March 31, 2011 ·
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March 31, 2011 (CHAPEL HILL, NC)—Paul Meade, the president and founder of Thought Leader Select, a Research Triangle, NC company focused on facilitating medical expert collaborations with the biopharmaceutical and other healthcare industries, has accepted an invitation to speak at the annual meeting of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE).
The 20th Annual Meeting and Clinical Congress of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists will take place from April 13-17 in San Diego, CA. At the invitation of AACE President-Elect Dr. Yehuda Handelsman, Meade will speak during the annual Corporate AACE Partner (CAP) meeting, an opportunity for physicians and representatives from partnering companies, including biopharmaceutical and medical device firms, to learn about emerging topics in inter-industry collaborations in medicine.
Meade’s speech, “Interactions in the Age of Transparency,” will outline a new path forward for even better industry collaborations with medical experts based on a foundation of ethics and transparency. “I am honored to accept the invitation from Dr. Handelsman and the AACE,” stated Meade. “I have built my career on the basis of an unwavering commitment to ethics and transparency. We have to remember that we’re all in this together—health care providers, researchers, and people from industry—to promote better health for everyone in this country. If we always keep patients’ best interest in mind and work together is an open ... read more »
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AACE American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists Annual Meeting biopharmaceutical Clear Point Hlealth Dr. Yehuda Handelsman emerging topics ethics healthcare Interactions in the Age of Transparency medical expert Paul Meade Thought Leader Select transparency
March 30, 2011 ·
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Industry Insights from Paul Meade, M.Sc., MPH
Should doctors be paid by drug companies? Well, I guess that depends on the reason for the payment. If a physician, known for her expertise in a given area, is asked by a pharmaceutical company to determine if a newly discovered drug compound would meet a medical need in healthcare, then the answer is clearly yes. Likewise, if a patient consults with an orthopedic specialist on whether to undergo a surgical procedure to repair a damaged cartilage, that consultation is paid for by the person’s health insurance.
In any profession based on an individual’s expertise—think lawyers, management consultants–a person’s informed opinion usually commands some form of payment. Also, the level of expertise generally dictates the level of compensation. So why is it that when a physician gives advice to a patient, or even a group of patients during a patient advocacy lecture, we all feel compensation is fair and just, but when that same person provides his or her expertise to a pharmaceutical company seeking to make a decision on whether to continue the development of a new drug, many people cry foul? Should pharmaceutical companies be forbidden to seek out and pay for the expertise and knowledge of physicians?
In order for a new medicine to become available to the general population, regulatory authorities demand ... read more »
TAGS: balance Bias clinical studies compensation doctors drug companies effective expertise healthcare Industry insight influence informed opinion Paul Meade perspective pharmaceutical company physician
March 25, 2011 ·
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Paul Meade, M.Sc., MPH
Well, there’s an easy answer: NEVER! I could stop there and be content with “enough said,” but I would like to expand on my concerns for a minute. The Obama administration has made some noble attempts at healthcare reform, and they made some small gains despite the need for a “major” overhaul in healthcare delivery in the United States. By the time the bill was passed, many argued it had become too watered-down to pass the House and Senate. In the end, the victories were small in relative comparison to what was truly needed to get healthcare back on track in this country.
Now, this new healthcare law has become a political ping-pong ball for grandstanding antics among politicians in Washington. When did “We the People” become “Me the Politician?” Elected officials are supposed to represent their constituents, not their self-interests for their own political survival.
What would be in the best interests of the American people with regard to healthcare? Most Americans want access to affordable and effective healthcare. Much like the tagline seen at Target stores–“expect more; pay less”–that’s what we all want. Do we want to be constrained by our healthcare insurance to lifetime limits? Do we want to be denied coverage based on pre-existing conditions? Do we want to continue to pay more and more ... read more »
TAGS: affordable coverage effective healthcare healthcare reform Obama administration Paul Meade Politics pre-existing conditions United States
March 23, 2011 ·
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March 23, 2011 (CHAPEL HILL, NC)—Thought Leader Select, a research and consulting firm focused on healthcare and the biopharmaceutical industry, has initiated its most comprehensive package of research assessments in support of a new dermatology medication for a global pharmaceutical company.
The Research Triangle, NC-based firm packaged together a host of its competitive services for assessing the skills and experiences of the medical community. These company’s research and advisory services will provide a foundation for collaborations in support of a new treatment for pre-cancerous skin growths and other dermatological conditions. In one comprehensive project, Thought Leader Select will deliver assessments of more than 65 core physician thought leaders and emerging key opinion leaders in the allied health professions (including nurses, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners), and medical centers of excellence in dermatology. In addition, Thought Leader Select will also assess and engage experts in market access and reimbursement. The firm will deliver its findings through its proprietary database, Thought Leader Index, and will also support medical, clinical, and brand teams with both technology and advisory services.
