by Julie Fine, BS, Legal Specialist, Worldwide Research and Development, Pfizer, Inc.,  La Jolla, California

PRIM&R is pleased to introduce another member of the PRIM&R Blog Squad for the 2013 Advancing Ethical Research (AER) Conference. The Blog Squad is composed of PRIM&R members who will blog on Ampersand about the conference to give our readers an inside peek of what’s happening November 7-9 in Boston, MA.

I’m thrilled to have been accepted once again as a member of the Blog Squad for PRIM&R’s Advancing Ethical Research (AER) Conference. I had such a great experience as a blogger at the last year’s conference in San Diego, and I’m eager to do it again this year.

As a legal specialist at Pfizer, Inc., I deal with the practical aspects of clinical trials operations and human research protections in sponsored study agreements. My work integrates legal, ethical, regulatory, and research policies and procedures in contract terms. The AER Conference offers food for thought in all of these areas; it’s a veritable smorgasbord of content.

I’m particularly interested in hearing the keynote addresses by the impressive slate of speakers. The topics are spot on for this year’s conference: healthcare delivery in the 21st century; targeted cancer therapies; microeconomics in the fight against poverty; and a retrospective of therapeutic misconception from an ethical, legal, and social perspective. And I’m ready to join in the celebration of, PRIM&R’s executive director, Joan Rachlin’s many achievements in the field of research ethics on Saturday, November 9, when she receives PRIM&R’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Excellence in Research Ethics.

As a Blog Squad member, I will share my impressions and insights from an industry perspective. I’m really looking forward to getting back to Beantown for the 2013 AER Conference.