
Long conference days

Beatrice Ferri, Digital Strategist, has written in to say this year’s MedComms Day is already proving another productive Wednesday, at Remedica!
Thirteen members of the team were in Barcelona last week running a meeting for 1600 doctors interested in thromboembolic disease. Not only did we help front-line doctors to discuss practical patient management with many of the world’s leading experts, but we also engaged our audience with some informal learning via a networking fair featuring ‘wheel of fortune’, ‘hook a duck’ and the ‘clot-buster’ coconut shy! Today we’re busy wrapping up a very successful event by preparing an evaluation report, showing exactly what delegates thought of the meeting. We’re also preparing all of the slides presented at the meeting for download by delegates via a link sent in next week’s Eblast, which we’re also preparing!
Right now, several of our medical writers are in Madrid for EULAR (a major, annual, international rheumatology congress) attending advisory boards, where they will be capturing the thoughts of expert thought leaders on a variety of topics. Later today they will be making a start on writing up their reports.
Back in the office, the rest of the team are occupied with a variety of tasks, including creating slide decks for training client Medical teams on a new indication for their drug, to be delivered by webinar-type training sessions, a live training event for the US affiliate to be held in 2 weeks’ time, and via the client’s in-house global slide repository. We’re also finalizing an extensive presentation we have created on competitive intelligence for a product, showing the place and need for the product within the treatment landscape, as well as how the product indirectly compares with key competitors in terms of mechanism of action and clinical data, within the context of the differing study designs and populations. Additionally, we’re reviewing a paper in order to develop a short presentation that will highlight the key data from the manuscript, ensuring the client knows the latest data and is primed to discuss the details with their colleagues and customers alike.
Another task we’re working on is to develop three oncology symposium agendas for the same client. Working out how to present core information in ways that appeal to three very different audiences is a challenge! The fun bit is thinking of ideas for interactivity, to keep the session engaging. Bingo, anyone? And among all of that, there are weekly teleconferences to attend today to update clients on the status of their (numerous) projects. Happy MedComms Day everyone!
Give a wave to the AMICULUM team in Shanghai
Our Shanghai team is celebrating #MedComms day at the China Medical Affairs Summit, discussing the future of medical affairs and the impact of medical education on clinical practice and patient outcomes.
This message just in from Envision Pharma Group’s team in Chicago. Travel safe guys.
Lucinda (Scientific Director), Helen (Senior Editor) and Alice (Project Assistant) are waiting to board a plane back to Manchester following a busy week at ASCO, Chicago!
Alice, who joined Envision Pharma Group back in December 2017, has experienced her first time onsite as part of a #MedComms agency and is already looking forward to her next trip!
Well done team and safe journey back home!
A message here from aging rocker, John Gonzalez of Solanum Medical Communications (no, I’m not jealous!)
It’s been a tough day trying to concentrate on an assignment I am working on, my ears are still ringing with the sound of rock and roll from last night. Along with some other 50,000 fans and my concert buddy, who incidentally works in pricing and market access, we went to see the Rolling Stones at the Old Trafford Stadium Manchester last evening. After over 50 years of touring, Mick Jagger and co-workers can still draw crowds, fill a stadium and BTW it’s not just ageing rockers that attend. How can they still do this in 2018?. Well charisma, great songs, skilled musicians and a stunning show is probably the answer.
You’re probably thinking what on earth has this got to do with MedComms? What occurred to me last evening were the parallels with organising a successful satellite symposium or conference i.e. when the event you have organised fills the auditorium or congress room and there are no seats left. So what get you this level of success? Charismatic and expert speakers with great presentation skills, interesting content that will resonate with the audience and finally, excellent delivery and organisation of the event. I would say no different to a great rock concert. And to any of you Stones fans out there in the MedComms world “Its only rock and roll but we love it”!
Niall Harrison, Scientific Services Director at Darwin Healthcare Communications writes to confirm it’s been another busy day in the Darwin offices!
Here’s a snapshot of some of the projects our teams are working on at the moment. It’s congress season – and meeting season more generally – but this week is actually a little bit of a lull in the travel …
… so Andrea (Medical Writer) has returned from the latest in a series of meetings we’re running for nurses and pharmacists working in anticoagulation, and is basking in the glow of excellent feedback (while Lorraine, another our MWs, is gearing up for the next instalment on the 12th) … (#impact)
… Becca (Associate MW) and Gwen (Studio Manager) are finalising a typeset report from last month’s European Society of Contraception and Reproductive Health congress … (#shiny)
… Meg (AMW), Georgie (Editor) and Vicky (Scientific Advisor) are working on a haemophilia monograph, while Mike (AMW) polishes off a congress report on the same account … (#educational)
… Lindsay (PMW) is wrangling the many tendrils of the account known only as “the octopus” … (#slippery)
… Deb (MW), Kaileigh (Account Director), Beth (Senior Account Exec) and Bex (Senior Designer) are finalising materials for meetings for HIV nurses, pharmacists, and specialists, all to be delivered by the end of June … (#frenzy)
… Rachel (MW) and Alice (Senior Account Exec) are gearing up for a trip to the EULAR congress in Amsterdam next week … (#expert)
… Ros (Senior Account Manager) is helping to get her team set up for trips to Paris and, once again, Amsterdam later this month, while Caroline (PMW) and Anna (Client Services Director) are also researching and planning activities for upcoming congresses … (#prepared)
… but just to remind us that it’s not all exciting travel, Steve (Senior MW) reports that his day has been speaker briefing forms, and then some more speaker briefing forms! (#perspective)
A postcard has arrived from the Singapore office of our Sponsors of #MedComms Day 2018. A huge thanks for your support, guys. The global team from Concise are sharing a host of #EventTips throughout the day on Twitter if you follow #MedComms.
