Summer Intern Perspectives: Amy Wu, AMCP Foundation/AbbVie Specialized Summer Intern
Published October 2021
This summer, I had the incredible opportunity to be one of two AMCP Foundation/AbbVie Specialized Summer Interns in Health Outcomes. What led me to apply to this internship was my interest in learning more about health economics and outcomes research (HEOR). This interest first arose from a previous research project conducted through my school’s pharmacotherapy and outcomes science department. I was also a P&T Competition Coordinator for my school’s AMCP chapter, which confirmed my interest in this internship.
This internship gave me greater insight into non-traditional pharmacy careers, especially within the industry and managed care. Although I was unable to spend time in Abbvie and AMCP’s headquarters, I was able to work in a multidisciplinary team and network with individuals in HEOR, Payer Strategy, Market Access, Regulatory Affairs, and Clinical Development seamlessly in a virtual environment. From these informational interviews, I was able to gain greater insight into the cross-functional collaboration between these different areas and better understand the functions and roles within Abbvie. Hearing their journeys within the pharmaceutical industry field was truly inspiring and has expanded my perspective of a pharmacist’s role within this space.
For my capstone project at Abbvie, I completed a systematic literature review that focused on the economic outcomes of postoperative atrial fibrillation (POAF) patients after cardiac surgery. This was most definitely a fast-paced but rewarding experience as it helped me develop the skill set of a HEOR researcher within the Global Health Economics and Outcomes Research (GHEOR) department. It was exciting to delve into a therapeutic area and the fulfilling knowledge that the research will be used to present the value of Abbvie’s product. In addition to my capstone project, which will be presented as a poster at AMCP Nexus 2021, I was able to conduct informal literature reviews, further delving into the therapeutic areas, POAF, and multi depressive disorder (MDD). I also gained experience in building Markov cohort models through the innovative program: Health Economics in R Online (hēRo3) Economic Modeling.
Every week during this internship, I interacted with other AMCP Foundation interns, residents, managed care pharmacists, and pharmaceutical industry leaders. This gave me further appreciation of the interlinkage between managed care and the pharmaceutical industry. I presented a journal club topic and attended informative webinars such as a review on payers, reimbursement, and the current managed care landscape.
I’d like to give the biggest thanks to my preceptors Sara Higa, Tae Jin Park, Darshini Shah, and Patrick Gillard for including me in exciting HEOR projects and being a source of constant support to me through not only my internship but through my career development journey. I would also like to thank Ebony Clay, Paula Eichenbrenner, and Susan Cantrell for providing constant support toward the intern team. Lastly, I’d like to thank Elizabeth Sampsel for patiently teaching me the fundamentals and importance of managed care. I will forever be grateful for this invaluable experience working alongside brilliant individuals within the industry and managed care.
Support managed care research and the cultivation of tomorrow's leaders by making a gift today!