Leading global drug development consultancy Boyds has bolstered its clinical team with the appointment of experienced pharmaceutical physician Dr Karen Mullen FFPM as Chief Medical Offer (CMO) and Vice President of Clinical and Medical Affairs.

Karen joins Boyds from GlaxoSmithKline, with her most recent role being Country Medical Director for the UK and Ireland in which she led and managed a large medical department across clinical research, pharma, and vaccines. Karen’s previous roles at GSK include Head of Medical Affairs, Director of Vaccines, and Director of Metabolic Medicine.

With more than 20 years’ experience in medical affairs and drug research and development in Europe, the US, and Australia, Karen has also worked as an independent consultant providing a range of medical services to pharmaceutical companies, including Pfizer and Roche. Prior to this, Karen spent five years at Eli Lilly in various Physician roles.

Karen is a Fellow of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine (FFPM) and was a member of the Prescription Medicines Code of Practice Authority (PMCPA) Appeal Board for three years. Previously, she also chaired the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) Code of Practice Working Group on behalf of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine (FPM) as well as being involved in various other ABPI working groups.

At Boyds, Karen will lead the Clinical and Medical Affairs department and its team of pharmaceutical physicians, providing medical monitoring support, and safety, pharmacovigilance, scientific and medical advice across a wide range of client projects including advanced therapies and orphan drugs.

Professor Alan Boyd, President and Founder of Boyds, said: “It is an absolute honour to welcome Karen to Boyds as we embark on the next stage of our growth. Karen’s in-depth industry expertise and experience and passion for innovation in medicine mean she is the ideal fit to lead the clinical and medical affairs team, enabling me to shift my focus onto growing and developing the company as we support an increasing number of clients with developing new and innovative medicines for the benefit of patients.”

Of her appointment, Karen said: “Having previously worked as a consultant to Boyds and seeing the transformational work the business carries out, it is a great privilege to now be leading the Clinical and Medical Affairs team and building on its pioneering work.

“I have always been passionate about bringing innovative science to patients, which is why Boyds feels like the perfect fit for this next chapter of my career. It is an incredibly exciting, inspiring company that is working at the cutting-edge and is dedicated to bringing true innovation for the benefit of patients around the world.”

Boyds is a product development consultancy, providing a range of expertise and skills central to the development of pharmaceutical and biotechnology medicinal products and medical devices.