As medical affairs continues to grow within the pharmaceutical industry, providing proper training and continued professional development is critical. Traditionally, pharmaceutical companies either develop their own internal training or work with third-party vendors to build training programs for them.

While this can help onboard new hires, there are several limitations to the traditional training approach.

Limitations to Traditional Medical Affairs Training Processes

• It is a ‘one & done’ focusing primarily on proper on-boarding for new hires but no way to assess continued professional development.
• Most third-party vendors are NOT accredited training providers. What that means is that they do not meet any type of standards when it comes to learning design, process, technology or proper assessments.
• Non-accredited training does not provide a credential or award any credits.
• Traditional training is not externally recognized outside the company which limits employee motivation and stifles development.
• Traditional medical affairs training focuses on (a) disease state or product knowledge and (b) PhRMA compliance rules. While this is important, traditional training doesn’t address core competencies critical to all medical affairs organizations regardless of company.
• Traditional training does not ensure that a minimum level of knowledge is met and progress assessed over time.
• Because non-accredited training doesn’t have to meet any type of external measures of quality or assessment, it poses a risk to pharmaceutical companies if they are audited.
• Finally, today’s training often lacks consistency across US & Global medical affairs organizations and creates gaps, putting some teams at a disadvantage.

Medical Affairs Accreditation Matters

Accreditation indicates that you have met and/or surpassed industry standards for training & certification. The Accreditation Council for Medical Affairs (ACMA) is the only accredited provider of training & certification for medical affairs & MSL professionals working across the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device and diagnostic industries.

The ACMA is accredited by the International Association for Continuing Education & Training (IACET/ANSI). The ACMA is also a member organization with the Institute for Credentialing Excellence and through its partnership with Scientia CME is a joint provider of CME & CE for physicians and pharmacists. This level of accreditation indicates that the ACMA offers the highest quality of training and certification. The ACMA’s certification program’s key elements include a robust quality management system, innovative learning design, optimized pedagogical techniques and proper learner support.

Regulators & Medical Affairs Accreditation

Using an accredited provider of training for your pharmaceutical company helps to safeguard and minimize risk for your organization. This becomes particularly important when concerns arise over:

• Your team members’ competence
• Issues related to ethics and compliance
• Concerns over quality systems and operations.

Industry Trends

The ACMA continues to partner with life sciences companies who are raising the bar for their organization by offering accredited training & certification programs. There are several benefits afforded to both the company and employees. By partnering with the ACMA, pharmaceutical companies can ensure that all individuals who successfully meet ACMA standards will receive a certificate of competence which is accredited and recognized in the US & internationally.

Moreover, several studies have shown that certification improves:

• Employee motivation and performance
• Increases team morale
• Ensures that a minimum level of competency is set across the organization.

This helps establish consistency, peace of mind and improves the chances for more effective & compliant engagement with key opinion leaders (KOLs) or (External Experts). As a matter of fact, the ACMA survey over more than 1000 KOLs found that 87% indicated that pharmaceutical industry professionals with an accredited certification would help them feel an increased sense of trust and credibility.

As we reflect on the opioid crisis and other scandals that have plagued the pharmaceutical industry in recent years, it is critical that compliance, medical and commercial teams work together to raise the bar for their organizations. Doing so is not just the right thing to do for their companies. More importantly, patients and medical communities deserve it.