(Source: Straits Times Recruit, 19 March 2011)

Singapore has long since maintained its respectable position on the world map of the life sciences industry. Even though in the last decade, China’s emergence in this field proved to be a threat to Singapore’s prominence in Asia, the country has shored up its position with renewed investments in its infrastructure and the industry itself.

The biomedical industries in Singapore have become an integral part of the country’s overall economy and investment strategy. As of now, it continues to grow with both indigenous and international companies. Most of these companies are impressed by the strong government support and excellent infrastructure the country has to offer. The center of life sciences research and development is the newly built, state-of-the-art Biopolis at One-North, Buona Vista.

Over 100 global life sciences companies use Singapore to conduct research and state-of-the-art manufacturing operations. GlaxosmithKline, a global pharmaceutical giant, has invested over S$1 billion in new plants and research facilities in Singapore.

In Singapore, a lot of students see careers beyond life sciences research as viable alternatives as more and more multi-national companies such as Novartis and Pfizer are setting up plants in Singapore, requiring large number of managers, product developers, marketers and non-research-based personnel to manage their operations.

Given that these existing companies and many more seek to tap our island-state as a base in Asia to further business expansion and innovation for the region, Singapore is an excellent position to capitalize on future opportunities in the industry. Hence it is safe to be bullish on our island- state’s prospects in the life sciences.

Though the US initially ruled the industry, many other countries that have shown technological advancement and great potential for the medical technology market in the recent past have dived in thereby broadening the ecosystem of medical technology innovation. Among these countries is Singapore. It is safe to claim that Singapore has to its advantage, an ever-growing market demand, powerful financial incentives, a supportive regulatory system in place, and an encouraging investment community.

Towards the end of 2009, the government took up a promising initiative by
injecting about 36m $ into med technology research. Most of the money pumped in helped facilitate a collaboration between The Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) and CIMIT (Center for Integration of Medicine and Innovative Technology) in Boston, USA. This significant step marks Singapore’s drive “to enhance the to enhance the environment for growing the medical technology industry as part of the drive to transform Singapore into a knowledge-based innovation-driven economy.”

This significant alliance goes on to prove that our small island-state does not want to stop with being a global business and financial hub. It’s interest in making confident forays into the med tech sector shows that it is also vying to become the leader in creating medically relevant applications that benefit patients worldwide.  Singapore with its recent progress in biomedical and clinical research and its excellent existing strengths in engineering is ripe for more exciting opportunities in medical technology innovation and the subsequent creation of high-level and high-skill jobs in the market.

Be a part of this up-and-coming hub in the making. Be a part of the next generation of medical technology innovators in Asia.

Then you might find your calling in the pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing industry which develops and produces a variety of medicinal and other health-related products. In recent times, it has been consistently rated as one of the fastest growing industries stocked with challenges and opportunities.

The first stage in pharmaceutical manufacturing involves the development of an active ingredient or drug and the second stage oversees the conversion of the ingredients into final drugs suitable for consumers.

Many new pharmaceuticals and biopharmaceuticals are expected to be in the pipeline what with promising advances in the field of biotechnology. Several recent developments in the manufacturing process are also positively impacting the industry’s growth. Earlier, the focus of the manufacturers used to be primarily be on new drug discovery and development but with the changing times, firms are increasingly realizing the importance of effecting quality improvements in the processes by being continually updated with the latest technologies and methods. The tools required to design effective and efficient manufacturing processes are easily available today.

More and more countries have discovered the potential for pharmaceuticals to give a boost to their economies. Singapore is definitely not far behind in this race. The country over the last few decades has remained committed in establishing world-class facilities and capabilities that entice companies to carry out the drug development and discovery processes here. Over years it has forged excellent strategic partnerships with global pharmaceutical companies like Lonza, Novartis, GlaxoSmithKline and Genentech that have made significant investments in setting up major biologics facilities in our island city-state.

