!

The IPhO VIP Advocacy Challenge is an annual program that IPhO Student Chapters participate in to create positive messages about the Value of Industry Pharmacists and the pharmaceutical industry. All IPhO Student Chapters were invited to develop an outreach platform that advocated for the contributions pharmacists make in supporting the role of industry to improve patients’ quality of life.

Company and Department: Bristol-Myers Squibb: Medical Contact, Content and Insight (MCCI) Contact Center

Current Role: Medical Information Manager-Oncology

Alma Mater: MCPHS University, Class of 2015

Like a growing number of student pharmacists today, I was intrigued to learn about the different roles that pharmacists could hold in industry by the end of P2. I grew to like the idea of pursuing a non-traditional pharmacy practice career and began looking into opportunities to get exposure in this field of work. I was very fortunate to be able to participate in two pharmaceutical industry rotations through my school, MCPHS University in Boston. These APPEs were very competitive to secure and gave me the experience I needed to help me decide which commercial industry function I wanted to pursue. Most importantly, it gave me confirmation that industry was where I wanted to be.

Reported by: Ogechi Umejei, PharmD Candidate 2018, St. John’s University

Special thanks to:

St. John’s University IPhO Student Chapter President, Nancy Simon, and St. John’s University alumni and current Post-Doctoral Fellow, Praneeta Nagraj, Dr. Rahul Bhambri, Long Island University alumni and current Pfizer Medical Director, and IPhO Student Chapter President, David Pinkhasov and IPhO Student Chapter Secretary, Laura Sedita Alaimo, and Patrick Campbell, LIU Director of Student and Professional Activities.

Often times in pharmacy school, students are encouraged to pursue more conventional career paths within hospital or community pharmacy. However, a PharmD is a powerful degree that can allow entry to working in a variety of different settings. While careers within both community and hospital are of great importance to our society and the healthcare system, student pharmacists deserve to be informed about the diverse roles they can hold once they gain entry into the work force. Information regarding career paths in the pharmaceutical industry can be difficult to gain prior to APPE rotations. In a quest to gain more insight and knowledge about the opportunities available within the pharmaceutical and biotech industry, students around the country are joining the Industry Pharmacists Organization (IPhO).

On March 10, 2016, pharmacy students from St. John's University and Long IslandUniversity had the opportunity to attend a site visit at Pfizer.

On April 2, 2016, Purdue University IPhO hosted its inaugural Industry Pharmacist Symposium, which took place on Purdue’s campus. This event connected about 50 students from eight schools of pharmacy with a diverse set of speakers having backgrounds in clinical research, medical affairs, commercialization, and regulatory affairs. Participants were able to engage in interactive workshops exploring industry based cases, as well as network with fellow pharmacy students and industry professionals via facilitated programs. The Symposium culminated in ‘State of the Chapter’ presentations from the University of Illinois at Chicago, University of Cincinnati, and Purdue University that highlighted the chapters’ paths to formation, currently implemented programs, and future ambitions.

Company and Department: Baxalta, Business Operations
Current Role: Senior Director
Alma Mater: University of Wisconsin and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

When asked how I got to where I am today, I reflect that many of the roles in my career were not even an idea in someone’s mind when I left pharmacy school. My background in Pharmacy has provided me with strong scientific acumen and a solid understanding of business, and I have found that the pharmaceutical industry is the perfect place to bring these attributes together.

After graduating, I completed a fellowship at East Carolina University in Geriatrics and later became Senior Fellow in Pharmacogeriatrics at Duke University, while also working as adjunct faculty for the University of North Carolina. This was an amazing opportunity to work with the best and the brightest clinicians and researchers. Upon completing this work I transitioned to a faculty role at the University of Illinois – Chicago, where I continued refining my clinical and teaching skills. I enjoyed working with students and patients, but I was always looking to make a greater impact on patients’ lives. I saw that entering the pharmaceutical and biotech industry was an opportunity to impact patients more broadly. I cannot emphasize enough the value pharmacists with clinical practice experience bring to the industry. The foundation of clinical experience, teaching, and research are a tremendous asset in my career.

Industry Pharmacists Organization (IPhO) Announces Introduction of Industry Elective Course for Student Pharmacists

IPhO is pleased to announce the launch of an innovative live- online elective course entitled, Commercialization of Pharmaceuticals: From A to Z and the Role of Industry Pharmacists, designed to support the growing numbers of student pharmacists interested in pursuing an industry career.

There are approximately 130 U.S.-based colleges and accredited schools of pharmacy in the US. A very low percentage of these have industry electives and the few that do offer an industry elective are usually focused on drug development only.

If you do not have access to an industry elective at your school of pharmacy; then this industry elective course may be just what you need! If you are a student pharmacist interested in pursuing an industry career, including applying for an industry fellowship, this course is for you!

Learn More and Register

Pharmacogenomics, better known as gene-based therapy, represents a revolutionary new way to look at treatments across all populations. Increasingly, genomics courses are being taught in pharmacy schools as the profession shifts more towards individual-based medicine. But how has academia caught up with this sweeping clinical trend?

According to polls taken annually at St. John’s University, the percentage of PharmD candidates expressing an interest in pharmacogenomics has steadily increased over the past five years. Amongst faculty, the interest has risen to the point where professors and students are working together to run clinical pharmacogenomics projects. (Poll shown in Figure 1 taken from anonymous St. John’s University College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences students from 2010 to 2015).

