Medical Writing Jobs For Pharmacist And Pharmacy Students

Medical writing

Medical writing is not very common among pharmacists in Nigeria. As a registered pharmacist, you can make money from the comfort of your home through writing for blogs, newspapers and magazines. Many pharmacists have shown interest in writing for me. Some have written for me. However, my blog is not yet able to afford the value of the article.

What Is Medical Writing

Medical writing involves writing articles in health and related topics for blogs, newspapers and magazines. In return, you get paid. Payment depends on the recipient, the length of article and the topic. There are international blogs, newspapers and magazines which pay in foreign currency and locals that pay in naira. In some cases, the pay is to help project your image to their large audience by adding a link from their page to your social media and bio.

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The need for medical write-up was increased during the 2020 pandemic when most people worked from home. The need for articles on Covid-19 and related conditions was in hot demand. And many pharmacists cash out big time. The beautiful part is that they did not spend money. To avoid losing out on such opportunities in the future, pharmacists can learn now how to go about it. It is very easy.

How To Start Medical Writing

To venture into medical writing, you must be above average in your command of the language you want to use. It is advisable to start with small blogs, newspapers or magazines that can accept almost anything. With them, you can polish your writing. It may take some time and the pay may be small.

To illustrate, I started writing articles for other blogs some months before I started a drugxpert blog. It was when I was sure I was good to go that I created this blog. I could have written for others and continue getting paid. However, I consider the long term benefit of having my own. Writing for others gives me instant small money. However, creating mine will take a long time to make money but the money I will make in the long run is more than writing for others.

When you want to begin, look at the writing style of the blog, newspaper or magazine. Also read up their requirements. Take a look at this here. Find their editorial team contact and send them a mail. The mail should be short and not more than an A4 page detailing who you are, what you want to do, why you are good at it, how you will do it and when you want to start.

If after a two weeks period they are yet to respond, send a reminder email. Their reply may be their terms and conditions. Here is an example. If you are ok with that, then they may ask for a sample or one of your work. Wait for their reply.

If they are happy with your work, they may ask you to continue sending. If not they will tell you to polish the work. Many are kind enough to point out the reason. Avoid sending requests to many editorial teams at the same time. If one rejects your work, send to another.

To avoid getting rejected, send the work out to other people who know how to spot errors first before sending to the editorial team. Send the work to persons that will have time and patience to go through the work and not a very busy person that will span through.

Most newspaper in Nigeria accept medical writing. Send them a mail to confirm.

Things You Need

1. Laptop or phone (computer)

2. Data

3. Time

Key Skills

1. Familiarity with medical terminology and concepts

2. A knowledge niche is common amongst medical writers

3. Strong written communication skills

4. Grammar, spelling and punctuation

5. Clarity and conciseness

6. Ability to write for a range of audiences

7. Strong research skills

8. Literature/reference searching

9. Critical appraisal of medical and health literature

10. Fact-checking

11. Analytical skills

12. Interpretation of research data and statistics

13. Visual presentation of data (tables, graphs, diagrams)

14. An understanding of the ethical principles and legalities that apply to medical communication and publication.

Payment For Medical Writing

The pay by most small blogs in Nigeria range from ₦1000 to ₦5000 per article. They always demand that the article be long. For example, you will hear them say the article should not be less than 2000 words. That is massive. Newspapers and magazines pay way higher. Most start from ₦30000 to ₦150000. However, you should know that they require better articles.

For foreign blogs, they usually pay per word or article. For example, many pay between $0.50 to $5 per word. Others pay about $20 to $50 per article. And they require about 500-800 words per article. Can you beat that?

Read Also: Alternative career in Pharmacy

You can take a look at these blog posts. 1 2 3. They showed some foreign blogs that accept medical writing with pay.

Payment Method

Before you start writing for any foreign blog, newspaper or magazine, check their accepted mode of payment. To be able to receive foreign currency, you may need to create an account that they can pay into. PayPal is the most common payment method. Unfortunately, PayPal accounts in Nigeria do not receive foreign currency but can only send. To go around this, you can use a virtual pin network (VPN) or ask somebody in any PayPal approved country to open one for you. Another way to receive foreign currency is to create a domiciliary account in Nigeria or Payoneer.