# Medical Affairs > Medical Affairs communicates scientific evidence to healthcare professionals, payers and policymakers, while bringing external insights back into strategy to support the safe and effective use of treatments. Source: https://www.visfo.health/glossary/medical-affairs Updated: 2026-08-16T21:54:59.963061+00:00 What is Medical Affairs? Medical Affairs is a strategic function within pharmaceutical, biotechnology and consumer healthcare organisations. It communicates scientific and clinical data to healthcare professionals, payers and policymakers so they can make informed decisions about the safe and effective use of treatments. The function connects internal evidence and expertise with external clinical practice. It also brings questions, evidence gaps and stakeholder perspectives back into the organisation, helping teams adapt medical strategy as science, treatment pathways and clinical practice evolve. Why does Medical Affairs matter to a life sciences organisation? Medical Affairs helps an organisation understand how its evidence is interpreted and applied outside the company. It provides scientific context that may not be addressed by regulatory approval or promotional communication alone, including unmet needs, treatment selection, real-world use and areas of clinical uncertainty. This supports evidence-based medicine and informs decisions across evidence generation, publications, congress activity, medical education and lifecycle planning. Medical Affairs may also work with [market access](/glossary/market-access) teams where clinical evidence must be understood alongside payer and health-system needs. How is Medical Affairs run in practice? Medical Affairs usually works through an annual or lifecycle medical plan based on the treatment landscape, available evidence, stakeholder needs and identified evidence gaps. Activities are prioritised according to a defined medical strategy and reviewed as new data or insights emerge. Typical responsibilities include: - developing medical strategy and scientific narratives - supporting publications, congresses and evidence dissemination - responding to unsolicited medical questions through appropriate channels - conducting non-promotional [scientific exchange](/glossary/scientific-exchange) - identifying evidence gaps and contributing to evidence-generation plans - engaging external experts through field activity, meetings and advisory forums - training internal teams on disease and product science - reviewing activities for scientific accuracy and appropriate governance What role do Medical Science Liaisons play in Medical Affairs? A [Medical science liaison](/glossary/medical-science-liaison-msl) is a field-based scientific professional who acts as a bridge between the company and external stakeholders. MSLs hold peer-level discussions with healthcare professionals and other experts, explain relevant scientific evidence and respond to legitimate scientific questions within applicable rules and company processes. They also listen. During field visits and other interactions, MSLs identify recurring questions, changes in clinical practice, evidence gaps and differences in stakeholder needs. These observations can guide medical plans, research priorities and internal decision-making, but they must be captured and interpreted systematically rather than treated as isolated comments. How should Medical Affairs turn field observations into useful insights? Effective [medical insight capture](/glossary/medical-insight-capture) separates an observation from an actionable insight. Teams record the underlying stakeholder need or change, add enough context to interpret it, combine related observations and assess their relevance to medical objectives. Personal data and identifiable comments should be handled under the organisation’s governance requirements. Good insight processes include clear categories, consistent documentation, defined review ownership and feedback to field teams. Common weaknesses are collecting large volumes of meeting notes without synthesis, presenting individual opinions as established trends, and failing to show whether an insight changed a decision, plan or evidence activity. How does Medical Affairs differ from commercial, regulatory and market access functions? Medical Affairs is centred on scientific credibility, non-promotional engagement and the appropriate use and interpretation of evidence. Commercial teams focus on business and promotional strategy, while regulatory teams manage approval requirements, product information and regulatory compliance. Medical Affairs collaborates with both but requires clear roles and governance to protect the integrity of scientific activity. Market access focuses on demonstrating value and supporting access, reimbursement and adoption within health systems. Medical Affairs may contribute clinical evidence and stakeholder understanding, but it does not replace market access. Scientific exchange is one activity performed by Medical Affairs, MSLs are among the people who deliver it, and insight capture is the process that converts learning from those interactions into evidence-informed organisational action.