The Medical Advertising Hall of Fame announced its 2009 inductees: LM&P founder Ron Pantello, Dorland’s Harry Sweeney and Interbrand Wood Healthcare’s David Wood.

In addition, the MAHF will honor market research pioneer Raymond Gosselin with its Lifetime Achievement Award at its annual awards dinner, being held Feb. 10 at New York’s Pierre Hotel.

Pantello (pictured) began his career in advertising in account services at Sudler & Hennessey before leaving the agency in 1980 to found Lally, MacFarland & Pantello, which later became part of Havas’ Euro RSCG Life network. Pantello retired as chairman of Euro RSCG Life last year. He co-founded the MAHF in 1996 and served as its chairperson until 2005.  

Sweeney started out in medical advertising as a copywriter at Lederle Laboratories and went on to work at Sudler & Hennessey, L. W. Frohlich, Klemtner and Shaller Rubin. In 1971, he bought the Dorland Agency and built it into a top medical advertising shop. He helped found the Medical Advertising Agency Association and the Coalition for Healthcare Communications.

Wood founded Interbrand North America in 1979 and left it in 1986 to start David Wood Associates, which was later acquired by Interbrand parent Omnicom and merged into Interbrand Wood. He passed away last year at age 64.

Gosselin created the first significant market research measurement in healthcare—the National Prescription Audit—and went on to develop Audatrex, which tracked market penetration, market share development and physician preference. His firm, R. A. Gosselin, was absorbed into IMS Health. He was also the longest-serving president of the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and served as editor and publisher of Pharmacy Times from 1987 to 1993. He passed away in 1999.