Chris Toller

Strategic Medical Affairs for Modern Pharma

New Challenges & Competencies

With Chris Toller

Course Details

Medical Affairs has become a strategically critical function for the success of any pharma product. 

To be effective in strategic decision making and in cross-functional teams, Medical Affairs leaders must master business acumen competencies and understand the fundamentals of other functions that interact with external stakeholders (market access, marketing...).

This 2-day programme equips you with important concepts, tools and techniques that increase the impact of the Medical Affairs role, be it as a manager of teams or as a key contributor in cross-functional teams.

By participating, you will not only have the chance to ask your specific questions to a true expert, but also experience the unique opportunity to share experiences and engage in in-depth discussions with your international Medical Affairs peers.

Very comprehensive and helpful in making things clear and rational. Great course!

Recordati

Valeria Maida, Corporate Medical Affairs - Italy - October 2024

  1. Strategic thinking in the Medical Affairs function.  

  2. How to create, measure and demonstrate value in the Medical Affairs function.

  3. How to use medical insights for a successful brand development strategy.

  4. How to communicate effectively with HCPs.

  5. What Medical Affairs needs to know about patient-centricity, pharmaco-economics, market access and digital communications.

  6. Leadership skills for Medical Affairs. 

Perfect course and teacher, a lot of things to learn in 2 days!

Viatris

Elsa Granger, Medical Advisor - France - October 2024

 

 

To see the detailed agenda, please submit your details in the form below the table.

Day 1 
Welcome & Introduction (~15 min)
The Evolving Role of Medical Affairs (~1 h 15 min)
Drive Medical Insight (~1 h 30 min)
Lunch Break
Own the Data (~45 min)
Communicate and Educate (~2 h 15 min)

 

Day 2
Group Exercise: Scientific Communications (~1 h 30 min)
Engage with Stakeholders (~45 min)
Support the Value Proposition (~1 h 30 min)
Lunch Break
Lead and Manage the Medical Affairs Function (~2 h)
Course review and Summary (~15 min)

 

To see the detailed agenda, please submit your details in the form below:

  • Chris Toller is a leading international consultant in pharmaceutical Medical Affairs who has worked with MA teams across the globe. 

  • Chris’ professional roles have included Managing Director at Choice Healthcare Solutions, Head of Strategy for the Choice Group, and Founder & MD of one of the UK’s first specialist medical communications agencies. Currently, he is Managing Partner at Havas Life Medicom UK. 

  • After his education as a physician, Chris built a career that has enabled him to work with Medical Affairs teams all over the world and in just about every therapy area. He has devised MA strategies and implemented programmes to support more than 50 medical brands on behalf of the world’s leading pharma companies. 

  • In working with these Medical Affairs teams, Chris has discovered over the years what distinguishes a successful Medical Affairs executive from the average performer. And apart from being a creative strategic thinker, Chris is an excellent communicator and an inspirational presenter.

As the impact of medical affairs activities on the commercial success of new pharmaceuticals has increased dramatically, all medical affairs professionals will benefit from this course.


This course is particularly suitable for medical affairs managers involved in the preparation of the market for a new pharmaceutical during the pre-launch phase, as well as new individuals in Medical Affairs departments.

Would you like to receive a list of anonymised participant profiles from previous sessions? 

Email inge.cornelis@celforpharma.com

The average Recommendation Score from participants of the last session was 

9,0/10!

 

 

Read this selection of testimonials from recent participants: 

Very useful training to gain more awareness of the role of Medical Affairs, with also practical tools to use in my daily work. Thanks!

Recordati

Valentina André, Corporate Medical Affairs - Italy - October 2024

Perfect course and teacher, a lot of things to learn in 2 days!

Viatris

Elsa Granger, Medical Advisor - France - October 2024

Very comprehensive and helpful in making things clear and rational. Great course!

Recordati

Valeria Maida, Corporate Medical Affairs - Italy - October 2024

Very valuable course that provides a clear view of the strategically critical role of Medical Affairs in the pharmaceutical industry. Lots of learning from both the great speaker, Chris Toller, and the rich discussions with colleagues.

HRA Pharma Rare Diseases

Anna Sole Ferre, Global Medical Affairs Advisor - France - June 2024

I highly valued this course: clarity in transmitting information, information congruent with reality, Chris’ experience that gives weight to the information shared. It was great!

MagnaPharm

Cristian Olaru, Medical Affairs Manager - Romania - June 2024

This course gave very valuable insights to different fields of medical affairs. I liked the way it was presented and I would definitely recommend to peers!

BioCryst Pharma

Ulrike Pichler, Ass. Director EU Medical Affairs Operations - Germany - June 2024

This was a great learning experience to get the basics on Medical Affairs and get inspired.

Servier

Stéphanie Balmes, Global Medical Affairs - France - March 2024

A very useful course to everyone working in Medical Affairs. It has great content, a very engaging and charismatic speaker and lots of learning and sharing of experiences not only from the speaker, but also from colleagues from other companies. Well worth attending, thanks a lot CELforPharma!

Novartis

Scott Beijn, Medical Manager Cardiovascular Renal & Metabolism - The Netherlands - June 2023

Very good, insightful training. Nice combination of information sharing and break-out sessions.

Servier

Thomas Bruyning, Senior Medical Affairs Officer - The Netherlands - November 2023

High quality training, well prepared and organised. It brings new vision and value to increase our knowledge and skills!

Servier

Weiwei Li-Bertheau, Global Medical Lead - France - September 2023

Thanks, this was a great course. I would definitely recommend it for Medical Advisors or Medical Leads who are new to the position and want a really good overview of MA. Chris is a great teacher and presenter which makes this a really enjoyable 2-day course to attend.

Norgine

Astrid Hartmann, Senior Medical Director, Global Affiliates - Germany - June 2023

Overall an excellent course! The content was high quality and it was made even better by the excellent delivery and experience from Chris. The opportunity for discussion and sharing experiences during the sessions with people from other companies provided additional value, plus the break-out exercises also worked well.

