May 16, 2012 ·
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Industry Insights from Paul Meade, M. Sc, MPH
Everyone seems to have a definition of what a thought leader, or key opinion leader, or external expert is. These honorifics are routinely bestowed upon the most revered people in our society.
Most industries—not just healthcare—have thought leaders, but not everyone views them in the same way. Are they thought-provoking? Are they influential? Do they challenge conventions and change standards? Are they truly leaders in their area of expertise? Do they have large social networks? Are they popular and well-known? Are they amazingly brilliant and have a superior intellect? These are many of the questions people ask themselves when determining someone’s thought leadership.
It would appear then, that the definition of a thought leader is in the eye of the beholder, something akin to art or beauty. We certainly cannot get to the answer by parsing the two words. This would mean any leader with a thought would qualify! Furthermore, we have been struggling to define leadership for about 10,000 years now, with still no definitive definition in sight.
To focus on a single industry, such as healthcare, might help with deriving a workable definition. Yet, even in healthcare, new definitions are cropping up all the time, perhaps even more definitions than in other industry sectors. The traditional or classical definition of a thought leader has ... read more »
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CNN Dr. Sanjay Gupta drug formularies external experts healthcare key opinion leader keynote speaker KOL medical conferences medical research neurosurgeon Nobel laureate reimbursement research laboratory scientific journal articles scientific meetings social networks thought leader thought leadership
January 12, 2012 ·
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By Brian Castle and Kristen Smithwick
When most people think about thought leaders in medicine, specialists in oncology, neurology, rheumatology and other therapeutic areas immediately come to mind. However, with the proliferation of illnesses and conditions ranging from diabetes and obesity to asthma, gastrointestinal diseases and psychiatric disorders, key opinion leaders in primary care and allied health professions are more important than ever.
In addition to the growing incidence of several “lifestyle” conditions, the structure of U.S. healthcare dictates that people suffering in these areas see their primary care physicians (PCPs), nurses, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and pharmacists with much greater frequency than their specialists. As a result, more PCPs and allied health professionals are joining their specialist colleagues in all of the critical areas that define thought leadership, including publishing, basic and clinical research, clinical practice, speaking, and advocacy involvement.
Thought Leader Select has conducted multiple assessments of thought leader populations in a variety of therapeutic areas, with particular attention to the impact of PCPs, also known as general practitioners, in areas of treatment as diverse as diabetes, allergies, infectious disease, and gastrointestinal conditions. Primary care physicians, along with their nurse practitioner (NP), physician assistant (PA), and registered nurse colleagues, consistently distinguish themselves in many of the traditional areas of thought leadership once assumed to be the domain of specialists and sub-specialists.
Leaders ... read more » TAGS: allergies allied health professions. asthma clinical practice clinical research co-investigator community disease awareness events diabetes disease task force diseases gastrointestinal grand rounds HCPs Hepatitis C hepatology HIV illnesses indigent populations infectious disease irritable bowel syndrome key opinion leaders lifestyle conditions lobbying medical conferences medical congresses medical research National Cancer Institute NCI neurology nurse practitioners obesity Oncology patient advocacy patient support PCPs pharmacists physician assistants physicians primary care psychiatric registered nurses rheumatology support groups Thought Leader Select thought leaders thought leadership US healthcare
December 6, 2011 ·
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Industry Insights from Paul Meade, M. Sc, MPH
For every transaction over ten dollars paid to a physician by a pharmaceutical manufacturer, the Physician Payments Sunshine Provision demands disclosure to a database that will be made public in 2013.
Notwithstanding the absurdity of collecting such an enormous amount of information, someone will undoubtedly spend a lot of time sifting through this data to create lists of “worst offenders.” These lists will be publically promulgated with the sole purpose of bestowing shame on these so-called “offenders.”
Of course, these lists may be perceived as tantamount to publishing a list of child molesters moving into a new neighborhood, or those people charged with driving under the influence of alcohol over the weekend listed in the Monday newspaper. Some of the most brilliant and renowned physicians in this country will be brought to shame for consulting with some manufacturers.
So, how bad can it get? Well, let’s imagine the following scenario, which I refer to as Grinding to a Halt. Leaders in the medical community who are respected for their research and experience may become so concerned about being publically exposed for consulting with various manufacturers that they may decide to cease all interactions going forward.
