Medical Technical Writing Skills For 2023 and Beyond?

Writing Skills

What skills do you need to be a technical writer? You’ll need to learn and practice a wide variety of skills. We’ll start by exploring the writing skills necessary to succeed in this career path.

Technical Writing Skills

One of the foundational skills of a technical writer in the medical or pharmaceutical industry is mastering technical writing itself. 

Technical writing varies from other writing styles and is also found in various industries. Mastery of technical writing creates the foundation for effective and transparent dissemination of critical medical knowledge.

What are technical writing skills in the context of the medical industry? A skilled medical writer excels in clarifying complex medical information, which makes this information accessible to a broad audience, ranging from healthcare professionals to regulators and patients. 

The exact responsibilities vary based on the company and specific role. For example, some medical technical writers produce marketing content or clinical study reports, while others create reference guides or educational materials. 

Documentation Software

Proficiency in using documentation tools and software is a necessity. Technical documentation skills begin with familiarity with programs like Microsoft Word, Adobe Acrobat, and specialized medical writing software.

Knowing how to use documentation software streamlines document creation and formatting. Additionally, you’ll be able to enhance productivity while ensuring that documents adhere to industry presentation and accessibility standards.

Medical Writing Guidelines

Knowledge of industry-specific writing guidelines is one of the necessary medical technical writer skills. Understanding recognized standards, such as the International Conference on Harmonisation (ICH) guidelines for pharmaceuticals or the CONSORT statement for clinical trials, makes sure your work adheres to established norms. This adherence boosts the credibility and consistency of written materials and fosters confidence in their reliability.

Editing and Proofreading

Strong editing and proofreading skills are essential. These cornerstone skills enable the thorough review and refinement of written materials, ensuring clarity, coherence, and correctness in the final documents. 

These two skills are crucial for maintaining the highest standards of accuracy and quality in all written materials, from clinical reports to regulatory submissions.

Medical Skills

A medical technical writer requires a firm grasp of various medical skills to perform different roles accurately and efficiently while maintaining full compliance. Let’s break down the vital medical skills needed to be a technical writer in this industry.

Medical Terminology

A thorough understanding of medical terminology is necessary for a medical technical writer. Terminology encompasses deciphering intricate medical jargon and navigating the complexities of anatomy, physiology, pharmacology, and the subtleties within diverse medical specialties. 

This knowledge is required for precisely and accurately communicating medical concepts to a diverse audience, which may not have any medical training depending on the specific task.

Regulatory Knowledge

Comprehensive knowledge of healthcare regulations and guidelines is of the utmost importance for a medical technical writer. This knowledge includes navigating the intricacies of regulatory bodies, such as the FDA, and understanding stipulations governing medical devices and pharmaceuticals. 

Regulations may apply directly to the type of material being produced. As such, a deep understanding of healthcare compliance in documentation ensures you can navigate regulatory requirements and industry standards.

Clinical Research

One of the crucial technical writer skills is proficiency in clinical research methodologies and related terminology. A medical technical writer navigates the complexities of data or raw reports from clinical trials and skillfully transforms clinical trial data into coherent, accurate, and reader-friendly content.

This skill is indispensable for creating informative documents that adhere to rigorous scientific standards, which contributes significantly to advancing medical knowledge.

Healthcare Trends

Staying aware of healthcare trends is an important skill and worth the time. You’re expected to be current on emerging technologies, evolving treatment modalities, and breakthroughs in the medical landscape.

You’ll then have a more robust contextual understanding of the entire industry, which goes far in your specific tasks. Cultivating this awareness plays a pivotal role in producing content that mirrors the latest advancements in healthcare, ensuring that documents remain relevant and impactful.

Medical Illustration

Proficiency in incorporating medical illustrations or diagrams introduces a visual element to written materials. This skill enhances the clarity of intricate medical content, facilitating the audience's grasp of complex concepts. 

An adept medical technical writer can effectively employ visual elements to complement textual information, ensuring the content is informative and visually engaging.

Documentation Types

A medical writer needs to be familiar with various types of medical documentation. Understanding the unique requirements of each document type is pivotal for creating new content effectively, which includes:

• Clinical study reports
• Regulatory submissions
• Patient education materials
• Medical device manuals.

Knowing the differences between these documentation types helps writers produce accurate and customized documents to meet specific objectives.

Compliance and Quality Assurance

Proficiency in quality assurance processes is of utmost importance. A thorough understanding of quality control procedures and the capability to ensure written materials meet strict regulatory and industry standards are critical for upholding document integrity and reliability. 

This skill ensures that the documents convey information accurately and adhere steadfastly to established quality benchmarks, enhancing their credibility and utility.

Soft Skills

Many of the characteristics of technical writing involve hard skills, which we considered above. However, soft skills are also necessary to build a long-term medical, technical writing career. 

Let’s discuss some of the necessary soft skills you’ll need, and be aware that many of them also include elements of hard skills.

Communication Skills

Effective communication is crucial for working on a team or with medical experts. Interpersonal communication is vital when collaborating closely with subject matter experts, researchers, and regulatory professionals. 

The ability to articulate intricate ideas and receive feedback with clarity and professionalism is extremely valuable. This skill ensures that the final document faithfully represents the collective expertise and knowledge amassed by the team.

Ethical Considerations

Understanding ethical principles is necessary for medical writing. Upholding principles such as patient confidentiality and adhering to authorship guidelines is critical. 

The commitment to ethical standards safeguards the writer's reputation and the integrity of all documents produced. Ethical standards must be upheld throughout the entire document creation process, assuring the trust and credibility of the content.

Project Management

In certain instances, medical technical writers may work as project managers. Overseeing and coordinating the progress of multiple documents and deliverables is a significant asset to the writer’s team and can help advance their career.

The skills of a project manager ensure punctual delivery of milestones and adherence to stringent quality standards. Simultaneously, a skilled manager maintains an efficient and well-organized documentation process that aligns with the broader objectives of the project, resulting in a positive and productive workflow.

Additionally, project managers need strong intrapersonal skills to effectively work with other writers and their own managers to complete the project effectively.

Scientific Background

A robust scientific background in biology, chemistry, pharmacy, nursing, or another scientific field is an invaluable asset for a medical writer. This knowledge helps the writer understand and explain the intricate scientific and medical concepts with accuracy and credibility. 

Beyond enhancing comprehension, a scientific background empowers the writer to evaluate scientific literature critically, helping create documents firmly rooted in sound scientific principles. 

Attention to Detail

What makes a good technical writer? One of the core skills of a reliable technical medical writer is meticulous attention to detail. This skill provides precision and accuracy in all medical documents, from scientific data to terminology usage. 

Readers rely on these documents for informed decision-making in the healthcare field, making attention to detail a core skill to produce reliable and trustworthy documents.

Become a Technical Writer Today with CfPIE

You can see how becoming a technical writer and succeeding in this career requires many skills. While it may seem daunting, all these skills can be trained and refined as your career progresses.

CfPIE provides a wide range of pharmaceutical and medical training, including the range of skills necessary to become a technical writer. Are you ready to start your new career? Learn more about our medical technical writing courses today.