Sandoz

Hannah Stevenson, Therapy Area Head Specialty, Medical Affairs - United Kingdom - March 2023

This is not my first course with CELforPharma, and I certainly am glad I registered with them again for this MA training, I got a lot of value from it. I learnt a lot from Chris. He made QALY simple and made market access simple to understand for non-access people. Also, I learnt a lot about presentation skills - he really knows how to tell a story while presenting.

Cepheid

Grace Macaulay, Senior Medical Director - United Kingdom - March 2023

I like a course that makes me think and gives me new aspects to consider, and these two days with Chris have done that. The standard of the content, of the expert and of the organisation were top level. Thank you to everyone involved for making this such a good experience and a training I am glad I completed.

Leadiant Biosciences

Marc-Oliver Rauch, General Manager Germany - Germany - March 2023

I recommend this course for anyone seeking a new vision in the MA role. I received a new perspective of the role from Chris during the two days and some useful hints on how to build a medical excellence role too. The organisation and management from CELforPharma was great, congrats!

IBSA Institut Biochimique

Paola Fasola, Senior Scientific Advisor & Marketing Manager - Switzerland - March 2023

The organisation of this course is excellent, from the support during registration to the venue location and the instructor is the icing on the cake. You won't be disappointed.

Miltenyi Biotec

Umberto Rosato, Medical Advisor - Italy - March 2023

The experienced instructor made the course very valuable, the course materials were very good and doing group exercises was good. It helped a lot to create a clearer picture of the role of medical affairs. The organisation was very good. I will recommend the course.

Pfizer

Antonia Pfadenhauer, Medical Trainee Oncology - Germany - October 2022

This course had it all. It was a great summary and training on the most important aspects of the medical affairs role. It was interesting and well presented with useful information and practices that I will be able to implement in my work. It was great to have many group exercises and the number of attendees was also optimal in my opinion. CELforPharma was very helpful from the beginning to the end of the course (including the time between registration and start of course). I would definitely recommend it.

Gedeon Richter

Éva Szöllősi, Senior Global Medical Advisor - Hungary - October 2022

The Medical Affairs for Modern Pharma course was excellent. I learnt so much. The speaker is experienced and delivered new and exciting content that will impact my work in my organisation. There was a good mix of presentations and workshops to apply the information which had just been presented. I would recommend going to the F2F version as this was very interactive, and it was great to network with people in other companies from different countries. It was very well organised, Bianca, the course coordinator, was so helpful and everything was clear and communicated seamlessly. 10/10 would recommend it.

Chugai Pharma

Olufolake Ajose-Adeogun, Medical Manager - United Kingdom - October 2022

Chris is a very competent and experienced expert and trainer. He gave lots of useful tools to address MA specific issues. The course covered a lot of important topics and included some valuable interaction within the group to add to our learning. Many thanks to CELforPharma for organising!

Menarini

Rudolf Schneebeli, MSL / Medical Advisor - Switzerland - October 2022

The Medical Affairs for Modern Pharma course was a great accelerated learning opportunity for someone coming from a non-MA/but technology consulting background. It covered the fundamental functions that MA executes, best practices around it and a good framework to think about the value MA can bring to the organisation. This was helpful to think about.

Veeva

Jai Balagopal, Director - United States - June 2022

Great overview of medical affairs.

Basilea

Juana Perdomo-Guiraudet, Global Medical Brand Director - Switzerland - June 2022

I am very glad I attended this course because it deals with the uncertainty we are still facing when we talk about MedAff and gives a good overview of the topic. It can be difficult to create valuable interactions online but thanks to Chris and CELforPharma’s organisation, it was excellent! I will be recommending the course to others.

Sandoz

Roland Starlinger, Global Medical Affairs Lead Oncology - Austria - March 2022

This course helped to fill my knowledge gaps within MA, gave clear and highly valuable templates and new inspiration and motivation to help me in my daily work. Additionally, it confirmed that I seem to have done many things right in the past. Chris was a very charismatic speaker, which is crucial to an online learning format, and CELforPharma were absolutely brilliant and professional throughout. You have set a real benchmark for the service given for course trainings! Thank you very much to you all.

Dr. Willmar Schwabe

Sibylle Sauer, Senior Global Medical Affairs Manager - Germany - March 2022

Great learning in 2 days! The valuable content covers both basic and complex Medical Affairs issues, the sessions are interactive, the presenter is knowledgeable and the organisation is excellent. I highly recommend it!

Olainfarm

Ilze Ledskalniņa, International Brand Manager - Latvia - March 2022

Thanks CELforPharma for a well-presented and highly relevant course. I never stopped learning on it.

Thea Pharmaceuticals

Robert Scott, Head of Medical Affairs - United Kingdom - December 2021

The course covered all aspects of MA that I needed as a MSL to grow within this function. Chris gave many in-depth insights into medical affairs, its many different functions and how it is more of a strategic role and how vital this function is for modern Pharma. Expertise of the moderator was flawless as well as the content and the service of CELforPharma. Top marks all round, well done!

Zogenix

Akshay Menon, Medical Science Liaison - Germany - December 2021

An excellent overview of the Medical Affairs role with concise coverage of major issues relating to modern Medical Affairs. Chris was able to explain the technical issues in a comprehensive manner and gave nice opportunities to speak with the other participants during the group exercises. Thank you, Chris. Also, sincerely, CELforPharma offered an excellent communications experience. It felt as if the participants have been a long-term part of the CELforPharma team. Thanks for helping make this a top course that I would recommend to others to attend.

LAVIPHARM HELLAS

Emmanouil Petrou, Head of Medical Affairs - Greece - December 2021

I really do feel energised and have greater focus in my role in Medical Affairs following the course. Chris truly is an expert in Medical Affairs and fills you with confidence and positivity in the role.

Pfizer

Garreth Dooley, Medical Advisor – Oncology / Haematology - Ireland - December 2021

A nice way to fill gaps on the view of medical affairs.

Thea Pharmaceuticals

Tamara Montenegro, Medical Development Manager - France - December 2021

Great experience, interesting people. Thank you for this very interesting course and the fruitful discussions!!!

Thea Pharmaceuticals

Alice Bodeveix, Chef de projets Médico-Marketing Global - France - September 2021

The whole course experience was first-class. From the organisation of the event to the delivery, which was engaging, interactive and expertly delivered. There is plenty of course content for me to review and reflect on, which will ultimately benefit me personally and the contribution I make within medical affairs.

