Revision of the International Pharmaceutical Federation's Basel Statements on the future of hospital pharmacy: From Basel to Bangkok.

PURPOSE: The processes used to revise the 2008 Basel Statements on the future of hospital pharmacy are summarized, and the revised statements are presented. METHODS: The process for revising the Basel Statements followed an approach similar to that used during their initial development. The Hospital Pharmacy Section (HPS) of the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) revised the 2008 FIP Basel Statements in four phases, including a survey of hospital pharmacists worldwide, an internal review, online forums, and a face-to-face "World Café" workshop in Bangkok, Thailand. RESULTS: The global survey on the initial Basel Statements included input from 334 respondents from 62 countries. The majority of respondents agreed that most of the initial Basel Statements were acceptable as written and did not require revision. In total, 11 statements were judged by more than 10% of respondents as needing revision or deletion. The FIP HPS executive committee used the survey results to develop 69 initial revised draft statements. After an online discussion with the international hospital pharmacy community, including individuals from 28 countries representing all six World Health Organization regions, a final set of draft statements was prepared for the live discussion involving participants from 20 countries. The final 65 revised Basel Statements were voted on and accepted. CONCLUSION: Systematic revision of the FIP Basel Statements resulted in an updated reflection of aspirational goals for the future of hospital pharmacy practice. While this revision reflects the development of new goals for hospital pharmacy practice, the core principles of the Basel Statements remain an essential foundation for the discipline.

A Survey of Key Opinion Leaders to Support Curriculum Development in Advanced Medical Science Liaison Training.

Medical science liaisons (MSLs) are field-based pharmaceutical or biomedical industry professionals whose role demands specialized product knowledge and skill in executing customer-facing activities. This report describes a survey of key opinion leaders (KOLs) to identify MSL skills most highly valued and those in need of enrichment with the objective of designing an advanced training curriculum for experienced MSLs. A total of 66 MSLs representing diverse therapeutic areas verbally administered a 9-question survey at the conclusion of a routine MSL-KOL interaction. There were 296 surveys completed, with most respondents (239 of 281; 82%) indicating that they meet with MSLs from other companies. Ninety-five percent (218 of 230) responded that the value provided by MSLs was comparable to that offered by other companies. When asked about top MSL attributes, KOLs mentioned product knowledge, scientific credibility, therapeutic area knowledge, timeliness of response, and communication skills. In terms of resources provided by MSLs, KOLs most often mentioned scientific information, unbiased product information, therapeutic area developments (including pipeline discussions), disease state information, and potential involvement in research or as an advisor. Based on the quantitative and qualitative results of this survey, a workshop curriculum focusing on advanced communication skills and networking techniques was developed and conducted successfully.

Health Care Professionals' Expectations of the Medical Science Liaison: A Blinded Survey.

The role of the medical science liaison (MSL) within the industry is evolving yet well established. Reports of MSL activities have uniformly been from the view of the pharmaceutical company. This report describes the desired activities from the perspective of the health care professional (HCP) using a blinded, 2-phase survey method. The first phase was an online quantitative survey conducted among key opinion leaders (KOLs) in the academic and practicing fields for diabetes research and treatment who have met with an Amylin MSL in the past 6 months. The second phase consisted of 1-on-1 telephone interviews with a subset of participants from phase 1 to better understand what KOLs want and need from MSLs, to explore how MSLs can add value to their interaction with KOLs, and to understand how Amylin MSLs are performing. The research evaluated a number of questions, including how KOLs view the MSLs and the value they bring to the KOLs. There were 116 KOLs who completed the online survey and who were considered qualified completers. Diabetes MSLs are a valuable resource to KOLs. They must first and foremost present themselves as ethical and unbiased. They help KOLs stay up to date on industry information and happenings, saving time for the busy KOL. The KOL's key information needs are around pipeline and research. They would like to get to know their MSLs better, to understand their background and experience, and to see them more often.