Ireland has become one of the world’s most important pharmaceutical hubs. Nine of the top ten global pharmaceutical companies by revenue have substantial operations here, and that scale creates a steady stream of opportunities for Medical Advisors, particularly for candidates with a clinical or life sciences background looking to move from a hospital or community setting into industry. At Ad Opus Recruitment, we increasingly place candidates into pharma and healthcare industry roles alongside our core clinical recruitment, and Medical Advisor is one of the roles we get the most questions about. Here is an overview of the role, the regulatory environment it sits within, and what employers typically look for.
What does a Medical Advisor actually do?
A Medical Advisor sits inside a pharmaceutical company’s medical affairs function, acting as the bridge between the science behind a company’s medicines and the people who use or oversee them. Day to day, the role typically covers:
- Providing medical and scientific expertise to internal teams, including commercial, regulatory and market access colleagues
- Reviewing promotional and educational materials to make sure claims are accurate, balanced and properly referenced
- Building and maintaining relationships with key opinion leaders and healthcare professionals
- Responding to unsolicited medical information requests from healthcare professionals
- Supporting clinical trial activity and pharmacovigilance reporting in line with company and regulatory requirements
The regulatory environment in Ireland
Medical Advisors work within a well-defined regulatory framework, and understanding it is part of the job. In Ireland, the two bodies you will hear about most are:
- The Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA), the statutory body responsible for regulating medicines, medical devices and other health products in Ireland, including the rules around advertising and promotion of medicines
- The Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association (IPHA), the industry association for research-based pharmaceutical companies in Ireland, which maintains its own Code of Practice for the Pharmaceutical Industry governing interactions between companies and healthcare professionals
Many companies require staff who review or approve promotional material, including Medical Advisors, to be familiar with the IPHA Code, and IPHA runs accredited eLearning for this purpose. It is also worth knowing about the Medical Representatives’ Institute of Ireland (MRII), a long-established professional body for healthcare industry representatives that offers its own membership examination covering anatomy, physiology, clinical medicine and pharmacology. It is aimed primarily at sales representatives rather than Medical Advisors specifically, but it is a useful marker of the wider professional landscape you will be operating in.
What employers typically look for
- A medical degree, or a relevant life sciences, pharmacy or nursing qualification, depending on the therapeutic area and seniority of the role
- Prior clinical experience, or previous experience in a Medical Advisor, Medical Science Liaison or medical information role within the pharmaceutical industry
- A working understanding of Irish and EU pharmaceutical regulatory and compliance standards, or a willingness to build this quickly
- Strong written and verbal communication skills, since a large part of the role involves translating clinical evidence for non-specialist audiences
Doctors and other clinicians moving into medical affairs for the first time should not be put off by not having direct industry experience. Employers regularly hire strong clinical candidates and support them through IPHA Code training and internal onboarding, provided the underlying clinical judgement and communication skills are there.
Why Ireland
The concentration of global pharmaceutical manufacturing and, increasingly, commercial and medical affairs functions in Ireland means Dublin in particular has a genuinely deep market for these roles, with regular movement between companies at Medical Advisor and Senior Medical Advisor level. For UK and Irish candidates with a clinical background, it is one of the more accessible routes into the pharmaceutical industry without having to relocate outside Ireland or the UK.
How Ad Opus Recruitment can help
We work with pharmaceutical and healthcare employers across Ireland and support candidates making the move from clinical practice into industry roles, as well as experienced Medical Advisors looking for their next step. If you are considering a move into pharmaceutical medical affairs, get in touch with the team at Ad Opus Recruitment for a confidential conversation about current opportunities.
This article is provided for general guidance only. Regulatory requirements and industry codes of practice can change, so always confirm current requirements directly with the HPRA or IPHA before relying on them.