Director, US Patient Services

Overview

Reporting to the Senior Director, US Patient Services, we seek an experienced, patient and business-focused individual to serve as the strategic liaison with the Rare Disease Business Unit. This individual will manage a small, field-based team of Patient Education Liaisons (PELs) and an existing Regional Manager with a small team of existing, dedicated Case Managers reporting to him/her. The Patient Education Liaison (PEL) and the Case Manager are both critical components of the Alnylam commercial strategy and work in close coordination with Field Sales, Field Reimbursement, Brand Marketing, Patient Services Marketing, Patient Services Operations and Patient Advocacy Teams to support Alnylam’s patient-focused vision of harnessing a revolution in biology for human health®.

 

The Rare PEL team will be responsible for educating patients, caregivers, families, and community groups affected by, or at risk for the disease states relevant to Alnylam’s Rare Business – specifically, acute hepatic porphyria (AHP) and primary hyperoxaluria (PH). A key role of the team will be to provide in-depth education about disease state, the inherited nature, available diagnostic options, and the significance of early treatment. Team members will also be responsible for engaging with select healthcare providers within their geographic region.

The Rare Case Management team is responsible for driving the therapy initiation process and, as such, work with patients, caregivers, prescribing and treating HCPs, specialty pharmacies, and payors.

 

The successful candidate must be passionate about science and deeply motivated by the quest of delivering value to patients and their families with the long-term success of the company in mind. He/she will work in very close collaboration with the Director of Case Management and Director of Patient Education for the TTR Business Unit to maintain an appropriate level of cohesion across these critical Patient Services functions, while focusing exclusively on the Rare Business disease states and therapies.

He/she will collaborate with the Rare Disease Business Unit to set strategy, work collaboratively with internal and external colleagues to build tactical plans, and build a seasoned, highly trained team to execute the strategic imperatives. Paramount to this role, this individual is accountable for delivering a positive patient and healthcare provider experience by assessing needs and developing action plans that identify and troubleshoot barriers to support treatment initiation and ensure continuity of care throughout the patient treatment journey.

 

Key Responsibilities

 

• Drives an elevated patient experience for Alnylam’s Rare Disease customers.
• Collaborates compliantly with all Program Brand Leads, Marketing, Field Sales, Medical Affairs, Advocacy and other critical functions to reinforce key performance indicators that align with overall Patient Services metrics.
• Identify, develop, and lead opportunities for key strategic initiatives to support insight generation and strong external customer support.
• Onboards in select cases, and sustains a high-performing and diverse team of experienced Patient Education and Case Management team members.
• Leverages Training department (part of Commercial Operations) to develop and reinforce training plans.
• Provides comprehensive updates on activity to regional colleagues, ensuring that the regional team is working seamlessly as one entity.

 

• Offers constructive feedback on existing workplan and proposes innovative service offerings to leadership where opportunities exist.
• Participate in the development of materials that increase provider and patient/caregiver awareness of Alnylam’s patient support services.
• Deliver on key objectives established annually and demonstrate accountability for execution and drive results.
• Actively contributes to the annual business/brand planning process with Marketing and leadership.
• Participate in overall Patient Services budget management .
• Participate on various cross-functional teams, representing the US Patient Services team.
• Overall team performance management, including coaching, training, development and evaluation.
• Ensures compliance with all corporate and industry policies per training provided by Alnylam Commercial, Legal, Regulatory, and Compliance Officers.

 

Qualifications

 

• Bachelor of Science, Registered Nurse or other relevant clinical/medical degree required
• 10+ years of Pharmaceutical/biotech experience required
• 5+ years prior experience working as a nurse or patient educator required
• 5 years prior experience working in Case Management required, preferably as a manager of people
• Knowledge of US payer coverage and reimbursement environment, CMS policies about access services and pharmaceutical channel dynamics
• Knowledge of regulations and laws governing the protection of patient identifying information (HIPAA, HITECH)
• Familiarity with patient and provider support services, co-pay assistance and patient assistance programs, and/or case management experience Strong leadership abilities with demonstrated experience in leading and coaching teams

 

• A proven track record of successful project delivery and positive performance results
• Experience supporting and providing education to patients and family members affected by rare genetic diseases or other chronic illnesses a plus
• Exceptional interpersonal skills, professional communication, problem-solving, compassion and the ability to navigate difficult conversations
• Ability to translate scientific/medical information into patient-friendly language
• Ability to work well and lead within with cross-functional groups and in a matrix organization
• Models and fosters team effectiveness by sharing knowledge, experience, and information across departmental boundaries
• Quality-driven approach with attention to detail and accuracy
• Strong organizational skills and ability to adapt to change and react constructively in a high-energy and fast paced environment.
• Desire to innovate and work in a fast-paced, energetic environment
• Self-starter who is highly passionate about rare disease and Alnylam’s core values:
  • Commitment to People, Innovation, Discovery, Purposeful Urgency, Open Culture, and Passion for Excellence.
• Ability to travel to home office a minimum of 2 days/week as needed and during pertinent meetings