Biotech medical affairs roundtable: Data and AI in 2024

In part one of our roundtable discussions, Inizio experts predicted the 2024 trends in the medical affairs market and discussed the challenges and opportunities for biotech companies. In this piece we will delve deeper into data and AI and in the third piece we will focus on omnichannel engagement.

The rapid advancement of digital technology in biomedical sciences, coupled with the exponential growth of data, is reshaping the healthcare landscape. How can businesses in the biotech and medical affairs space harness data, advanced analytics and real-world evidence to increase positive outcomes for patients, caregivers and healthcare professionals in 2024?

Sam Falsetti, Global Chief Biotechnology & Innovative Solutions Officer, ApotheCom, an Inizio Company:

One issue we hear consistently from our medical affairs clients is that their organizations are drowning in data yet, at the same time, are starving for cohesive, and efficient, analysis and insights. Data availability has exploded in recent years but tools and organizational structures to make meaningful analysis and decisions with that data are still catching up. This is a challenge at an industry level, at a company level, and at an individual employee level. Companies are frequently seeking support from us for a range of large-scale data analysis challenges as well as strategic and operational counsel on how to leverage, analyze, prioritize and act within a data-rich environment in more efficient ways.

David Woods, Vice President Medical Analytics and Innovation, Portfolio Lead, MEDiSTRAVA, an Inizio Company:

The specialized tools and techniques to extract insights from large and disparate data sets can seem like a black box to Medical teams, but most of the time, they are readily available and provide significant benefit when wielded by a team of experts skilled in their usage. When organizations consider technological change a priority, the key challenges tend not to revolve around the technology stack itself, but rather, the ‘human element’ of innovation. Frameworks, processes, internal politics, other alignment issues, a clear, established vision for the output that everyone on the team is oriented toward and working within a culture that is both curious and open to learning from failure are all important considerations. The translation from data to insight is a critical step, which can often fall short. In order to truly deliver value for customers and patients, organizations need to ensure they are bridging the gap between data, insight and action. The opportunities for value extraction that Generative AI now affords mean that the bridge between data and insight has never been so critical.

Caroline Lustig, Vice President, Account Management, MedEvoke, an Inizio Company:

One of the most critical things companies can do is to define a framework in which they evaluate and prioritize insights. This ideally should be based on the impact the company can actually make through their actions. Insights without a correlating implication and action, even if they are interesting, are not high priorities. With so much data available, there is a need to define a process for insights and actions. As part of this framework, companies need to define their “north star” or clinical impact opportunity that they are aiming for, which should also assist in the definition and prioritization of valuable insights. The clinical impact opportunity should yield the strategic prioritization of insights based on the actions that could achieve these objectives. Companies should aim to leverage advanced analytics and augmented intelligence to provide directional insights. This positive feedback loop can help teams move more efficiently and effectively.

How can external partners help companies to harness their data and insights better?

Todor Enev, Managing Partner, MEDiSTRAVA, an Inizio Company:

Our expertise at Inizio encompasses evidence-generation gap analysis and planning for Medical Affairs. Inizio Medical covers everything from company and investigator-sponsored trials to real-world evidence and beyond. Our qualitative expertise is accelerated by data analytics and AI / ML capabilities with qualitative expertise in synthesizing data outputs into coherent and meaningful insights for our Med Affairs clients. Our human and artificial intelligence engagements bring together human brainpower and advanced AI technology. This is particularly applicable in the RWE space, where larger and more complex datasets are put through various types of AI / ML or other advanced analytics platforms. This output can be counterintuitive or confusing unless synthesized into the right framework. Inizio Medical excels at both the technological as well as qualitative aspects of this endeavor.

David Woods:

In the world of medical analytics and innovation, our team of Insight Liaisons is specifically trained as the bridge between data and insight. They excel at working with experts who can extract value from the data, ultimately telling a story that supports both insights and actionable implications.

Caroline Lustig:

We can evaluate extensive amounts of data through advanced analytics and the application of natural language processing, which allows our team to spend more time on the qualitative evaluation of the data that really matters. Our approach to combined human and AI engagement ensures that our work is comprehensive, rigorous, and clearly constructed from strategic drivers that are translated into scoring criteria algorithms, sentiment/alignment standardization, and insight prioritization.