Featured Articles

Patents, Genes and the Future of Biotech

March 31, 2010 16:20

The decision yesterday rendered by Federal District Court Judge Robert W. Sweet that invalidated the patents issued to Myriad Genetics for the breast cancer marker genes BRCA1 and BRCA2 is analogous to the “shot heard round the world” that kicked off the American Revolution in...

How Social Media May Be Influencing Human Clinical Trials and Access to Potentially Life-Saving Investigational New Drugs

January 29, 2010 17:08

It’s no secret that pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies are “not in love” with social media. However, whether life sciences company like it or not, social media is beginning to affect human clinical testing with an increasing number of patients demanding access to...

FDA is on Twitter?????

Cliff Mintz
September 16, 2009 22:00

Mark Sendak who runs the EyeonFDA blog reported yesterday that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had launched a Twitter account. As Mark aptly points out, FDA’s unexpected leap into social media is ironic given that the agency has been steadfastly reluctant to craft any guidance...

Managing Troublesome Co-Workers During a Recession

Cliff Mintz
June 21, 2009 15:43

Everybody who works for a living has to learn how to deal with annoying co-workers who, either directly or indirectly, may have an effect on your career trajectory.  However, we are living in uncertain financial times, when having a job--no matter the circumstances--is more important than...

Social Networks and Corporate Recruiting: Leveraging Employee Referrals to Find New Talent

Cliff Mintz
June 01, 2009 16:05

The advent of social networking sites like MySpace, Facebook and Linked In have been a boon to recruiters and human resources (HR) professionals. Social networks represent a vast and easily-accessible source of job candidates whose professional credentials and personal information are readily...

Alternate Careers for PhDs: Taking the Path Less Traveled

Cliff Mintz
November 03, 2009 13:49

I suspect by the growing numbers of people who read BioJobBlog, that some of you may be beginning to wonder who I am. While nobody has taken me to task about my credentials or musings to date, I figured it may be worthwhile to share my “story” with those BioJobBlog readers who may be at...

The Swine Flu Epidemic: It Isn't The First and Won't Be the Last!

Cliff Mintz
May 05, 2009 01:18

Do you lie awake a night overwhelmed by the possibility of another infectious disease outbreak? Well, if you want to get a good night’s sleep, I highly recommend that you take a look at a brief history of American epidemics that was published in this past Sunday’s New York Times....

FDA-Social Media Update: Will FDA Guidance Really Solve the Problem?

Cliff Mintz
November 13, 2009 17:53

Unlike many of my social media colleagues, I’m not attending the FDA public hearing taking place in Washington, D.C today (Friday the 13th oh my). I wanted to attend and actually testify but I didn’t understand how the process works and blew my opportunity. However, I will be...

Social Media, Regulatory Guidance and Patent Advocacy

Cliff Mintz
December 18, 2009 16:06

Jonathan Richman, author of the Dose of Digital Blog, got it exactly right in today’s post  entitled “Patients WILL Have the Final Say on Pharma Social Media” He was spot on with his conclusion that while social media pundits and patient advocacy groups can push FDA to...

Social Media: Pharma's Continuing Web 2.0 Inertia

Cliff Mintz
October 08, 2009 14:46

I came across a recent post on Adage.com entitled “Pharma Drops Search Advertising After FDA Warning” that revealed that paid search ads by pharmaceutical companies dropped a 84% between March 26 of this year and the end of June. As you may recall, March 26 was when 14 companies...