Event Overview:
📅 Wednesday, 29th April | ☕ Registration & breakfast from 8:30am | 🕢 9:30am – 4pm | 📍 The IMI, Sandyford
Key Topics:
- Metrics and data management in Medical Affairs
- Balancing field and office responsibilities
- Medical Affairs & Market Access partnerships
- Career progression in Medical Affairs
- Making an impact as an affiliate
Who is this masterclass designed for?
While this masterclass is open to all our members, it will be particularly relevant for Medical Science Liaisons, Medical Advisers and Medical Managers.
Speakers:
Melinda Hall, Country Medical Director – AbbVie
Melinda is the Country Medical Director at AbbVie in Ireland, where she leads the organisation’s medical affairs strategy, scientific engagement and pharmacovigilance oversight across multiple therapeutic areas. She has extensive experience in the pharmaceutical industry, spanning medical leadership, medical affairs and drug safety.
Prior to joining AbbVie, Melinda held several senior roles at Boehringer Ingelheim, including Head of Pharmacovigilance and Cardiovascular Medical Lead, where she led medical teams and supported the delivery of scientific and clinical programmes.
Earlier in her career, she worked in medical affairs roles at Alphapharm, gaining experience across a range of therapeutic areas. Melinda holds a Master of Medical Science in Drug Development from the University of New South Wales (UNSW).
Ruth Connaughton, MSL Lead, Oncology – Novartis
Ruth Connaughton is the Medical Science Liaison Lead for Oncology in Ireland, partnering with healthcare professionals and internal teams to support evidence based scientific exchange and strengthen patient focused initiatives. She leads MSL team strategy and execution across priority oncology areas, with a focus on high quality insights, education, and collaboration with the clinical community. Ruth brings nearly over 10 years of experience across areas such as medical affairs, clinical and translational research, and is passionate about advancing science and improving outcomes for people living with cancer.
She began her career in academic research and holds a PhD in Molecular Biology and Nutrition from University College Dublin’s Conway Institute of Biomolecular and Biomedical Research. Her doctoral work explored molecular and metabolic pathways linked to inflammation and cardiometabolic disease, and she has contributed to several peer-reviewed scientific publications.
Ruth also holds a Master’s degree in Molecular Medicine from Trinity College Dublin and an undergraduate degree in Genetics. Her scientific training and industry experience enable her to bridge academic research, clinical practice and pharmaceutical innovation.
Simon Walsh, Head of Market Access – Bristol Myers Squibb
Simon is the Head of Market Access at Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) in Ireland, where he leads strategy for pricing, reimbursement and health-system engagement to support patient access to innovative medicines. His work focuses on aligning clinical value with health-economic evidence to enable sustainable access to new therapies across the Irish healthcare system.
Simon has extensive experience in health economics, access strategy and payer engagement, working closely with healthcare policymakers, HTA bodies and cross-functional teams across medical, commercial and regulatory functions. Prior to his current leadership role, he held positions in health economics and access strategy within the pharmaceutical industry, including roles at Roche, where he worked on market access strategy and value demonstration for innovative medicines.
His expertise spans health technology assessment (HTA), pricing and reimbursement strategy, value dossiers and stakeholder engagement, helping to ensure that innovative treatments reach patients as quickly as possible within evolving healthcare systems.
Kate O’Keeffe, Scientific Expert, Vaccines – Pfizer
Kate is a Scientific Expert in Vaccines at Pfizer Ireland, where she supports scientific engagement and medical education across Pfizer’s vaccine portfolio. Her role focuses on translating complex clinical data into meaningful insights for healthcare professionals and supporting evidence-based decision-making in immunisation.
Kate holds a PhD in Immunology from Trinity College Dublin, where her research focused on immune responses to infectious disease, including work investigating host immune mechanisms in Staphylococcus aureus infection. Her research has contributed to multiple peer-reviewed publications in the field of immunology.
Before joining Pfizer, Kate worked in academic research and scientific roles in immunology and infectious disease, developing strong expertise in cellular immunity, vaccine science and translational research. In her current position, she works closely with healthcare professionals and public-health stakeholders to support scientific understanding of vaccines and immunisation programmes.
Please note that by registering for this event you agree to share your name and company details with the organisers and the event sponsor.
