Professional Sales Representative (PSR) is a key role in the pharmaceutical industry, bridging clinical knowledge and commercial practice. For B.Pharm students, mastering PSR role and duties—such as product knowledge, pharmacology-based detailing, ethical promotion, pharmacovigilance reporting, regulatory compliance (Schedule H, DPCO), territory management, CRM use, KOL engagement, and sample handling—is essential for career readiness. These MCQs focus on practical competencies: call planning, objection handling, documentation, sales metrics, and legal/ethical boundaries in drug promotion. The questions are designed to deepen understanding and prepare you for interview scenarios, field training, and responsible pharma practice. ‘Now let’s test your knowledge with 30 MCQs on this topic.’
Q1. What is the primary responsibility of a Professional Sales Representative (PSR) in the pharmaceutical industry?
- Manufacturing drugs in the factory
- Designing clinical trials for new drugs
- Promoting prescription medicines to healthcare professionals
- Regulating drug prices at the national level
Correct Answer: Promoting prescription medicines to healthcare professionals
Q2. Which activity is a core duty of PSR during a doctor’s visit (detailing)?
- Performing surgical procedures
- Providing evidence-based product information and clinical data
- Issuing pharmacy licences
- Filling prescriptions for patients
Correct Answer: Providing evidence-based product information and clinical data
Q3. Which regulatory concept must PSRs be aware of to avoid illegal promotion of drugs in India?
- Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA)
- Drug Price Control Order (DPCO)
- General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
- Clean Air Act
Correct Answer: Drug Price Control Order (DPCO)
Q4. What is pharmacovigilance duty for a PSR?
- Reporting adverse drug reactions to the pharmacovigilance team
- Prescribing alternative therapies to patients
- Conducting preclinical toxicity studies
- Setting drug tariffs in hospitals
Correct Answer: Reporting adverse drug reactions to the pharmacovigilance team
Q5. Which of the following best describes a Key Opinion Leader (KOL) in pharma sales?
- A regulatory inspector who approves drugs
- A senior healthcare professional who influences peers and prescribing patterns
- A sales intern learning fieldwork
- A logistics manager in the supply chain
Correct Answer: A senior healthcare professional who influences peers and prescribing patterns
Q6. What is the correct handling of free samples by a PSR?
- Sell samples to patients at discounted prices
- Leave samples without record-keeping
- Provide samples to authorised healthcare professionals with proper documentation
- Use samples for personal use
Correct Answer: Provide samples to authorised healthcare professionals with proper documentation
Q7. Which KPI is commonly used to measure PSR performance?
- Number of laboratory experiments completed
- Monthly medical conference attendance
- Number of effective calls and achieved prescriptions or sales targets
- Number of clinical trial participants enrolled
Correct Answer: Number of effective calls and achieved prescriptions or sales targets
Q8. What is “cold calling” in pharmaceutical sales?
- Calling senior management about thermal storage
- Visiting new or unlisted healthcare professionals without prior appointment
- Calling customers only during winter months
- Emergency communication with pharmacies
Correct Answer: Visiting new or unlisted healthcare professionals without prior appointment
Q9. Which tool helps PSRs record interactions, plan calls, and track targets?
- Bioreactor
- Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software
- Mass spectrometer
- Hospital billing software
Correct Answer: Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software
Q10. During objection handling, which approach is most effective for a PSR?
- Ignore the objection and continue the pitch
- Listen, empathize, address concerns with evidence, and confirm resolution
- Argue with the physician to change their view
- Offer to reduce price without management approval
Correct Answer: Listen, empathize, address concerns with evidence, and confirm resolution
Q11. Which document should PSRs carry when promoting a prescription drug?
- Manufacturing batch certificate only
- Patient medical records of all users
- Current approved prescribing information (package insert) and product brochure
- Hospital accreditation certificate
Correct Answer: Current approved prescribing information (package insert) and product brochure
Q12. What is the ethical concern when offering gifts to healthcare professionals?
- Gifts always improve patient outcomes
- Small gifts never influence prescribing behaviour
- Gifts can create conflicts of interest and bias prescriptions
- Gifts are mandatory under pharma regulations
Correct Answer: Gifts can create conflicts of interest and bias prescriptions
Q13. How should a PSR respond if a physician reports a suspected serious adverse drug reaction?
- Advise the physician to stop reporting
- Record details and promptly inform the company pharmacovigilance department
- Handle it later at year-end
- Give a sample as compensation
Correct Answer: Record details and promptly inform the company pharmacovigilance department
Q14. What is “territory management” for a PSR?
- Managing manufacturing areas in a plant
- Organising and prioritising calls, routes, and customer segmentation within an assigned geographic area
- Legal disputes over land ownership
- Hospital infection control zones
Correct Answer: Organising and prioritising calls, routes, and customer segmentation within an assigned geographic area
Q15. Which therapeutic knowledge is most important for a PSR to discuss with physicians?