Napp Pharmaceuticals

Steve Patmore, Medical Advisor - United Kingdom - September 2021

Very good and comprehensive course, covering multiple aspects of Medical Affairs. It offers lots of valuable insights and strategies for the evolving role of MA. I especially liked the interactive atmosphere of the course. Chris is an excellent and highly knowledgeable speaker!

Biotest

Matthias Hauf, Medical Scientific Affairs Manager Transplantation - Germany - September 2021

This is a great course, particularly for those at the beginning of their MA careers. It is insightful and teaches the unteachable.

Napp Pharmaceuticals

Dev Patel, Medical Advisor - United Kingdom - September 2021

An intense but hugely valuable two days of learning covering a diverse range of topics, all of which are key to the success of Medical Affairs in the future.

Novo Nordisk

Katherine Byrne, Sr Director Real World Evidence - Switzerland - June 2021

The course offers a very interesting overview of the medical affairs activity for both junior profiles and for those who work in other departments, and at the same time very interesting insights and recommendations are provided for those who already have experience working in Medical Affairs.

Chiesi

Livia Tomasso, Medical Advisor - Italy - June 2021

A great course which highlights the most relevant aspects of Medical Affairs. Chris is an excellent speaker who gives you practical recommendations to implement in your daily activities.

Janssen

Sophie Vandervennet, Medical Advisor – Cell and Gene Therapy - Belgium - June 2021

I got a good insight into many different topics during this course including how the role of Medical Affairs works today and how it should change for Medical Affairs in the future. I enjoyed learning about medical communication strategies and how MA contributes to brand development. There was lots of nice interaction in the group during the live discussions and breakout exercises. Thank you for an interesting 2 days.

Galderma

Cecilia Persson, Medical Franchise Lead, Toxins - Sweden - March 2021

This course definitely helps you to better understand your role and value in MA. I really liked the expert’s presenting style and his vision of what MA is and should be. There was good interaction within the group and it was nice to talk with people with the same mindset. Thanks for a lovely course!

Novartis

Saartje Burgmans, Medical Advisor Immunology - The Netherlands - March 2021

This was a very comprehensive, focused and well-structured course with great interaction between the group. Great effort made by Chris and CELforPharma. Keep it up!

Chiesi

Tayyab Jahangir, Medical Affairs Manager - Pakistan - March 2021

I think this was a very comprehensive course that captured all the relevant topics of MA. Chris was a very good presenter and gave a lot of hands-on tools to take home and implement into your own job role. The exercises were very good and educational. Overall, a very useful course that was nicely organised by CELforPharma. Thanks!

Galderma

Torun Bromée, Medical Franchise Lead, HA Fillers - Sweden - March 2021

I give a score of 10/10 for this course! The expert speaker was very professional and the knowledge we learned is very useful and practical for my rob role. Everything was well organised and scheduled by CELforPharma. The other participants in the group were so nice and experienced in medical affairs which created some very interesting discussions. The entire course is excellent and deserves recommendation!

FOSUN Pharma

Yan Gen, Medical Advisor - China - March 2021

10-11 December 2024, Live online

Full Fee € 2 870

25-26 March 2025, Brussels

Early bird € 2 970

(Full fee € 3 370)

(until 07/02/2025)

1-2 October 2025, Live online

Early bird € 2 670

(Full fee € 2 870)

(until 29/08/2025)

18-19 November 2025, Brussels

Early bird € 2 970

(Full fee € 3 370)

(until 03/10/2025)

Important information:

  • Our courses typically take place between 9 AM and 5 PM CET (Brussels, Amsterdam, Paris).

  • Live online sessions will be hosted in Zoom.

  • Face-to-face courses will take place at a four-star business hotel close to the airport.

  • You will receive all practical details after your registration.

For any questions related to the above, please do not hesitate to email Margherita Mutto or contact her by phone at +32 472 03 11 38 .

How to Register

  1. Click the green "Register" button on the course session of your preference.

  2. The registration wizard will guide you through the personal and company data that we need to process your registration.

  3. You have the choice between 2 payment options:

    1. Payment by credit card. You will not be required to pay immediately, but you will receive a secured payment link together with the invoice.

    2. Payment via bank transfer

  4. Click "Register Now". You will be sent an automatic email confirming your registration followed by a personal email containing an invoice and further payment instructions.


For assistance with your registration, please email Annelies Swaan or contact her by phone at +32 486 98 52 49. 
 

Included in the Registration Fee:

For live online courses:

  • Access to a virtual small-class (max 20 participants), expert led course in real-time, using an interactive platform for break-out rooms, whiteboard exercises, polling, plenary discussions and chats.

  • Course material will be provided to you in both digital format (by email) and in hard copy (by post, so you can make notes during the course).

  • Certificate of attendance signed by the expert and CELforPharma.
     

For face-to-face courses:

  • Participation in a small-class (max 20 participants), expert led face-to-face course with interactive group exercises and plenary discussions. You will have the opportunity to meet the expert and discuss your own projects/issues during the breaks.

  • Course material will be provided to you in both digital format (by email) and in hard copy (so you can make notes during the course).

  • Opportunities for networking and informal discussions during coffee/tea breaks and lunch.

  • A group dinner in a nearby restaurant on the evening of day 1.

  • Certificate of attendance signed by the expert and CELforPharma. 
     

VAT Information

The prices on our website are excluding VAT. Depending on the format of the course (face-to-face in Brussels or live online or self-study programme) and your location, we are obliged by Belgian law to apply VAT.

We are obliged by Belgian law to apply VAT in the following cases:

Face-to-Face public course organised in Belgium


Article 53 of the European Union VAT Directive 2006/112 states that : “The place of supply of services in respect of admission to cultural, artistic, sporting, scientific, educational, entertainment or similar events, such as fairs and exhibitions, and of ancillary services related to the admission, supplied to a taxable person, shall be the place where those events actually take place.” 
If the course that you register for takes place in Belgium, we are obliged to charge 21% Belgian VAT. 
However, you can recover this Belgian VAT through the refund procedure. Note that this procedure differs depending on the country where you are located. It is best to contact your local VAT administration for this.
 