Singapore has propelled forward in this rapidly growing industry with a considerable amount of government support. The pharmaceutical industry is known to be the most prominent sector of the biomedical sciences industry in this country, the others being the medical device, and biotechnology sectors and the healthcare services. Pharmaceutical manufacturing and research and development now represent an important pillar of Singapore’s economic growth.

Services offered by CROs include: product development, formulation and manufacturing; clinical trial management (preclinical through phase IV); clinical, medical and safety monitoring; preclinical, toxicology, and clinical laboratory services for processing trial samples; data management , biostatistics and medical writing services for preparation of an FDA New Drug Application (NDA).

Major players in this industry include Quintiles (who will be speaking at BioBiz 2010), PPD and many more.

The CRO industry is a rapidly growing one. Industry analysers IMS Health and BCC Research estimate that the global pharmaceutical market will grow at about a 5% rate in 2009 to over $820 billion and be worth over $1 trillion by 2013 . Pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies in the US spent approximately $59 billion on R&D in 2007, which equates to roughly 18% of their sales and is a 5% increase from the previous year.

A significant portion of R&D budgets are used for the outsourcing services offered by the CRO industry, approximately $15 billion in 2007. This figure is expected to grow at 15% over the next seven years and should increase further with the broadening of the spectrum of services outsourced to cover the entire value chain. As outsourced services in developing countries such as China and India move up the value chain to cover phase 1/2 trials, the total contracts value may go up to $20 billion by 2010.

Are you ready for an exciting career in the CRO industry? Sign up now for BioBiz 2010!

References

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contract_research_organization

The pharmaceutical sales field is a popular choice among fresh graduates as it offers excellent salary potential, great benefits, flexibility, opportunity for growth and a stepping stone into one of the fastest growing industry in the world. Look at any recruitment website or classified ads, you will see quite a substantial number of recruitment ads for pharmaceutical/ medical sales representatives on a weekly basis, reflecting a constant demand.

Being at the frontline, pharmaceutical sales representatives need to be actively involved in the company’s business development process. They spend most of their business time on the road, talking with pharmacists, hospital personnel, physicians etc. to increase the visibility of their company’s products and the volume of their sales. (The Princeton Review, 2009) Other responsibilities span from sourcing for new clients and managing existing accounts to brainstorming new marketing strategies for products with the marketing team. Expect an intense training period and a constant need to stay abreast of products and disease states, as well as getting accustomed to medical terminology (Quint Careers). You may also need to attend trade shows and conferences and read industry publications. Of course, there is the inevitable fierce competition from representatives of different companies to get face time in private offices and hospitals with medical professionals.

What do the pharmaceutical employers looking out for? Having at least one to two years of relevant sales experience in pharmaceutical sector is of course a big plus but for those without sales experience, fret not. Pharmaceutical sales representatives with a science background have an advantage in this profession, in terms of both their credibility and their ability to educate themselves about product lines. Other common traits cited in ads include having excellent communication and interpersonal skills, sales-driven with a never-say-die attitude, confident, self-starting, energetic, and not forgetting an aptitude or interest in science to keep you going in this field.

So if you are keen to enter the pharmaceutical industry, and feel that have what it takes, why not give it a shot? You never know what rewarding experiences lie in store for you!

References:

http://www.princetonreview.com/Careers.aspx?cid=110

http://www.quintcareers.com/pharmaceutical_sales_careers.html

http://healthcareers.about.com/od/healthcareerprofiles/p/PharmaRep.htm

Clinical trials are a growing area of interest amongst professionals of the healthcare sector, but it must first be approved by the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) on ethical and regulatory grounds so that appropriate protection is accorded to the persons involved. The Medicines Act 1975 and the Medicines (Clinical Trials) (Amendment) Regulations 1998 form the basis of regulation for clinical trials. Approved clinical trials will then be issued clinical trial certificates by HSA. The number of clinical trial certificates issued by the HSA has increased by about 80% over the span of 8 years from 2000 to 2008 (HSA, 2007).

