Decoding Biotech Nursing with Genentech Nurse Leader Keith Dawson

Thinking about leaving the bedside and curious about biotech?

Nurse.org interviewed Keith Dawson, DNP, MS, RN, Senior Director, Global Population Science, Genentech (A Member of the Roche Group), to demystify biotech nursing. Genentech is a South San Francisco biotechnology company and a member of the Roche Group.

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Q: You Started as an ICU Nurse, Then a Clinical Trial Unit Changed Your Path. What Pulled You Out of the ICU and Into Research?

A: While at Georgetown, I had my first experience with clinical research nurses who worked at Georgetown’s AIDS clinical trial unit, and that inspired me to look into a role as a research nurse when I completed my master’s degree.

I think it was the scientific question. I found it very fascinating. Research protocols are very complex documents, and I found it really interesting to break down that complicated research protocol into practical steps. It was my first opportunity to really apply my nursing clinical lens to this very complex study.

A: When I was a bedside nurse, especially in the ICU, my impact was one or maybe two patients during my eight- to 12-hour shift. Within industry, my impact is on entire patient populations.

The work that I did in Ghana was called the Integrated Women’s Health Cancer Screening Project. We screened 5,000 women for both cervical and breast cancer in this low-resource setting. We worked with frontline nurses to educate them about cervical and breast cancer screening, and we were able to implement a new method for HPV screening that enabled women to take their own sample. Just a couple months ago, we were able to publish our findings in Cancer Medicine. Now we’re able to leverage that evidence to actually influence policy changes.

Q: A Lot of Nurses Lump Biotech Together as One Job. What Are the Different Roles, and Where Should a Nurse Start?

A: My first question is why? What is it about biotech that interests you?

That combination of hands-on clinical disease area expertise and interest in a biotech area, like managing patients in research trials, is really the sweet spot to start from.

When looking for a biotech job, it is much easier to leverage your local network than to just apply for a role you see online. Maybe it’s a 20-minute coffee with a clinical investigator near you to understand a little bit more about what they’re doing. You could maybe even start by meeting with one of their research nurses. Many of the people who work in biotech aren’t just nurses. There are other healthcare professionals, including physicians, pharmacists, and PhD-prepared colleagues.

Personally, I didn’t have a roadmap when I started.

Biotech roles that nurses move into include:

A: My professional path wasn’t pre-planned. It was driven by a passion for research that began during my BSN studies and expanded through my graduate and doctoral education to broaden my impact on patients. Transitioning from the bedside to a clinical research coordinator role at Georgetown opened the door to the pharmaceutical industry, where starting in clinical operations ultimately led to broader strategic leadership roles.

A: Some of them think it’s only about sales, because most nurses’ first experience with biotech is often with a pharmaceutical sales rep. But there is such diversity of opportunities and avenues within biotech to make an impact on patients. Part of what makes the impact of the business is bringing innovations to improve the outcomes and lives of patients. I think there can be a lot of alignment between nursing values and pharma.

Q: What Did You Give Up When You Left the Bedside, and What’s Hardest About Working in Industry?

A: Transitioning away from clinical practice meant giving up the immediate, daily reward of direct patient connections. The hardest part of working in industry is navigating complex corporate systems while keeping the patient at the center of every decision. Nurses provide valuable insights, including symptom management and medication adherence, that inform decision-making to optimize health outcomes across the pharmaceutical value chain.

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Q: What Does the Biotech Industry Misunderstand About Nurses?

A: I don’t think the biotech industry fully understands the diversity of nurses with deep clinical expertise and knowledge of the research.

There are many expert clinicians at the DNP, PhD level for nursing, top-tier institutions, that are doing research now within their institutions on barriers that are getting in the way of patients being able to benefit from medications. There’s some awareness of these people, but there’s actually a rich source of knowledge, skills, and experience out there among nurses.

🤔 Have you considered a move into biotech or pharma? What’s holding you back, or what made you go? Share your thoughts in the comments below.