The Employment Market
As the global financial crisis continues to bite, the landscape for medical professionals across Europe is subject to increasing change. This is clearly the thought behind the recent tightening of regulations that define the relationship between the pharmaceutical industry and healthcare personnel. For example, from 2012 companies in the UK will be required to declare total amounts paid to these professionals. Branded promotional materials, such as pens, pads and mugs, will no longer be permitted and companies will have to declare the number of consultants they employ.
Understanding the mechanisms that drive this new relationship are likely to be highly sought after by companies that operate outside of the UK and healthcare practitioners with this knowledge will become more attractive. At the same time, with pressure increasing on healthcare professionals in the UK, as well as the rest of Europe, practitioners may be well advised to look for opportunities further afield. There is serious potential for those on the look-out in both the Middle East and the Asia Pacific region.
The steady growth of the biosimilar medicines sector also brings with it a series of challenges, not least the need to promote trust in these products. The European Generic medicines Association suggests that 2012-2017 will see many further developments in relation to biosimilar medicines, and healthcare professionals and healthcare purchasers need to ensure that they are aware of what is happening in this rapidly changing environment. This means that, whilst these products are on the brink of a breakthrough, and there is growing interest in medical professionals with biosimilars experience, specialist knowledge is not yet a key requirement of most pharmaceutical companies.
If the biosimilar sector is not quite there yet, there are other areas that are experiences growth and that should be of interest to healthcare practitioners. Many experts, for example, are talking about a new “golden era” for vaccines. Market research firm Kalorama Information suggests that vaccine sales could reach $39 billion in 2013, five times the $8 billion they garnered in 2004. The area was helped by recent global flu scares and has moved beyond the prophylactic to the therapeutic arena. For example, two vaccines are currently being developed for cancer and other target areas include Alzheimer’s and COPD.
Other areas of growth include, pain management, oncology and age-related diseases such as Parkinson’s and diabetes.
All Medical Opportunities