WHO AM I?

A medical writer and copy editor (MSc Biomedical Communications) with 15+ years agency experience in medical communications for pharma and med device.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR YOU?

  • I understand how to best communicate science and medicine for education and marketing
  • I write with clarity and accuracy, balancing the needs of the client, audience, and legal/regulatory requirements
  • I collaborate well with multidisciplinary teams, and am comfortable in both leadership and production roles
  • I think globally, stay on top of details, and see projects through from start to finish

MY SERVICES

  • Types of medical writing/editing: Advisory board reports, websites, animation scripts, digital detail aids, CME slide decks, conference booth showpieces
  • Scope of medical writing/editing: Proofreading, copy editing, literature searches, writing, referencing, submissions, management of legal/regulatory feedback
  • Software skills: Aprimo and VeevaVault submission systems, Microsoft Office, Acrobat Pro

MY STORY

My interest in the field of scientific communication was sparked by a summer job during my undergraduate studies in Art & Art History, as a Botanical Illustrator for the University of Toronto Mississauga botany department (1996-97).

Upon graduating I started an internship at Canadian Art magazine. This led to a full-time position as their Production Manager (1998-2000) and courses in copy editing and fact checking with Ryerson’s continuing education department (1999-2000). My participation in the Canadian Magazine Publishing Association’s two-week boot camp (1998) gave me my first professional writing opportunity: a recurring column for Canadian Packaging Magazine.

With a desire to renew my focus on art, I took a position as a Sales Associate/Gallery Manager with Edward Day Gallery (2000-02). While working at the gallery I also took science courses, working toward my goal of a returning to school for a degree in medical communications.

From 2002-04 I studied visual communication and science in the University of Toronto’s Master of Science in Biomedical Communications. My independent research project involved script writing, storyboarding, filming, editing and DVD design.

Upon graduating I worked at Artery Studios Inc. as a Medical Illustrator/Animator (2004-08) researching medical conditions and procedures, creating storyboards, compositing animation footage, and rendering illustrations. During this time I also developed and taught a course in digital image manipulation as a Faculty Member at the Art Institute of Toronto (2007).

In 2008 I joined INVIVO Communications Inc. (now Red Nucleus) as the Director of Interactive Media, managing projects in pharmaceutical and medical communications, which ranged from iPhone games to HD touchscreen kiosks. In many ways it was a return to the responsibilities of my days in publishing, but with the greater thrill of managing my own team of programmers, designers and editors.

In the summer of 2010 I embarked on a year-long sabbatical, joining my husband as his scientific research took him to Washington DC, Hawaii, and Grenoble, France. It was a real change of pace, with time for painting and sketching, photography, museum visits, nature hikes – during which I also kept busy writing an extensive blog of my experiences.

That year also gave me the opportunity to launch Studio Saunders, bringing together my love of art and communication in working with agencies in the health communications sector to provide art, writing and editing services. And I continued to develop my work in medical illustration by freelancing for a major medical textbook publishing company.

After my return to Toronto in 2011, I rejoined INVIVO as a freelance Quality Assurance Editor and Content Developer. In 2013 I became Manager, Quality Assurance at INVIVO, with a subsequent promotion in 2014 to Director, Quality Assurance and Editorial. Our department worked across a wide spectrum, from technical software testing to copy editing to medical writing.

In 2016 I became INVIVO’s Director, Content and Editorial, leading the team in researching and writing animation scripts, digital detail aids, games, training resources, simulators and conference booth showpieces.

In 2017 I returned full time to the creativity and independence of Studio Saunders, providing freelance medical writing and editing services to the health communications field.