Online Public courses -  live webinar


Webinars where the participants can communicate among themselves or ask questions to the speaker(s) (be it verbally, via a chat function or similar), are considered as ‘online interactive webinars’ by the Belgian VAT administration. 
According to Article 53 of the European Union VAT Directive 2006/112, these online interactive webinars take place where the organisation of the seminar takes place, which in this case is Belgium. 
So, if you register for one of our live online courses (organised from our offices in Belgium), we are obliged to charge 21% Belgian VAT. 
However, you can recover this Belgian VAT through the refund procedure. Note that this procedure differs depending on the country where you are located. It is best to contact your local VAT administration for this.
 

Self-Study Programme:


A self-study programme is a service provided electronically. It is the period of self-study that is the most important in our self-study Basics of Health Economics and not the kickoff and closing webinars. As a result, this self-study program follows a different VAT application and the place of the service is where the customer is established. Therefore, we follow the VAT rules applicable to the country of your invoicing address.

 

Group Discounts

Team discounts can be offered to 2 or more delegates from the same company.

Email Annelies Swaan, Director Business Operations, for more details. 
 

Transfer & Cancellation Policy

Flexible Transfer

  • If a registrant cannot attend the scheduled course, he/she can avoid any cancellation charge by sending a suitable replacement participant.

  • Alternatively, the registrant can transfer once on a “space available” basis at no extra cost, until 3 weeks prior to the event, to another course of the same value held within one year of the original course date.

Registration Cancellation

  • Less than 14 days prior to the course date: registrant liable to pay the full invoiced registration fee.

  • Between 15 and 30 days prior to the course date: registrant liable to pay 50% of the invoiced registration fee.

  • More than 30 days prior to the course date: registrant liable to pay a cancellation fee of € 450 per registrant.

  • If a registrant postpones his/her participation to a future course, and cancels again, no refund can be claimed for registration fees.

 

Benefits of CELforPharma’s face-to-face courses:

  • You have the unique opportunity to interact 1:1 with the expert(s).

  • Plenty of opportunity for informal 1:1 and group conversations with your international peers to exchange experiences and ideas, to discuss issues and to network.

  • Face-to-face interactions allow for more depth during Q&As and group work.

  • You can step away from your daily routine in the office and enjoy a more focused learning experience in a comfortable business hotel environment.

 

Benefits of CELforPharma’s live online courses:

  • The formal programme is as impactful as a face-to-face course thanks to the highly interactive format (using breakouts, polls, quizzes …).

  • No travel & accommodation expenses

  • You can attend the course from the comfort of your own office or home.

  • We send you the course materials by post so that you can take notes and fully engage with the course content.

No, if you choose credit card payment, we will send you a secure payment link together with the invoice.

Team discounts can be offered for 2 or more registrations confirmed at the same time. The level of discount will depend on the number of registrations and the availability of seats.

Email Annelies Swaan, Director Business Operations, for more details. 

Depending on the format of the course (face-to-face in Brussels or live online or self-study programme) and your location, we are obliged by Belgian law to apply VAT in the following cases:

Face-to-Face public course organised in Belgium


Article 53 of the European Union VAT Directive 2006/112 states that : “The place of supply of services in respect of admission to cultural, artistic, sporting, scientific, educational, entertainment or similar events, such as fairs and exhibitions, and of ancillary services related to the admission, supplied to a taxable person, shall be the place where those events actually take place.” 
If the course that you register for takes place in Belgium, we are obliged to charge 21% Belgian VAT. 
However, you can recover this Belgian VAT through the refund procedure. Note that this procedure differs depending on the country where you are located. It is best to contact your local VAT administration for this.
 

Online Public courses -  live webinar


Webinars where the participants can communicate among themselves or ask questions to the speaker(s) (be it verbally, via a chat function or similar), are considered as ‘online interactive webinars’ by the Belgian VAT administration. 
According to Article 53 of the European Union VAT Directive 2006/112, these online interactive webinars take place where the organisation of the seminar takes place, which in this case is Belgium. 
So, if you register for one of our live online courses (organised from our offices in Belgium), we are obliged to charge 21% Belgian VAT. 
However, you can recover this Belgian VAT through the refund procedure. Note that this procedure differs depending on the country where you are located. It is best to contact your local VAT administration for this.
 

Self-Study Programme:


A self-study programme is a service provided electronically. It is the period of self-study that is the most important in our self-study Basics of Health Economics and not the kickoff and closing webinars. As a result, this self-study program follows a different VAT application and the place of the service is where the customer is established. Therefore, we follow the VAT rules applicable to the country of your invoicing address.

Our face-to-face courses in Brussels take place in four-star business hotels close to the airport. As part of our strong relationship with these hotels, CELforPharma has secured a discount on the daily room rate for our delegates who book their accommodation via us.   

Upon your registration, we will assist you to make your hotel booking. For any assistance in this matter please do not hesitate to email Margherita Mutto, Course Coordinator, or contact her by phone at +32 472 03 11 38. 

We do not record our live online public courses as we want to offer a safe environment for all attendees to share their experiences and freely ask questions.

This way, by participating in our courses, you do not only learn from our expert faculty but also from your international peers in the room.

No, we don't sell the course materials as a stand-alone. 
Without the expert's explanation, the exercises and the discussions with other course participants, there is very little value in the slides.

Email Inge Cornelis, partner with CELforPharma, to help you choose the course that is best suited. 

Yes! 

We have helped many managers with setting up an in-house training programme for their team. 

Email Inge Cornelis, partner with CELforPharma, to discuss your team training needs.

Do you have any other questions?  
Email Annelies Swaan or call +32 486 98 52 49.

By clicking the below button, you will save this course to MY COURSES in the upper right corner of the website. This allows you to quickly retrieve it later. 

Don’t forget to make a personal account using the Login button in the upper right corner of the website to keep your list of saved courses for your next visit.