Paul Richards and Cathy Baker, both of inScience Communications, are grabbing a quick lunch on site. Paul writes…
“Busy working lunch in Warsaw ahead of big investigator meeting tomorrow. Been on site for 2 days, one more to go!”
There must be lots of MedComms folks running around this event this afternoon. Here’s the team from Darwin Healthcare Communications who are at the Annual European Congress of Rheumatology (EULAR) in London today. In the photo are Mona Singh, Kate Kavanagh and Lindsay Napier.
Who else is there? If you all find each other for a drink tonight let’s have a group photo, please!
Sachin Machani, Associate Scientific Director for Virgo Health Education New York, has been in Chicago at the 2016 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting. The meeting brought together over 30,000 oncology professionals from around the world.
This morning in the US the inScience Communications team are reflecting on this year’s ASCO Annual meeting.
We have been on onsite in Chicago now for 5 days, it’s been a fairly bumpy ride!
inScience Communications has had a number of projects going on including session coverage then subsequent slide development covering 6 tumour types plus working with societies in the development of key presentations for lung and gastric tracks.
The team includes writers working back in the UK and also in New Zealand (when the time difference is an advantage!) When we are tired then another timezone takes over. We are mainly surviving on chips (the American variety), diet coke and pizza
Photos from this year’s ASCO illustrate the scale of this meeting (some 37,500 attendees)
We may be tired but it’s always a pleasure to see this lovely city (albeit mainly from the window of a bus).
Susan Cuozzo, Executive Director at Virgo HEALTH NYC wrote in to say their team oversaw a product theater at the American Association of Nurse Practitioners conference in New Orleans a few hours ago.
Philip Loder, Global Commercial Director, Fishawack Communications has sent in this round up of activities across the global group today.
From early starts in the UK to a range of projects in our Swiss, UK and US offices, have a look at our prezi to see what the Fishawack team have been up to on #MedComms Day.
Mark Loughlin, a Senior Medical Writer at NexGen Healthcare Communications is about to take off…
Introducing Laura Edwards who works as part of the Litmus team. Laura has taken some time out of her day to give us an overview of her working life:
From one congress to… the next! Fresh from ASCO in glorious Chicago, we move on to planning the next (three) in September. There’s no better way to make a year fly than working in events management! When you explain what you do to your partner/parents/hairdresser it doesn’t seem possible it can take so long to organise a single, one-hour symposium (or similar) but somehow it all adds up. Also on the agenda for today is a standalone meeting for 900 gynaecologists in January (see previous point about planning the weeks away). Currently we’re confirming the last of the 37 speakers, preparing for the site visit and refining the colour scheme for the room dressing/materials. Very similar to where I am with wedding planning in fact (fewer ‘delegates’ and ‘speakers’ but, somewhat perturbingly, a number of other parallels).
Kay Chapman, Mona Singh and Kate Kavanagh from Darwin Healthcare Communications have found time for a group-selfie at EULAR today.
Róisín O’Connor, Senior Medial Writer, Katerina Tuloo, Account Manager and Mark Davies, Scientific Services Director all of inScience Communications reflect on a successful day in Turkey.
Early start today! Up at 7am to grab a quick continental breakfast in the hotel, before we meet and greet the attendees of an advisory board held in the beautiful, East-meets-West city of Istanbul.
Our team of three arrived here yesterday afternoon, ahead of the final slide preview with the client, meeting Chair and speakers. After a good discussion, and a few final tweaks to the slide content, we opted for an early night ahead of the main event today.
So at 8.15am, with our stomachs full of strong Turkish coffee and baklava, we invite all attendees to take their seats at the table. Following the obligatory round-the-table introductions, the meeting soon begins in earnest, with presentations from the Co-Chairs setting the scene and outlining the objectives and input required from the international medical experts gathered together in the room today to make this a successful and productive meeting.
Open Round Table Discussion sessions throughout the day facilitate the exchange of valuable information and lead to some interesting, lively debates and differences of opinion between experts –all very professional and civilised of course!
Mark, as Scientific Services Director, moderated these sessions, ensuring that each of the meeting objectives are addressed, with the use of a nifty digital mind-mapping tool which captures, organises and projects key outputs onto the meeting room screen in real time as the experts debate and discuss.
As Editorial Team Lead, Róisín takes detailed notes on the discussions, which will subsequently provide the content for a comprehensive report for the client on the views, attitudes and advice provided by the experts.
With the meeting drawing to a close, we start to relax and reflect on how smoothly the day has gone… then of course, disaster strikes! Outside of the meeting room, Katerina learns that a traffic jam in the east of the city will almost certainly prevent one of the experts from arriving at the train station in time for the last train home.
Of course, Katerina, as Account Manager, springs into action, investigating alternative transport options, and quickly ascertained that a water taxi should be able to take the attendee across the Bosphorus strait, from Europe to Asia, and drop passengers off just a few minutes’ walk from the train platform. Phew. Crisis averted!
With the one attendee sailing into the sunset, and the others safely dispatched in cars to the airport, the three of us sit down for a quick debrief with a very satisfied client, to discuss deliverables, timings and next steps.
Finally, it’s time to relax – we’re off to sample some of the delights of Istanbul, tired, but with a sense of achievement for a job well done. Onwards to the next meeting – now, where is that nice kebab restaurant we passed by on the way in from the airport…