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Q&A

When did you realize you wanted to work in medical communications?

I started my career in the pharmacy benefit management (PBM) space, and within two years, I realized that I wanted to be in a more clinical role in pharma. I moved over to Parke-Davis (Warner-Lambert at the time) in the Medical Information group and enjoyed the collaborative stakeholder work as well as being the subject matter expert on a product. I stayed there for a few years and then tried competitive intelligence. I finally ended up at Sanofi (legacy Aventis) back in the Med Info space. I was there for more than twelve years before moving into a global content development role. Having been in this space for a long time, I am very happy with the path I chose. I was able to try other roles, but I always came back to Medical Communications/Med Info.

Where do you see your field going? What is your vision of the field in 2030?

I am now focused on global scientific content. It is so important to have one medical voice as an organization, especially in big pharma. The systems component is complex, but we need to continually revisit what is and is not working to enable scientific exchange. Understanding how content is delivered and digested by the end customer is equally important. I see our future being driven more by AI capabilities so in-house staff can be focused on accurate insights for content development.

What advice would you give your younger self about to enter the “real world?”

Always explore opportunities that make you uncomfortable. If you do not have 100 percent of the skill set, you can learn. Be open to change in a positive manner.

Imagine a day without work, the internet, and any other obligations. What would you do?

I would either be traveling, go to a beach, or be on the water with my family!

How has DIA helped you?

I am actively involved with DIA and thank the organization. Not only was this a wonderful way to volunteer, but DIA helped me grow as well. In the early 2000s, I started to participate and present at DIA meetings. Each year, I took on a speaking opportunity that was more complex than the year before, pushing me out of my comfort zone. For example, going from a poster presentation one year to a speaker within a session to Session Chair, and eventually to the Planning Committee. Even as Session Chair, there are different types of presentation skills that you can work on. I thoroughly enjoy networking with like-minded professionals in the medical communication industry as well as hearing about new ideas and best practices. Over the years, I was able to publish two manuscripts, one on how medical information will trend in the future and one on social media pilots. Working with DIA expanded my outreach and helped me develop my presentation skills.

BIOGRAPHY

Poonam A. Bordoloi, PharmD, is currently a Team Lead within the Global Scientific Content group at Merck in Kenilworth, NJ. She is covering the Global General Medicines Portfolio at Merck and ensuring global scientific response documents are created to support key products. Most recently, Bordoloi was at Celgene in the Strategic Medical Communications and Innovation Group. Prior to this, Bordoloi worked at Sanofi in the Medical Information Services Department for twelve years, at Johnson and Johnson in the Global Competitive Intelligence Group for three years, and at Parke-Davis in the Medical Information Department for three years. She has 25 years of experience in the medical information setting and has two publications regarding Social Media and Medical Information Trends. Bordoloi is actively involved at DIA and was a session chair at the 2019 DIA's Medical Affairs and Scientific Communications Forum. She is now co-chairing the Medical Affairs and Scientific Communication track for the DIA Global Annual Meeting. She also has experience in managed care and as member of the P&T committee as a Formulary Director at a PBM. She lives with her family in Bridgewater, NJ. Her daughter attends the University of Rhode Island and her son attends Drexel. During her family’s spare time, the four of them love traveling to new places.