Course Details

Dates & Locations

10-11 December 2024

Live online

Register

25-26 March 2025

Brussels

Register

1-2 October 2025

Live online

Register

18-19 November 2025

Brussels

Register

Upcoming Session

10-11 December 2024, Live online

Full Fee € 2 870

Medical Affairs has become a strategically critical function for the success of any pharma product. 

To be effective in strategic decision making and in cross-functional teams, Medical Affairs leaders must master business acumen competencies and understand the fundamentals of other functions that interact with external stakeholders (market access, marketing...).

This 2-day programme equips you with important concepts, tools and techniques that increase the impact of the Medical Affairs role, be it as a manager of teams or as a key contributor in cross-functional teams.

By participating, you will not only have the chance to ask your specific questions to a true expert, but also experience the unique opportunity to share experiences and engage in in-depth discussions with your international Medical Affairs peers.

Very comprehensive and helpful in making things clear and rational. Great course!

Recordati

Valeria Maida, Corporate Medical Affairs - Italy - October 2024

  1. Strategic thinking in the Medical Affairs function.  

  2. How to create, measure and demonstrate value in the Medical Affairs function.

  3. How to use medical insights for a successful brand development strategy.

  4. How to communicate effectively with HCPs.

  5. What Medical Affairs needs to know about patient-centricity, pharmaco-economics, market access and digital communications.

  6. Leadership skills for Medical Affairs. 

Perfect course and teacher, a lot of things to learn in 2 days!

Viatris

Elsa Granger, Medical Advisor - France - October 2024

 

 

To see the detailed agenda, please submit your details in the form below the table.

Day 1 
Welcome & Introduction (~15 min)
The Evolving Role of Medical Affairs (~1 h 15 min)
Drive Medical Insight (~1 h 30 min)
Lunch Break
Own the Data (~45 min)
Communicate and Educate (~2 h 15 min)

 

Day 2
Group Exercise: Scientific Communications (~1 h 30 min)
Engage with Stakeholders (~45 min)
Support the Value Proposition (~1 h 30 min)
Lunch Break
Lead and Manage the Medical Affairs Function (~2 h)
Course review and Summary (~15 min)

 

To see the detailed agenda, please submit your details in the form below:

  • Chris Toller is a leading international consultant in pharmaceutical Medical Affairs who has worked with MA teams across the globe. 

  • Chris’ professional roles have included Managing Director at Choice Healthcare Solutions, Head of Strategy for the Choice Group, and Founder & MD of one of the UK’s first specialist medical communications agencies. Currently, he is Managing Partner at Havas Life Medicom UK. 

  • After his education as a physician, Chris built a career that has enabled him to work with Medical Affairs teams all over the world and in just about every therapy area. He has devised MA strategies and implemented programmes to support more than 50 medical brands on behalf of the world’s leading pharma companies. 

  • In working with these Medical Affairs teams, Chris has discovered over the years what distinguishes a successful Medical Affairs executive from the average performer. And apart from being a creative strategic thinker, Chris is an excellent communicator and an inspirational presenter.

As the impact of medical affairs activities on the commercial success of new pharmaceuticals has increased dramatically, all medical affairs professionals will benefit from this course.


This course is particularly suitable for medical affairs managers involved in the preparation of the market for a new pharmaceutical during the pre-launch phase, as well as new individuals in Medical Affairs departments.

Would you like to receive a list of anonymised participant profiles from previous sessions? 

Email inge.cornelis@celforpharma.com

The average Recommendation Score from participants of the last session was 

9,0/10!

 

 

Read this selection of testimonials from recent participants: 

Very useful training to gain more awareness of the role of Medical Affairs, with also practical tools to use in my daily work. Thanks!

Recordati

Valentina André, Corporate Medical Affairs - Italy - October 2024

Perfect course and teacher, a lot of things to learn in 2 days!

Viatris

Elsa Granger, Medical Advisor - France - October 2024

Very comprehensive and helpful in making things clear and rational. Great course!

Recordati

Valeria Maida, Corporate Medical Affairs - Italy - October 2024

Very valuable course that provides a clear view of the strategically critical role of Medical Affairs in the pharmaceutical industry. Lots of learning from both the great speaker, Chris Toller, and the rich discussions with colleagues.

HRA Pharma Rare Diseases

Anna Sole Ferre, Global Medical Affairs Advisor - France - June 2024

I highly valued this course: clarity in transmitting information, information congruent with reality, Chris’ experience that gives weight to the information shared. It was great!

MagnaPharm

Cristian Olaru, Medical Affairs Manager - Romania - June 2024

This course gave very valuable insights to different fields of medical affairs. I liked the way it was presented and I would definitely recommend to peers!

BioCryst Pharma

Ulrike Pichler, Ass. Director EU Medical Affairs Operations - Germany - June 2024

This was a great learning experience to get the basics on Medical Affairs and get inspired.

Servier

Stéphanie Balmes, Global Medical Affairs - France - March 2024

A very useful course to everyone working in Medical Affairs. It has great content, a very engaging and charismatic speaker and lots of learning and sharing of experiences not only from the speaker, but also from colleagues from other companies. Well worth attending, thanks a lot CELforPharma!

Novartis

Scott Beijn, Medical Manager Cardiovascular Renal & Metabolism - The Netherlands - June 2023

Very good, insightful training. Nice combination of information sharing and break-out sessions.

Servier

Thomas Bruyning, Senior Medical Affairs Officer - The Netherlands - November 2023

High quality training, well prepared and organised. It brings new vision and value to increase our knowledge and skills!

Servier

Weiwei Li-Bertheau, Global Medical Lead - France - September 2023

Thanks, this was a great course. I would definitely recommend it for Medical Advisors or Medical Leads who are new to the position and want a really good overview of MA. Chris is a great teacher and presenter which makes this a really enjoyable 2-day course to attend.

Norgine

Astrid Hartmann, Senior Medical Director, Global Affiliates - Germany - June 2023

Overall an excellent course! The content was high quality and it was made even better by the excellent delivery and experience from Chris. The opportunity for discussion and sharing experiences during the sessions with people from other companies provided additional value, plus the break-out exercises also worked well.

