What Does a Medical Technical Writer Do?

Technical writers are found throughout IT, engineering, healthcare, and manufacturing industries, to name a few. Basically, any field that deals in highly technical jargon, e.g., instruction manuals and scientific publications, needs someone to help translate it into more broadly understandable language.

Biologists, engineers, chemists, and other medical professionals responsible for the technical implementation of these solutions are unlikely to have the skills needed to communicate with a layman audience, hence the need for technical writers to act as intermediates.

Medical technical writing exists because pharmaceuticals and medical devices are notoriously complicated and require user manuals and patient education materials to understand them fully. In this regard, the work of a medical writer directly impacts patient wellbeing.



And the industry will likely continue to have more opportunities for technical writing jobs in the future. Medical equipment and devices will always be in need of updates, and new pharmaceuticals will continuously need to be researched and released to the public.

How is technical writing used in pharmaceuticals? It’s worth understanding the scope of what medical writing may cover. For example, medical writers draft and publish works such as:

• User manuals for medical devices
• Operating instructions for equipment
• Medical educational materials
• Marketing materials
• Scientific articles
• Regulatory documentation
• Clinical study reports
• Reference guides
• Content about medical procedures

But it takes more than just an understanding of the English language to craft medical documents. Technical writers take on a variety of roles in their organizations.

Beyond just writing, medical writers have a variety of responsibilities that contribute to their workflows:

• Collaborating with others: Writing technical documentation requires the input of manufacturing staff, business partners, and upper management, among others. Technical writers will have to work closely with these groups to ensure that the information presented is not only accurate, but also aligned with the content standards of the organization.
• Process mapping: Some technical pieces have to do with transcribing process data into easily understandable reports. A writer’s job here would be to cross-check any process deviations or critical gaps in the manufacturing. An analysis of project boundaries and scope would also be included here.
• Contributing to marketing: Sometimes technical writers are employed to create business presentations, website content, promotional content, and newsletters in order to inform others of the benefits of a certain drug or medical device without any of the complex language of the source material.
• Crafting proposals: Technical proposal writing in biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies has to do with providing a persuasive pitch for a medical solution backed up by technical facts and details. The writer introduces the product, explains how the company has used it to solve a medical issue, and any other details of the solution.
• Processing feedback: Feedback and reviews must be taken into account to improve the writing and add in more details without introducing redundancies.
• Staying up-to-date: It’s the responsibility of the writer to have up-to-date medical knowledge and learn medical vocabulary that reflects current standards of medical findings and regulations. Technical writing courses exist for this reason.

We’ll also cover why a technical writer certification matters for mastering these roles in any modern pharmaceutical business.

In addition to hard skills (like medical knowledge and a mastery of the English language and its mechanics), companies hiring technical writers are looking for these specific skill sets:

• An attention to detail that will ensure no essential information is left out of the final product
• Communication skills to collaborate with various departments and get their input
• Proficiency with writing tools, such as templates many companies may utilize
• Familiarity with laws and regulations that apply to the pharmaceutical industry
• Design skills to craft attractive documents. The use of subheadings, tables, figures, and lists, for instance, can make content more accessible to the end user.
• An ability to identify the target audience. Whether it’s a professional doctor, an industry partner, or a regular consumer, you’ll have to understand who your audience is in order to tailor the content appropriately.

Medical writers today obtain these skills partly through industry experience but also through degrees in journalism, communications, medicine, or the sciences, though most companies won’t expect all of these skills from technical writing candidates. In fact, it’s not uncommon to see professional technical writers obtaining most of their training while on the job through online coursework.

Education is a recurring point we’ve made in this article. That’s why technical writer certification programs should be high on your to-do list if you’re interested in entering or advancing a medical writing career.

CfPIE offers an entire certification program tailored for medical writers, covering topics like:

• Communications with the FDA and Medical Device Submissions
• GCP and GLP topics for risk management and undergoing studies
• Technical Writing for Pharma, Biotech and Med Devices
• Writing Effective SOP and Other Process Documents

Nowhere else will you find such a comprehensive course structure that includes everything from medical device technical writing courses to FDA approval guidelines. CfPIE enables you to learn these topics through certified instructors with the flexibility of either customized on-site training for multiple employees, or pre-scheduled public virtual training options.