Medical Affairs

The energy was palpable at the 2025 Medical Affairs Professional Society (MAPS) Global Annual Meeting. Conversations were expansive, workshops immersive, and the questions being asked were less about what Medical Affairs can do and more about how it must evolve to meet the future.

Every horse race has a starting bell, a push to move as fast as possible, and a finish line. In many ways, the launch of a new drug can feel similar. But the metaphor only goes so far — launch preparation is not simply about speed, and in this case, the “horses” keep changing, and the track is anything but predictable.

A better metaphor is that of an orchestra, with many instruments contributing distinctly at specific times. All play the same piece of music but contribute based on their respective roles.

Regardless of your company or drug development stage, congress events are critical undertakings; they represent both a substantial opportunity and a significant investment of time and resources. These events provide an occasion to engage with a wide range of HCPs (including KOLs) to introduce new products, present data, gather insights, and more. Depending on your role in the company, the objectives that get you excited about attending one of these meetings will vary — you may not even be aware of some of the happenings outside your functional area.

When it comes to patient recruitment and retention for clinical trials, the bottom line is simply this: It is important and challenging in all scenarios… the difference is in how significant the focus and effort will need to be.