Sandoz

Hannah Stevenson, Therapy Area Head Specialty, Medical Affairs - United Kingdom - March 2023

This is not my first course with CELforPharma, and I certainly am glad I registered with them again for this MA training, I got a lot of value from it. I learnt a lot from Chris. He made QALY simple and made market access simple to understand for non-access people. Also, I learnt a lot about presentation skills - he really knows how to tell a story while presenting.

Cepheid

Grace Macaulay, Senior Medical Director - United Kingdom - March 2023

I like a course that makes me think and gives me new aspects to consider, and these two days with Chris have done that. The standard of the content, of the expert and of the organisation were top level. Thank you to everyone involved for making this such a good experience and a training I am glad I completed.

Leadiant Biosciences

Marc-Oliver Rauch, General Manager Germany - Germany - March 2023

I recommend this course for anyone seeking a new vision in the MA role. I received a new perspective of the role from Chris during the two days and some useful hints on how to build a medical excellence role too. The organisation and management from CELforPharma was great, congrats!

IBSA Institut Biochimique

Paola Fasola, Senior Scientific Advisor & Marketing Manager - Switzerland - March 2023

The organisation of this course is excellent, from the support during registration to the venue location and the instructor is the icing on the cake. You won't be disappointed.

Miltenyi Biotec

Umberto Rosato, Medical Advisor - Italy - March 2023

The experienced instructor made the course very valuable, the course materials were very good and doing group exercises was good. It helped a lot to create a clearer picture of the role of medical affairs. The organisation was very good. I will recommend the course.

Pfizer

Antonia Pfadenhauer, Medical Trainee Oncology - Germany - October 2022

This course had it all. It was a great summary and training on the most important aspects of the medical affairs role. It was interesting and well presented with useful information and practices that I will be able to implement in my work. It was great to have many group exercises and the number of attendees was also optimal in my opinion. CELforPharma was very helpful from the beginning to the end of the course (including the time between registration and start of course). I would definitely recommend it.

Gedeon Richter

Éva Szöllősi, Senior Global Medical Advisor - Hungary - October 2022

The Medical Affairs for Modern Pharma course was excellent. I learnt so much. The speaker is experienced and delivered new and exciting content that will impact my work in my organisation. There was a good mix of presentations and workshops to apply the information which had just been presented. I would recommend going to the F2F version as this was very interactive, and it was great to network with people in other companies from different countries. It was very well organised, Bianca, the course coordinator, was so helpful and everything was clear and communicated seamlessly. 10/10 would recommend it.

Chugai Pharma

Olufolake Ajose-Adeogun, Medical Manager - United Kingdom - October 2022

Chris is a very competent and experienced expert and trainer. He gave lots of useful tools to address MA specific issues. The course covered a lot of important topics and included some valuable interaction within the group to add to our learning. Many thanks to CELforPharma for organising!

Menarini

Rudolf Schneebeli, MSL / Medical Advisor - Switzerland - October 2022

The Medical Affairs for Modern Pharma course was a great accelerated learning opportunity for someone coming from a non-MA/but technology consulting background. It covered the fundamental functions that MA executes, best practices around it and a good framework to think about the value MA can bring to the organisation. This was helpful to think about.

Veeva

Jai Balagopal, Director - United States - June 2022

Great overview of medical affairs.

Basilea

Juana Perdomo-Guiraudet, Global Medical Brand Director - Switzerland - June 2022

I am very glad I attended this course because it deals with the uncertainty we are still facing when we talk about MedAff and gives a good overview of the topic. It can be difficult to create valuable interactions online but thanks to Chris and CELforPharma’s organisation, it was excellent! I will be recommending the course to others.

Sandoz

Roland Starlinger, Global Medical Affairs Lead Oncology - Austria - March 2022

This course helped to fill my knowledge gaps within MA, gave clear and highly valuable templates and new inspiration and motivation to help me in my daily work. Additionally, it confirmed that I seem to have done many things right in the past. Chris was a very charismatic speaker, which is crucial to an online learning format, and CELforPharma were absolutely brilliant and professional throughout. You have set a real benchmark for the service given for course trainings! Thank you very much to you all.

Dr. Willmar Schwabe

Sibylle Sauer, Senior Global Medical Affairs Manager - Germany - March 2022

Great learning in 2 days! The valuable content covers both basic and complex Medical Affairs issues, the sessions are interactive, the presenter is knowledgeable and the organisation is excellent. I highly recommend it!

Olainfarm

Ilze Ledskalniņa, International Brand Manager - Latvia - March 2022

Thanks CELforPharma for a well-presented and highly relevant course. I never stopped learning on it.

Thea Pharmaceuticals

Robert Scott, Head of Medical Affairs - United Kingdom - December 2021

The course covered all aspects of MA that I needed as a MSL to grow within this function. Chris gave many in-depth insights into medical affairs, its many different functions and how it is more of a strategic role and how vital this function is for modern Pharma. Expertise of the moderator was flawless as well as the content and the service of CELforPharma. Top marks all round, well done!

Zogenix

Akshay Menon, Medical Science Liaison - Germany - December 2021

An excellent overview of the Medical Affairs role with concise coverage of major issues relating to modern Medical Affairs. Chris was able to explain the technical issues in a comprehensive manner and gave nice opportunities to speak with the other participants during the group exercises. Thank you, Chris. Also, sincerely, CELforPharma offered an excellent communications experience. It felt as if the participants have been a long-term part of the CELforPharma team. Thanks for helping make this a top course that I would recommend to others to attend.

LAVIPHARM HELLAS

Emmanouil Petrou, Head of Medical Affairs - Greece - December 2021

I really do feel energised and have greater focus in my role in Medical Affairs following the course. Chris truly is an expert in Medical Affairs and fills you with confidence and positivity in the role.

Pfizer

Garreth Dooley, Medical Advisor – Oncology / Haematology - Ireland - December 2021

A nice way to fill gaps on the view of medical affairs.

Thea Pharmaceuticals

Tamara Montenegro, Medical Development Manager - France - December 2021

Great experience, interesting people. Thank you for this very interesting course and the fruitful discussions!!!

Thea Pharmaceuticals

Alice Bodeveix, Chef de projets Médico-Marketing Global - France - September 2021

The whole course experience was first-class. From the organisation of the event to the delivery, which was engaging, interactive and expertly delivered. There is plenty of course content for me to review and reflect on, which will ultimately benefit me personally and the contribution I make within medical affairs.

