Why a market access career in Singapore is so rewarding

Written by Smarth Lakhanpal

“A career in market access is about making a difference to people’s lives” says Smarth Lakhanpal, Senior Consultant at PRMA Consulting, part of Fishawack Health.  

In this update, the second in our series about market access careers in Asia-Pacific, Smarth shares his thoughts about what it takes to succeed in market access, the benefits of working within our team based in Singapore, and why he finds his career so rewarding.

Market access in the Asia-Pacific region makes for an exciting and rewarding career choice  

For me, a career in market access is about making a difference to people’s lives. Improving patient access to novel healthcare innovations is the final product of a career in market access. Knowing that you have made an impactful contribution to people’s quality of life makes market access deeply rewarding.

When I consider this in the context of the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, we are presented with unique and engaging challenges – such as the evolving blend of public, private, and alternative funding mechanisms, and the growing need for universal healthcare and adoption of health technology assessments in pricing and reimbursement decision-making.

This results in the need for agility and innovation, which makes it an exciting time to be working in market access in the APAC region.

To thrive in market access consulting you need foresight and awareness

I believe that there are several core skills required to work within market access consulting. These vary from hard skills such as a deep knowledge of health economics, reimbursement, and regulatory processes, to softer skills, including strong analytical competencies and problem solving.

However, to really succeed in this role, you need the foresight to anticipate the multifaceted impact of decisions made across all functions – starting from upstream clinical design to downstream commercialization – on establishing the value of a proposed intervention.

This is important, not only to the healthcare ecosystem in general, but also to patients as the end users. I believe this foresight and awareness is the differentiating factor that can really enable someone to thrive in market access consulting.

I enjoy helping clients to address the complex access challenges of the Asia-Pacific region

The APAC region is characterized by its dynamic nature and rapidly evolving markets, and our APAC team, based in Singapore, is leading many ground-breaking market access projects in the region.

I enjoy working in a dynamic and complex market access environment, where the stakeholders are varied and challenges are unique; it really enables me to help our clients think about access more holistically and possibly redefine their strategies.

I also work with colleagues around the world who have a depth of experience in policy, access, value, and evidence; and with colleagues within Fishawack Health who have expertise in the core disciplines of Medical, Marketing, and Consulting. I value being able to make connections, bring a broader access lens, and incorporate a global perspective to my work with clients.

Our team in Singapore has a shared passion for improving patient access to healthcare

Collaborative thinking and active listening are two attributes that I value in my team here in Singapore. We all understand that by working together, authentically, and with integrity, we achieve so much more.

I also appreciate our shared passion for improving patient access to healthcare, which keeps us focused and serves as a constant reminder of why we do the work that we do.

You can see examples of this in the “Building a healthier Asia” report that focuses on key access topics relating to strategic partnerships, trust, digital health, supply chain, and healthcare financing to improve patient access to healthcare innovations. 

Call into our Singapore office, or get in touch online, to find out more about our market access career opportunities

A successful career within market access at PRMA Consulting can offer you the opportunity to develop as part of a diverse, dynamic, and inquisitive global team.

We are always looking for people who will deliver first-class work, so please do call into our Singapore office or get in touch to find out more about our career opportunities.