The International Medical department integrates clinical development and medical affairs activities at the regional and local level. Country-based Medical Directors oversee all medical activity within a given country, including the integration of local medical and scientific insight into regional and global strategies and plans.

The R&D operation is supported by a medical group comprised of physician specialists who are focused on the main therapeutic areas of the company; namely haematology and oncology, renal and general medicine, osteoporosis and inflammation. We work closely with the Global Study Management Group and are supported by Regulatory, Biostatistics and Clinical Data Management, as well as the Safety groups both in the UK and in our US headquarters in Thousand Oaks.

Our Medical groups across Europe facilitate the critical step from drug development to commercialisation. Based on a solid understanding of diseases and their current treatments, we aspire to improve people's lives by changing the practice of medicine.

We generate scientific and medical data by conducting clinical research, supporting investigator-sponsored research and performing data and literature analyses. We also communicate the data through medical-scientific communication and education, working closely with opinion leaders in the relevant disease areas.

To support a successful market entry and best-possible patient access for new drugs, we collaborate closely with our colleagues in Marketing and Health Economics, using a single operational platform to ensure that a consistently high study execution standard is maintained from Phases 1 to 4.