Napp Pharmaceuticals

Steve Patmore, Medical Advisor - United Kingdom - September 2021

Very good and comprehensive course, covering multiple aspects of Medical Affairs. It offers lots of valuable insights and strategies for the evolving role of MA. I especially liked the interactive atmosphere of the course. Chris is an excellent and highly knowledgeable speaker!

Biotest

Matthias Hauf, Medical Scientific Affairs Manager Transplantation - Germany - September 2021

This is a great course, particularly for those at the beginning of their MA careers. It is insightful and teaches the unteachable.

Napp Pharmaceuticals

Dev Patel, Medical Advisor - United Kingdom - September 2021

An intense but hugely valuable two days of learning covering a diverse range of topics, all of which are key to the success of Medical Affairs in the future.

Novo Nordisk

Katherine Byrne, Sr Director Real World Evidence - Switzerland - June 2021

The course offers a very interesting overview of the medical affairs activity for both junior profiles and for those who work in other departments, and at the same time very interesting insights and recommendations are provided for those who already have experience working in Medical Affairs.

Chiesi

Livia Tomasso, Medical Advisor - Italy - June 2021

A great course which highlights the most relevant aspects of Medical Affairs. Chris is an excellent speaker who gives you practical recommendations to implement in your daily activities.

Janssen

Sophie Vandervennet, Medical Advisor – Cell and Gene Therapy - Belgium - June 2021

I got a good insight into many different topics during this course including how the role of Medical Affairs works today and how it should change for Medical Affairs in the future. I enjoyed learning about medical communication strategies and how MA contributes to brand development. There was lots of nice interaction in the group during the live discussions and breakout exercises. Thank you for an interesting 2 days.

Galderma

Cecilia Persson, Medical Franchise Lead, Toxins - Sweden - March 2021

This course definitely helps you to better understand your role and value in MA. I really liked the expert’s presenting style and his vision of what MA is and should be. There was good interaction within the group and it was nice to talk with people with the same mindset. Thanks for a lovely course!

Novartis

Saartje Burgmans, Medical Advisor Immunology - The Netherlands - March 2021

This was a very comprehensive, focused and well-structured course with great interaction between the group. Great effort made by Chris and CELforPharma. Keep it up!

Chiesi

Tayyab Jahangir, Medical Affairs Manager - Pakistan - March 2021

I think this was a very comprehensive course that captured all the relevant topics of MA. Chris was a very good presenter and gave a lot of hands-on tools to take home and implement into your own job role. The exercises were very good and educational. Overall, a very useful course that was nicely organised by CELforPharma. Thanks!

Galderma

Torun Bromée, Medical Franchise Lead, HA Fillers - Sweden - March 2021

I give a score of 10/10 for this course! The expert speaker was very professional and the knowledge we learned is very useful and practical for my rob role. Everything was well organised and scheduled by CELforPharma. The other participants in the group were so nice and experienced in medical affairs which created some very interesting discussions. The entire course is excellent and deserves recommendation!

FOSUN Pharma

Yan Gen, Medical Advisor - China - March 2021

10-11 December 2024, Live online

Full Fee € 2 870

25-26 March 2025, Brussels

Early bird € 2 970

(Full fee € 3 370)

(until 07/02/2025)

1-2 October 2025, Live online

Early bird € 2 670

(Full fee € 2 870)

(until 29/08/2025)

18-19 November 2025, Brussels

Early bird € 2 970

(Full fee € 3 370)

(until 03/10/2025)

Important information:

  • Our courses typically take place between 9 AM and 5 PM CET (Brussels, Amsterdam, Paris).

  • Live online sessions will be hosted in Zoom.

  • Face-to-face courses will take place at a four-star business hotel close to the airport.

  • You will receive all practical details after your registration.

For any questions related to the above, please do not hesitate to email Margherita Mutto or contact her by phone at +32 472 03 11 38 .

How to Register

  1. Click the green "Register" button on the course session of your preference.

  2. The registration wizard will guide you through the personal and company data that we need to process your registration.

  3. You have the choice between 2 payment options:

    1. Payment by credit card. You will not be required to pay immediately, but you will receive a secured payment link together with the invoice.

    2. Payment via bank transfer

  4. Click "Register Now". You will be sent an automatic email confirming your registration followed by a personal email containing an invoice and further payment instructions.


For assistance with your registration, please email Annelies Swaan or contact her by phone at +32 486 98 52 49. 
 

Included in the Registration Fee:

For live online courses:

  • Access to a virtual small-class (max 20 participants), expert led course in real-time, using an interactive platform for break-out rooms, whiteboard exercises, polling, plenary discussions and chats.

  • Course material will be provided to you in both digital format (by email) and in hard copy (by post, so you can make notes during the course).

  • Certificate of attendance signed by the expert and CELforPharma.
     

For face-to-face courses:

  • Participation in a small-class (max 20 participants), expert led face-to-face course with interactive group exercises and plenary discussions. You will have the opportunity to meet the expert and discuss your own projects/issues during the breaks.

  • Course material will be provided to you in both digital format (by email) and in hard copy (so you can make notes during the course).

  • Opportunities for networking and informal discussions during coffee/tea breaks and lunch.

  • A group dinner in a nearby restaurant on the evening of day 1.

  • Certificate of attendance signed by the expert and CELforPharma. 
     

VAT Information

The prices on our website are excluding VAT. Depending on the format of the course (face-to-face in Brussels or live online or self-study programme) and your location, we are obliged by Belgian law to apply VAT.

We are obliged by Belgian law to apply VAT in the following cases:

Face-to-Face public course organised in Belgium


Article 53 of the European Union VAT Directive 2006/112 states that : “The place of supply of services in respect of admission to cultural, artistic, sporting, scientific, educational, entertainment or similar events, such as fairs and exhibitions, and of ancillary services related to the admission, supplied to a taxable person, shall be the place where those events actually take place.” 
If the course that you register for takes place in Belgium, we are obliged to charge 21% Belgian VAT. 
However, you can recover this Belgian VAT through the refund procedure. Note that this procedure differs depending on the country where you are located. It is best to contact your local VAT administration for this.
 

