Career in clinical research

A medicine is prescribed by the doctor to fight for the respective diseases; medicines play a very crucial role in the recovery of the disease. Doctors as well as the patient have to be very careful, while taking the medicine. The components present in the medicine work as the anti- acids to fight back the disease. A small error in the composition can lead to blunders and can even prove fatal for the life of the patient. Therefore, a lot of care has to be taken while preparing these medicines, which is the role played by the clinical researchers. Clinical research is the department in the medical field, which deals with the analysis and study of the effects, benefits, efficacy, risks involved in the composition of the medicine. These tests are conducted before the launch of the medicinal product in the market for the usage of common masses.

A student for pursuing a career in clinical research needs to be a science graduate, after which he can apply for further studies in the clinical research. A medical practitioner can also be a part of the clinical research team. These days students with medical background are mostly seen opting for courses in clinical research, due to increasing demand and precautions taken to check the efficacy of the medicine. Professional courses with diploma and degree facilities are available in many medical and clinical research institutes in the country. Part time courses for six months can also attended by people in the profession of doctors, pharmacists, management graduates, Biostatistician, biochemistry post graduates, operational research, to have in- depth knowledge about the process and procedures involved in the making of a medicine, so that they could incorporate the same in their daily professional life.

Career in clinical research has seen significant growth in the recent years, due to the increasing consciousness of people towards a healthy lifestyle and intake of medicines. People these days are finicky about the medicinal compostions, also, due to the changing environmental conditions, people are becoming allergic to certain medicines, which again adds on the need of clinical research and the bifurcation of the medicines according to respective needs. Many institutes or colleges have also got open to facilitate the students with courses in clinical research, some of which are:

v     Bombay College of Pharmacy

v     Institute of Clinical Research, Delhi

v     Institute of Clinical Research India, Dehradun

v     Academy for Clinical Excellence, Mumbai

v     Department of Bioinformatics, University of Pune

All the administrative responsibilities involved with the clinical trials are to be practised by the students in clinical research. After doing course in Clinical Research, a student can work in this field as a Clinical Research Associate, or research nurse, study coordinator, clinical coordinator, under the following areas of clinical research:

• Medical advisor
• Medical writers
• Drug developers
• Clinical research physicians
• Principal investigator
• Clinical Data Manager
• Clinical research Manager
• Drug development associate
• Business development
• Regulatory affairs manager

Students in the field of clinical research are also advised to ateend seminars and conferences being arranged by the industry practitioners to keep themselves updated about the practicality of the profession. With the growth of the pharmaceutical industry in India as well as all over the world, students aiming for degree in clinical research can see a good career graph. Also, with the competition rising in the medical industry, companies are these days more demanding about qualified professionals in the sector. also the remuneration paid to the employers is quite interesting and students as fresher can start with a good satisfactory pay package. Also, experience is the keyword here, the more a student gains experience, higher is his value in the industry.