Clinical trials are necessary because they do an assessment of the medicinal product or device. In a clinical trial, a scientific analysis of the effects, efficacy and safety of a medicinal product or device is done. There are various phases of clinical trials to be completed, depending on how invasive the medicinal product or device is.

In 2008, Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan delivered a speech regarding promoting clinical research in public hospitals (MOH, 2008). The Health Minister said that Singapore already has a strong foundation for biomedical research due to the development of life sciences in the Biopolis. Collaborations in translational and clinical research with local hospitals will see to the further development of a “knowledge- and evidence-based approach to healthcare”. Clinical research will aid in boosting healthcare quality and delivery and will cut costs in the future. Promoting clinical research will attract and keep healthcare professionals and medical talent in local hospitals, and consequently in Singapore.

With all the support that the government is giving to clinical research, the sector is bound to grow and develop. This opens up new opportunities and promises more for job-seekers and graduates interested in the research industry. BioBiz 2010 Conference will be highlighting the day-to-day duties of a clinical research associate in its afternoon breakout session.

Join this much interactive session and find out more for yourself (Breakout sessions only will be open to early sign ups).

What exactly is biologics?

Biologics is a subset of manufacturing processes which also comprises of pharmaceuticals and nutritionals. They are medicinal products manufactured from biological systems consisting of proteins, genes and cells. Contrast this with the small molecular drugs that are typically composed of only 20 to 100 atoms and chemically synthesized through the manufacturing process of pharmaceuticals. Biologics, on the other hand, are typically composed of 200 to 50,000 atoms (Genetech, n.d.). As such, the larger sized biologics consisting of vaccines, hormones, recombinant proteins, monoclonal antibodies, etc. are typically injected or infused directly into the bloodstream to be effective (BIO, 2010).

Larger biologics tend to be produced as diverse mixtures of molecules that differ very slightly from one another and this makes them difficult to characterize. Coupled with a manufacturing process involving cell culture etc., the rigor of it is definitely a key challenge. Within Asia, Singapore is the only country developing capabilities across the entire value chain of biologics; from research, pilot-scale production, commercial-scale contract manufacturing, commercial-scale manufacturing to fill and finish (Drugs, 2007). A homegrown pioneering biologics contract manufacturer, A-Bio Pharma, has provided clinical-scale biologics manufacturing services to global pharmaceutical and biotechnology customers such as GlaxoSmithKline and Novo Nordisk.

By 2010, analysts expect sales of biologics products to make up 60 per cent of the sales growth of drugs (Straits Times, 2009). Find out how your degree prepares you for an exciting career in manufacturing and other roles such as supply chain, business development, and quality and validation. Be part of this engine of growth in the biomedical industry.

BioBiz 2010 Conference Sign-Up

Strike outs

Not everyone will reciprocate and respond to your follow up attempts. Try no more than three times using different methods. After that, it is time to let it pass.

Don’t be a Stalker

Everyone admire perseverance and determination, but there is a threshold where they transform into irritation for the recipient. Once you enter the realm of pestering, it is nearly impossible to return as you will be someone to avoid.

Planning

If possible write out and read your intended message before you call, mail or email – make sure you leave a positive impression. For a voicemail you may want to practice out loud.

Accepting No

When you make a request, ask for a meeting or invite someone to lunch, ask in a manner that allows them to say NO and more importantly feel comfortable in doing so. Creating this level of comfort demonstrates your professionalism and leaves time to move on to the next promising relationship.

Risk Rejection

When individuals do not respond to you, do not take it personally, and move on.

To wrap it up, your professional network is one of your most valuable assets. Professional networking meetings are one of the best ways to continually revitalize and grow your network. Networking is a lifestyle for everyone, not merely something for business professionals. People network to find a great house, or to get their child in to the right school. Musicians network to get discovered, politicians network to garner support, real estate moguls network to create the deal. Networking is a vital part of everyday life. It’s about building the right set of relationships so that you’re an insider, not an outsider.

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