Online Public courses -  live webinar


Webinars where the participants can communicate among themselves or ask questions to the speaker(s) (be it verbally, via a chat function or similar), are considered as ‘online interactive webinars’ by the Belgian VAT administration. 
According to Article 53 of the European Union VAT Directive 2006/112, these online interactive webinars take place where the organisation of the seminar takes place, which in this case is Belgium. 
So, if you register for one of our live online courses (organised from our offices in Belgium), we are obliged to charge 21% Belgian VAT. 
However, you can recover this Belgian VAT through the refund procedure. Note that this procedure differs depending on the country where you are located. It is best to contact your local VAT administration for this.
 

Self-Study Programme:


A self-study programme is a service provided electronically. It is the period of self-study that is the most important in our self-study Basics of Health Economics and not the kickoff and closing webinars. As a result, this self-study program follows a different VAT application and the place of the service is where the customer is established. Therefore, we follow the VAT rules applicable to the country of your invoicing address.

 

Group Discounts

Team discounts can be offered to 2 or more delegates from the same company.

Email Annelies Swaan, Director Business Operations, for more details. 
 

Transfer & Cancellation Policy

Flexible Transfer

  • If a registrant cannot attend the scheduled course, he/she can avoid any cancellation charge by sending a suitable replacement participant.

  • Alternatively, the registrant can transfer once on a “space available” basis at no extra cost, until 3 weeks prior to the event, to another course of the same value held within one year of the original course date.

Registration Cancellation

  • Less than 14 days prior to the course date: registrant liable to pay the full invoiced registration fee.

  • Between 15 and 30 days prior to the course date: registrant liable to pay 50% of the invoiced registration fee.

  • More than 30 days prior to the course date: registrant liable to pay a cancellation fee of € 450 per registrant.

  • If a registrant postpones his/her participation to a future course, and cancels again, no refund can be claimed for registration fees.

 

Benefits of CELforPharma’s face-to-face courses:

  • You have the unique opportunity to interact 1:1 with the expert(s).

  • Plenty of opportunity for informal 1:1 and group conversations with your international peers to exchange experiences and ideas, to discuss issues and to network.

  • Face-to-face interactions allow for more depth during Q&As and group work.

  • You can step away from your daily routine in the office and enjoy a more focused learning experience in a comfortable business hotel environment.

 

Benefits of CELforPharma’s live online courses:

  • The formal programme is as impactful as a face-to-face course thanks to the highly interactive format (using breakouts, polls, quizzes …).

  • No travel & accommodation expenses

  • You can attend the course from the comfort of your own office or home.

  • We send you the course materials by post so that you can take notes and fully engage with the course content.

No, if you choose credit card payment, we will send you a secure payment link together with the invoice.

Team discounts can be offered for 2 or more registrations confirmed at the same time. The level of discount will depend on the number of registrations and the availability of seats.

Email Annelies Swaan, Director Business Operations, for more details. 

Depending on the format of the course (face-to-face in Brussels or live online or self-study programme) and your location, we are obliged by Belgian law to apply VAT in the following cases:

Face-to-Face public course organised in Belgium


Article 53 of the European Union VAT Directive 2006/112 states that : “The place of supply of services in respect of admission to cultural, artistic, sporting, scientific, educational, entertainment or similar events, such as fairs and exhibitions, and of ancillary services related to the admission, supplied to a taxable person, shall be the place where those events actually take place.” 
If the course that you register for takes place in Belgium, we are obliged to charge 21% Belgian VAT. 
However, you can recover this Belgian VAT through the refund procedure. Note that this procedure differs depending on the country where you are located. It is best to contact your local VAT administration for this.
 

Online Public courses -  live webinar


Webinars where the participants can communicate among themselves or ask questions to the speaker(s) (be it verbally, via a chat function or similar), are considered as ‘online interactive webinars’ by the Belgian VAT administration. 
According to Article 53 of the European Union VAT Directive 2006/112, these online interactive webinars take place where the organisation of the seminar takes place, which in this case is Belgium. 
So, if you register for one of our live online courses (organised from our offices in Belgium), we are obliged to charge 21% Belgian VAT. 
However, you can recover this Belgian VAT through the refund procedure. Note that this procedure differs depending on the country where you are located. It is best to contact your local VAT administration for this.
 

Self-Study Programme:


A self-study programme is a service provided electronically. It is the period of self-study that is the most important in our self-study Basics of Health Economics and not the kickoff and closing webinars. As a result, this self-study program follows a different VAT application and the place of the service is where the customer is established. Therefore, we follow the VAT rules applicable to the country of your invoicing address.

Our face-to-face courses in Brussels take place in four-star business hotels close to the airport. As part of our strong relationship with these hotels, CELforPharma has secured a discount on the daily room rate for our delegates who book their accommodation via us.   

Upon your registration, we will assist you to make your hotel booking. For any assistance in this matter please do not hesitate to email Margherita Mutto, Course Coordinator, or contact her by phone at +32 472 03 11 38. 

We do not record our live online public courses as we want to offer a safe environment for all attendees to share their experiences and freely ask questions.

This way, by participating in our courses, you do not only learn from our expert faculty but also from your international peers in the room.

No, we don't sell the course materials as a stand-alone. 
Without the expert's explanation, the exercises and the discussions with other course participants, there is very little value in the slides.

Email Inge Cornelis, partner with CELforPharma, to help you choose the course that is best suited. 

Yes! 

We have helped many managers with setting up an in-house training programme for their team. 

Email Inge Cornelis, partner with CELforPharma, to discuss your team training needs.

Do you have any other questions?  
Email Annelies Swaan or call +32 486 98 52 49.

By clicking the below button, you will save this course to MY COURSES in the upper right corner of the website. This allows you to quickly retrieve it later. 

Don’t forget to make a personal account using the Login button in the upper right corner of the website to keep your list of saved courses for your next visit.

Dates & Locations

10-11 December 2024

Live online

Register

25-26 March 2025

Brussels

Register

1-2 October 2025

Live online

Register

18-19 November 2025

Brussels

Register