There will be no more advising pharmaceutical companies about the unmet medical needs for new molecules discovered in their research laboratories. There ... read more »
TAGS: academic medical centers capitation centers of excellence clinical studies CME continuing medical education drug compounds drug manufacturers healthcare reform medical community medical conferences pharmaceuticals Physician Payments Sunshine Provision physicians research laboratories Sunshine Act
July 23, 2010 ·
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Press Release Out Today from the Offices of Thought Leader Select
July 22, 2010 (CHAPEL HILL, NC)—Thought Leader Select, a North Carolina company dedicated to delivering sophisticated key opinion leader research solutions to the biopharmaceutical industry, announces new key opinion leader research for an established Mexican pharmaceutical company.
The pharmaceutical company, a long-time presence in the Mexican market, has contracted the firm for key opinion leader identification, profiling, and engagement strategies in support of a novel prescription medication for the relief of muscle and joint pain. Thought Leader Select will assess the skills and experiences of a host of rheumatologists and orthopedic surgeons throughout Mexico. The pharmaceutical firm will engage the identified medical experts for one-on-one consultations, advisory boards, and speaking engagements, as well as potential clinical studies for new treatment indications for the drug.
In addition to profiles and activity plans for the leading Mexican physicians, Thought Leader Select will also deliver access to its exclusive web-based expert tool for optimizing physician teams for a variety of development activities.
“Our customized services, well-known throughout the United States and Canada, work for companies operating domestically in Mexico as well as multi-nationals doing business throughout Latin America,” stated Dr. Daniel Bagi, head of Latin American business development at Thought Leader Select, from his office in Mexico City. “The launch of this project establishes Thought Leader ... read more »
TAGS: advisory boards biopharmaceutical biotechnology Canada clinical studies Daniel Bagi Europe key opinion leader KOL consulting KOL engagement KOL identification KOL profiling KOL strategies Latin America medical conferences medical expert Mexico muscle and joint pain North Carolina orthopedic surgery pain relief pharmaceutical prescription medication Research Triangle rheumatology speakers bureaus thought leader Thought Leader Select treatment indications United States
July 1, 2010 ·
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Industry Insights from Paul Meade, M. Sc, MPH
In this Age of Information, many people believe that having up-to-date information at their fingertips is beneficial to managing their businesses. This can’t be truer if you have to make up-to-date decisions several times a day. But sometimes having real-time updates is like putting high-octane gasoline in your car when all you really need is regular. Unless you need real-time information to make daily or even hourly decisions, one should ask, what value is there to having such instant information? Some companies offer real-time information on thought leader profiles. Why? Are decisions to engage in thought leader consultations really that time-critical? Does any pharmaceutical executive need instant updates on key opinion leaders to make critical decisions to the overall strategy of a product’s annual plan? Does anyone have that much flexibility in a product marketing plan to make significant changes on a daily basis?
To be sure, busy thought leaders are actively conducting research, publishing articles, and speaking at medical meetings. In fact, these are ongoing activities for many of the top thought leaders in any therapeutic area. But clinical studies are conducted over months and years, not hours or days. Scientific articles can take over a year to get published in leading journals once the research has been completed. Significant medical conferences are ... read more »
TAGS: biotechnology brand planning brand strategy clinical research clinical studies clinical trials key opinion leaders KOL activities KOL engagement KOL identification KOL profiling KOLs marketing planning medical conferences medical journals Paul Meade pharmaceutical product planning real-time information scientific articles Thought Leader Select thought leaders
March 17, 2010 ·
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New press release out today from the offices of Thought Leader Select!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 9, 2010 (CHAPEL HILL, NC) —Thought Leader Select, a company dedicated to delivering solutions for better engagement and more sophisticated deployment of key opinion leaders (KOLs) for the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, is proud to announce the commencement of a new project for a top-20 global pharmaceutical company.
Deep profiling has proven to be up to three times more effective than other more traditional methods, such as influence mapping, in matching pharmaceutical companies with the key opinion leaders who exhibit the skills and experiences needed to develop tomorrow’s drug therapies (source: Thought Leader Select internal comparative research).
Upon project delivery, the client company will be able to utilize Thought Leader Select’s customized engagement recommendations, research reporting and a web-based profiling tool to develop world-class clinical investigation teams and high-synergy advisory boards. As the client builds its investigative teams and advisory boards, the skills and experiences of the global KOLs will drive key applications.
In addition to Thought Leader Select’s deep profiling, the firm will provide qualitative research of the key opinion leaders selected by the pharmaceutical company to aid in the development of their neurology product. This study will assess KOL preferences for treating certain neurological symptoms, in ... read more »
TAGS: advisory boards deep-profiling influence mapping clinical trials key opinion leaders medical conferences neurology pharmaceutical company physicians product information qualitative research Thought Leader Select
