Employee Stories

A Day in the Life of a Medical Writer

Olly Palmer is a Senior Medical Writer in our London office and joined the company in 2019.

What did you do before joining Costello Medical?

Prior to joining Costello Medical, I graduated from the University of Manchester with a Biomedical Sciences degree. Within this, I enjoyed learning about developmental biology, body systems and immunology. Later in my degree, I then focused on neuroscience and my dissertation discussed the potential for application of pluripotent stem cells in treating neurodegenerative diseases.

During my final year I also completed a Life Sciences Enterprise Project, during which I developed a broader understanding of clinical development of pharmaceuticals and medical devices, inclusive of regulatory pathways and trial designs. It was at this time that I came to appreciate how pharmaceutical and medical device companies interact and collaborate with the academic world, and the various roles and responsibilities of publications professionals in bridging the gap between the two. It was this that sparked my interest in medical communications and led me to Costello Medical.

What do you like best about your role as Medical Writer at Costello Medical?

Fundamentally, as a Medical Writer, a lot of time is spent diving into clinical data while developing abstracts, posters and manuscripts. Our work focuses on presenting cutting edge, unpublished data in engaging and meaningful ways. This involves a lot of collaboration with our internal Statistics and Creative divisions, which is definitely one of the aspects of the role I enjoy the most.

Within this, the variety of disease and therapy areas I have worked on, from common autoimmune diseases through to ultra-rare diseases as well as surgical devices, is something I highly value.

Another key aspect of the Medical Writer role that I enjoy is supporting our clients with strategic publication planning. This involves devising a plan for how, where and when to disseminate data to maximise their impact and reach. Partnering with our clients in this way is hugely enjoyable.

How would you describe a typical day in the life of a Medical Writer at Costello Medical?

9:00am

Upon walking into the office just before 9am, I am greeted by several cheery colleagues. I switch on my computer, followed swiftly by the coffee machine as I catch up with some colleagues in the communal kitchen.

9:15am

I have a read through my inbox; I’ve received several emails from a client with feedback on a manuscript I am currently writing, a couple from authors commenting on the second draft of a poster I have helped to produce, and a vitally important email detailing the upcoming team social to celebrate the successful delivery of multiple posters to a recent rheumatology congress in Rome. The delivery of this project represented a real team effort, so it is great to be able to celebrate its successful completion.

10:00am

I head to a meeting room for a teleconference with a client. Several doctors from Switzerland and America, who are world experts in their field, are also joining the call. This provides a fantastic opportunity to hear everyone’s thoughts on an upcoming manuscript. The call is highly productive and I’m able to get a good idea of the main points the authors and client would like to cover.

11:00am

Back at my desk, I quickly type up the minutes from the meeting and let my project manager glance over them to make sure everything has been captured correctly, before emailing them around to all participants. This gives me a chance to consider, in more detail, how I will structure the manuscript outline (which is the next step in the writing process).

In a few weeks’ time I will be writing a full draft of the manuscript. This will involve researching and writing the introduction, gathering all the data for the results section and drafting the key messages for the discussion and conclusion. I will then receive comments on this manuscript from the client and the authors, which I will address before sending out the revised manuscript for another review. This cycle continues until all parties are happy with the manuscript to be submitted to the journal for publication. Combining scientific rigor with compelling writing is one aspect of the role I particularly enjoy as well as the rewarding nature of working closely with leading experts.

11:30am

I then turn my attention to addressing the comments on a poster I’ve been working on. I really enjoy this sort of publication, mainly due to the structured development process. Posters begin life as a Word document, which contain the basic figures and tables to be presented and the key messages as bullet points. This is reviewed by the client and authors, before being converted to graphic format, complete with smart-looking graphs and tables created through close collaboration with our in-house Creative team. This particular poster I am working on is to be presented at a congress in the US next month and includes some really exciting data which we have just received. The comments have come through via an online publication management system, so I make the requested changes to the poster and put together a document listing how each comment has been addressed.

12:30pm

After I have circulated an updated draft of the poster via the online system, it’s time for lunch, and I head to the kitchen to have a good chat with my colleagues before heading out for a walk.

1:30pm

Once back at my desk, I begin the afternoon by putting together slides on some recent articles which we have submitted for publication. Keen to get my team’s feedback on the presentation, I have also set up a meeting with them for their insight and ideas. I head to a meeting room to catch up with my teammates on this recent project.

3:00pm

I now turn my attention to proofreading a couple of abstracts which one of my colleagues is submitting to a congress in Japan. It’s exciting to think that our work is accessible to such an international audience!

5:00pm

Once I am confident that the abstracts are in excellent shape, I turn my thoughts to the next day when I plan to work on some materials to develop new service offerings for the Publications division that will utilise my creative skills. There are lots of opportunities to get involved in projects that help drive the division forward, which is something I find very fulfilling. Finally, I fire off a few emails to finish up the day, then I am ready for the journey home.