Busy procurement professionals in the pharmaceutical industry face huge challenges when it comes to juggling thousands of global suppliers and distributors. But savvy procurement pros also know exactly what to look for when finding partners to support them in their roles as ambassadors of better health.
The bottom line is always about prioritizing and streamlining systems crucial to the delivery of life-saving medications to patients around the world. Clearly accurate and professional translations are an important part of this endeavor. So, pharmaceutical translation services top the list of business support for global life sciences clients.
Language service providers are proud to partner with pharmaceutical companies in the pursuit of improving health outcomes for international patients by:
- Providing accurate medical and clinical trial translations of key documents.
- Ensuring that patient error is not a concern with instructions and product inserts that meet all FDA requirements and other regulatory standards.
- Editing and preparation of foreign language electronic documents for target markets to facilitate getting the word out about new medications.
With the demand for available language service providers rapidly expanding, choosing the right one can be difficult. Here are 3 factors to keep top of mind when making your decision:
1. Have the Right Processes in Place to Reduce Risk
Quality is job #1 when it comes to pharmaceutical translation services. To produce the highest quality translations, i.e., translations that are accurate, appropriate for your target market, and delivered on-time, your provider needs to have the right processes in place.
Although you may be somewhat limited in what you can find out about your language service provider’s process—not being directly involved in the “sausage making”—you may be surprised what you can find out during a conversation about quality control. Ask to see their quality control manual and proof of compliance with quality standards.
When it comes to personnel, processes begin with project managers. Your project manager will be your primary point person throughout the translation process, so make sure they understand your deadlines, your budget, and your expectations. Interview them to get answers to a few key questions: Are they familiar with the demands of pharmaceutical translation services: cost, quality, turnaround time, and evolving project requirements? Are they certified professionals? Can they effectively manage a project of your scope?
In addition to the project manager, the translation process includes translators, editors, and proofreaders. How does your language provider fit these moving pieces together? Are these others qualified through education and experience to deliver exactly what you need? Knowing that your LSP has the right processes in place will reduce your risk and ensure results meet your expectations.
2. Deliver on Technology and Service
Of course, finding qualified translators is a priority. But for exceptional pharmaceutical translation services, innovation through technology that improves workflow and decreases the amount of time life sciences clients must spend talking through requirements can save money and improve outcomes.
Very often, the conversations we have with procurement professionals revolve around cost saving measures. While you are smart to be concerned with hard costs like per-word rates, it’s also important to keep in mind hidden costs associated with outmoded technology or service failings. If you find a language service provider who seeks to innovate through investments in technology and investments in service offerings that align with your priority of providing life-saving medications to patients around the world more quickly and efficiently, you have found a solid partner.
3. Willingness and Ability to Collaborate is a Big Plus
Given the complexity of your supply and distribution chains, as well as the drug development process, you need a language partner who can collaborate with other partners, such as CROs, marketing agencies, patient recruitment firms, and hospital administrators. With a translation provider as global as you are, you can rest assured that you will have access to the resources you need to deliver your product with a quality that exceeds expectations.
Choose the right language partner to achieve your goals
As a pharmaceutical procurement pro, nothing is more important than ensuring patients receive what they need, when, and where they need it to improve health outcomes. When you choose a provider that can deliver pharmaceutical translation services with an efficient process, innovative technology, and a willingness to collaborate strategically, you enhance your reputation as an ambassador of better health.
If you are ready to find an experienced language service partner that delivers on all of the above, DTS Language Services, Inc. is ready to go above and beyond to help you achieve your goals. Contact us and let’s talk about how we can work together.