Company and Department: Becton Dickinson and Company, Clinical Marketing
Current Role: Clinical Education Specialist, Diabetes Care, Canada
Alma Mater: MCPHS University, Class of 2013

As I entered pharmacy school, I always thought that I would be working in a position at a retail pharmacy just like all of the other pharmacists in my family had done. Some of them had ventured into the field of hospitals and long term care, but industry was not an option that I had ever considered, until my first professional year of pharmacy school. At that time we were introduced to the different fields that a pharmacist could work in and the idea of working for a pharmaceutical company captured my attention. I could not believe the multitude of job opportunities available in the industry, and how much of an impact pharmacists could have working there.

When I started pharmacy school back in 1988, I had a professor that emphasized the importance of the Doctor of Pharmacy degree and what it meant to him. He instilled in us that “No one will know more about drugs than the Pharm.D.” “We are the drug experts” he would always say. In fact, Pharm.D.s have multiple years of pharmacology experience, much greater than most MDs. During my 4th year of Pharmacy School, while I was doing an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) rotation, the attending physician, after having exhausted all he could do for a vancomycin-resistant patient who had a very difficult Staph hemolyticus infection, turned to me as a PharmD resident and said “Do you have any ideas how we can treat this person?” I remembered during my training that certain drugs have synergistic properties when given together. If you give vancomycin with rifampin together it will have a synergistic effect. Sure enough, the attending said go ahead give the combination and soon this drug combination had eradicated the organism and the person lived. This case report was my first publication and the first time I realized the significance of the knowledge that PharmDs possess and what role a clinical pharmacist can play in the management of patient care.

My professor also said that if we wanted to work in the pharmaceutical industry he would recommend an additional post-doctoral fellowship training to enhance our candidacy. Well, I took his advice and it worked. I have been in the pharmaceutical industry for over 17 years in the field of Clinical Research and Medical Affairs. I initially started in a Phase 1&2 Clinical Pharmacokinetics department as a Senior Clinical Research Associate and worked my way up to Vice-President of Clinical Research and Medical Affairs.

The current PharmD degree curriculum offers extensive didactic clinical preparation, a full year of hands-on practice experience in a wide array of healthcare settings, four years of pharmacology, extensive knowledge in pharmacokinetics and an emphasis on clinical pharmacy practice pertaining to pharmacotherapy. The PharmD is the expert in drug interactions, drug side effects, pharmacokinetics and based on the diagnosis, he/she can determine the exact drug or drugs to administer specifically for the patient.

This type of expertise is exactly what the pharmaceutical industry needs. Our industry is dedicated to discovering and developing new medicines. Who better to hire as an employee than a drug expert?! Someone who knows how these drugs work, how they interact with other drugs, how they are metabolized, and what patients will benefit from them! Not to mention that pharmacists consistently rank as one of the most trusted professionals in today's society. These are the values that a pharmacist brings to the pharmaceutical industry!

Through the course of my pharmaceutical industry career, I collaborated with essentially every department within the pharmaceutical company.Most of these departments have pharmacists working in them, including marketing, market research, pharmacovigilance, clinical development, clinical research, medical communications, medical information, medical affairs, regulatory affairs, business development and competitive intelligence.

Pharmacists/PharmDs are more equipped than ever to work in a pharmaceutical company. There is literally no limit to the positions a pharmacist can hold within the industry. Pharmaceutical training, expertise, and ethical reputation make today’s pharmacist an ideal contributor to the pharmaceutical industry.

Authored by

Paul Mastoridis, PharmD
Worldwide Brand Medical Director
Cystic Fibrosis, Devices & eHealth Solutions
Respiratory Franchise
Global Medical Affairs
Novartis Pharmaceutical Corporation

During the recent Midyear Meeting in New Orleans, IPhO and its National Fellows Council hosted an exciting event for Fellows of all Fellowship Programs around the country to network, and to learn more about how to get a full time position post-fellowship. Moderated by IPhO Executive Director Jim Alexander, the program featured an expert panel of successful fellowship alumni who shared their insights and guidance on how to search for a full-time position within industry. 

The IPhO National Fellows Council would like to thank the following panelists for volunteering their time and sharing their key insights:

• Erica Dankiewicz, Senior Medical Information Specialist, Acorda Therapeutics 
  (2012 Alumna, Rutgers/Bayer Fellowship)
• Rebecca Pleat, MSL Rare Diseases, Sanofi-Genzyme 
  (2015 Alumna, MCPHS/Genzyme Fellowship)
• Corey Ritchings, HIV Medical Scientist, Bristol-Myers Squibb 
  (2013 Alumnus, Rutgers/BMS Fellowship)
• Bryant Tran, Medical Affairs Scientific Director, GlaxoSmithKline
  (2011 Alumnus, UNC/GSK Fellowship)

Stay tuned for more industry pharmacist networking events from IPhO in the near future!

On November 10, 2015, IPhO and the "Pharmacists at Bayer" (PhAB) group from Bayer Healthcare hosted an event entitled "Human Capital: Shaping the Future of Industry," at Bayer Healthcare Headquarters in Whippany, NJ.

About 100 industry pharmacists from 25 different companies in the NJ/NY/CT/PA area participated in this inaugural event. 

Highlights included a "speed networking" session and a panel discussion about how talent acquisition and management strategies are shaping the future of industry, and what this means for industry pharmacists.  Moderated by IPhO Executive Director James Alexander, the panel was comprised of industry experts from Human Resources, Executive Search, and Senior Management including Naina Dhingra, Associate Principal for McKinsey & Company, Mark Durham, Managing Partner at Strawn Arnold, and Todd Paporello, Vice President of Regulatory Affairs at Bayer.

IPhO was pleased to collaborate with PhAB to present the event, and the participants expressed their appreciation to Bayer for their hospitality and generosity!

Stay tuned for future IPhO events. Next up is the December 5 event in New Orleans for Industry Fellows: How to Land a Full-Time Job Post-Fellowship.