MANUFACTURERSAAIPharma has named Ninad Deshpanday to the newly created position of VP of pharmaceutical business development. In this role, Deshpanday will be responsible for all North American business development activities in pharmaceutical development, including analytical, biotechnology, formulations development, GMP manufacturing and clinical trial materials for both oral and parenteral dosage forms. Deshpanday brings to AAIPharma over 15 years experience in pharmaceutical development. Prior to joining the company, he was VP of drug product development for Synta Pharmaceuticals. Prior to this, he served with Cardinal Health as technical business director for the pharmaceutics division. Previously, Deshpanday held leadership positions at AAIPharma, including senior manager of formulations development and global product director of pharmaceutics. Carter McBride has been hired as senior district manager, Oklahoma City district, specialty sales force at Eisai. Taewon Kim has been hired as product manager, critical care/oncology marketing. Brian Doyle has been hired as senior product manager, critical care/oncology marketing. James Bongi has been hired as project portfolio manager, sales & marketing. Alexion Pharmaceuticals has appointed David Hallal to VP, U.S. commercial operations. Hallal will direct the expected US launch of Soliris, and joins Alexion from OSI Eyetech where, since 2004, he was VP of sales.  Prior, Hallal was senior director of sales for Biogen Idec’s immunology sales team and also held various leadership positions at Amgen, focusing on the brands Epogen, Neupogen, Neulasta and Aranesp. AGENCIESChandler Chicco Agency hired Fiona Hall as managing director of European operations and Neil McGregor-Paterson as managing director of CCA London.  Hall was formerly European managing director of Weber Shandwick’s Healthcare Practice, and McGregor-Paterson was European Strategic Planning Director at Weber Shandwick. Centron, a HealthSTAR Communications company, has announced six new appointments.  Chris Gutteridge joins as medical communications director. Prior to Centron, Gutteridge spent four years at Photosound, where she was a medical communications manager. James Christie joins as VP, account group supervisor. Christie spent the last five years at Saatchi & Saatchi Healthcare, Lyons Lavey Nickel Swift and LifeBrands. Philip Simmons joins as copy supervisor. He comes to Centron after two years as a senior copywriter at Foote Cone & Belding. Alyce Erdekian will serve as director of strategic publication planning. Prior to Centron, Erdekian was an associate editor at Adelphi. Brian Purcell joins as account supervisor. Most recently, Purcell worked at KPR. Diovenice Titley comes to Centron as a traffic manager. Prior to Centron, Titley worked in traffic and production at LLNS. SUPPLIERSScienta Healthcare Education has promoted Sherri Foster to SVP and director. Foster moved to Scienta in 2001 as director and has served as general manager and director of medical education since January 2005.CCG Metamedia, a medical education and communications company, has hired Cathryn Tune, as senior scientific director. Tune previously worked as Associate Medical Director at Health Science Communications. Additionally, Nancy Fischetti, Tracey Rose, and Samantha Belmont have been hired as associate producers. Fischetti previously was a freelance video editor, Rose had worked as associate producer at Scholastic and Belmont most recently worked as director at Sugarcane Film Productions. Other new hires include JJ Jaramillo as staging associate and Nina Romanoff as senior medical writer.  MEDIAQuadrant HealthCom has announced that Neal Flomenbaum has joined Emergency Medicine as editor-in-chief. Flomenbaum is emergency physician-in-chief at New York-Presbyterian Hospital in New York City, a professor of clinical medicine at Weill Cornell Medical Center, and medical director of New York Presbyterian’s EMS system.