“We are very excited to be helping a new client in so many ways,” stated Neil Mellor, business development consultant at Thought Leader Select. “This is the most comprehensive project we’ve ever done at Thought Leader Select—it’s showing our ability to really customize to meet the ... read more »
TAGS: advisory services allied health professions. biopharmaceutical client customize dermatological conditions dermatology medication global pharmaceutical company health professions healthcare key opinion leaders KOL identification market access medical centers of excellence medical community Neil Mellor new treatment nurse practitioners nurses physician assistants physician thought leaders pre-cancerous skin growths profiling reimbursement research assessment rising stars Thought Leader Index Thought Leader Select
March 17, 2011 ·
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Industry Insights from Paul Meade, M.Sc., MPH
The Physician Payment Sunshine Provision is a part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act passed by the U. S. Congress in March of last year. The provision will go into effect on January 1, 2012. Many people in the healthcare industry are struggling to determine if this provision is a good thing or a bad one. Truth be told, it is a bit of both—good, in that it ensures complete transparency among health care providers and manufacturers of pharmaceuticals and medical devices, and bad, because it may expose the benefits some healthcare professionals gain from interacting with some manufacturers.
For years, healthcare professionals have been interacting with manufacturers in many ways; when providers offer their professional services, they expect and receive compensation for their time and knowledge, as would experts in any other industry. Every industry has its experts, and healthcare is no exception. There are healthcare experts in a variety of functional areas and in all therapeutic areas. These experts have medical information and knowledge that is valuable to healthcare manufacturers as they develop and commercialize their products and services. Acting as consultants to industry manufacturers, experts offer guidance in the development of new products, from determining unmet medical needs to suggestions on how to price new products.
Is it fair to compensate ... read more »
TAGS: benefits compensate consultant fairness health care providers healthcare industry Healthcare Professionals manufacturers medical devices new products over-compensate Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act Paul Meade pharmaceuticals Physician Payment Sunshine Provision professional services provision records Sunshine Provision transparency
March 16, 2011 ·
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March 16, 2011 (CHAPEL HILL, NC)—Research Triangle, NC research and consulting firm Thought Leader Select has initiated a new assessment of medical experts in the field of oncology for the biopharmaceutical industry.
A Canadian subsidiary of a top 10 global biopharmaceutical company has hired the firm to study the skills and experiences of 40 key opinion leaders in the treatment of lung cancer. Thought Leader Select is offering the client company an objective, systematic foundational approach to selecting physicians and other health care professionals within the Canadian care environment to assist the company during its stretch-run of activities in support of the new cancer treatment’s development.
The selected key opinion leaders in Canadian oncology circles will provide a variety of services to the company, including advisory board participation, conducting clinical studies, and offering one-on-one consultations with the company’s scientific and medical teams. Thought Leader Select’s methodology, while compliant with Office of Inspector General guidelines in the United States, is also compliant with Canadian regulations such as the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA).
“We have been privileged to work with this company on multiple projects in several therapeutic areas, to ensure that its new product teams are positioned for success by working with the right thought leaders for the right reasons,” stated Neil Mellor, Thought Leader Select’s business development consultant. “This ... read more » TAGS: advisory board assessment biopharmaceutical industry Canada clinical studies health care professionals key opinion leaders lung cancer medical centers of excellence medical experts medical teams methodology Neil Mellor office of inspector general guidelines Oncology personal information protection and electronic documents act physicians PIPEDA thought leader
March 11, 2011 ·
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Service Spotlight with Brian Castle
People ask me almost every day what makes Thought Leader Select different from the three dozen or so competitors we have in the thought leader services micro-niche within healthcare and biopharmaceuticals. Obviously, that’s a dangerous question to ask a marketing person! After all, I spend days on end composing multiple arguments to make the very case that we are uniquely positioned to help client companies in ways that many of our competitors haven’t even conceived.
What makes my job easy is that we are different. Very different, in fact. I know that lots of companies claim that their people are the difference, but that concept is especially true at Thought Leader Select. In addition to having a front-end consulting team with over 50 years of healthcare and biopharmaceutical industry experience, we have a back-end research team with over 50 years of clinical and research work in the field of medicine. Led by Lisa Smith, Clarissa Noureddine, Rhonda Napier, Lynda Scott, and Cammie Brannan, our research team delivers research assessments on the skills and experiences of thought leaders around the world.
Our team complements each assessment with technology tools (such our proprietary database, Thought Leader Index) and advisory capabilities that add an element to our work that other firms ... read more »
TAGS: biopharmaceuticals Cammie Brannan Clarissa Noureddine clinical practice consulting healthcare investigative journalism key opinion leaders KOL engagement KOL identification KOL mapping KOL profiling KOL services Lisa Smith Lynda Scott medical researchers research Rhonda Napier scenario planning subject matter experts Thought Leader Index Thought Leader Select thought leader services thought leaders
