director
Tom Nichols
Tom started his industry career in medical information, but soon realised that his passion was for pharmacovigilance (PV). He has worked across the full PV spectrum from early phase clinical trials through to generics. Following a period heading up the PV function at a leading clinical research organisation (CRO), he decided to launch Drive Phase PV, with the goal of providing high-quality and personalised PV support to clients around the world.
He is an Honorary Fellow of Pharmaceutical Information and Pharmacovigilance Association (HonFPIPA) and has served on the committee for several years, included as President from 2020- 2022.
Tom has also been member of the Alliance for Clinical Research Excellence and Safety (ACRES) working group developing standards for the outsourcing of PV activities, acted as lead for the Drug Information Association (DIA) pre-market safety working group and is also a member of the UK and Ireland Chapter of the International Society of Pharmacovigilance (ISOP).
Principal PV Consultant
Esther Lamb (née Poole)
Esther has worked across multiple functions in clinical development, including Clinical Operations and Medical Writing, before specialising in Pharmacovigilance. This cross-functional expertise allows her to develop integrated processes, and identify gaps and risks when complex multi-disciplinary teams are being developed. With over 13 years’ experience in the industry, she has an established understanding of the role of PV in clinical and post‑marketing contexts, and a broad range of technical skills in both areas. She is particularly passionate about clinical drug safety, as well as project and client management.
Before joining Drive Phase PV, Esther worked in-house on early-phase oncology clinical trials, as well as heading up clinical safety teams at leading CROs.
Esther is also a member of the Institute of Clinical Research.
Senior PV Associate
Kamei Au
Kamei started at Drive Phase in 2021, after graduating with a degree in Pharmacology from University College London. She supports all aspects of Drive Phase PV’s services, with a particular focus on regulatory intelligence and quality management systems.
In addition to her work at Drive Phase, Kamei has contributed a number of articles to PIPA’s membership journal and is a member of the DIA.