- Advanced synthetic chemistry techniques
- Clinical efficacy, safety profile, mechanism of action and contraindications of the promoted drug
- Hospital administration policies
- Coding languages for CRM customization
Correct Answer: Clinical efficacy, safety profile, mechanism of action and contraindications of the promoted drug
Q16. Which practice is NOT acceptable under ethical pharma promotion codes?
- Providing balanced information about benefits and risks
- Misleading claims about product efficacy
- Documenting scientific references for claims
- Respecting local promotional regulations
Correct Answer: Misleading claims about product efficacy
Q17. How can a PSR build long-term relationships with prescribers?
- Only contacting them when sales drop
- Providing consistent scientific support, timely follow-up, and respecting their time
- Offering large cash incentives in secret
- Ignoring feedback and pushing discounts
Correct Answer: Providing consistent scientific support, timely follow-up, and respecting their time
Q18. What is a valid reason for a PSR to document a call report?
- To keep evidence of interactions and follow-up actions for compliance and performance tracking
- To avoid visiting the doctor again ever
- To share physician personal data on social media
- To falsify monthly sales figures
Correct Answer: To keep evidence of interactions and follow-up actions for compliance and performance tracking
Q19. Which is an appropriate action when a PSR encounters off-label prescribing questions from a physician?
- Provide promotional material supporting off-label use
- Decline to provide promotional claims and refer to scientific literature or medical affairs for non-promotional information
- Encourage off-label use to boost sales
- Modify the product label personally
Correct Answer: Decline to provide promotional claims and refer to scientific literature or medical affairs for non-promotional information
Q20. Which scheduling classification should PSRs know that restricts over-the-counter sale of certain medicines?
- Schedule A of tax code
- Schedule H / Schedule H1 (prescription-only medicines)
- Schedule of building regulations
- Schedule of sports events
Correct Answer: Schedule H / Schedule H1 (prescription-only medicines)
Q21. What is the best metric to forecast territory sales for a PSR?
- Random guess based on mood
- Historical prescription data, doctor potential, and market share trends
- Number of coffee breaks per day
- Total number of pharmaceutical factories nationally
Correct Answer: Historical prescription data, doctor potential, and market share trends
Q22. Which statement about medical samples is TRUE?
- Samples may be given to non-prescribing staff freely
- Samples are meant for promotional use to allow trial by authorised prescribers and should not be sold
- Samples are identical to expired stock and can be disposed of without records
- Samples can be branded with false claims
Correct Answer: Samples are meant for promotional use to allow trial by authorised prescribers and should not be sold
Q23. How should a PSR use clinical studies when discussing a product?
- Reference peer-reviewed studies accurately and specify study limitations
- Invent favourable data if needed
- Only use unpublished internal slides without context
- Dismiss clinical evidence as irrelevant
Correct Answer: Reference peer-reviewed studies accurately and specify study limitations
Q24. Which factor is least important when segmenting doctors for call frequency?
- Prescribing potential and specialty
- Geographic location and accessibility
- Personal hobbies like preferred sports teams
- Influence on peers and patient load
Correct Answer: Personal hobbies like preferred sports teams
Q25. What is “detailing aids” for PSRs?
- Tools used in the laboratory for assays
- Visual or printed materials (charts, slides, samples) used to support product discussions with clinicians
- Financial audits of hospitals
- Medical devices for surgery
Correct Answer: Visual or printed materials (charts, slides, samples) used to support product discussions with clinicians
Q26. In case of a regulatory inspection at a clinic, what information might an inspector review related to PSR activity?
- Records of PSR samples dispensed, promotional material, and call reports
- PSR’s personal medical history
- Only manufacturing SOPs
- Traffic tickets of PSR vehicles
Correct Answer: Records of PSR samples dispensed, promotional material, and call reports
Q27. Which soft skill is most critical for a successful PSR?
- Proficiency in molecular cloning
- Effective communication and relationship-building with healthcare professionals
- Ability to design hospital infrastructure
- Advanced coding in assembly language
Correct Answer: Effective communication and relationship-building with healthcare professionals
Q28. What is an appropriate response when a healthcare professional requests clinical data beyond the PSR’s approved material?
- Provide unapproved promotional claims immediately
- Refer the request to medical affairs or provide peer-reviewed literature through approved channels
- Ignore the request
- Alter the approved material to include extra claims
Correct Answer: Refer the request to medical affairs or provide peer-reviewed literature through approved channels
Q29. How can PSRs contribute to antimicrobial stewardship at the community level?
- Promote antibiotics for all minor viral infections
- Educate prescribers on appropriate use, resistance risks, and guideline-based therapy
- Discourage diagnostic testing to save time
- Provide unlimited antibiotic samples to pharmacies
Correct Answer: Educate prescribers on appropriate use, resistance risks, and guideline-based therapy
Q30. Which behaviour aligns with pharma industry codes of conduct for PSRs?
- Altering clinical data to meet sales targets
- Maintaining transparent records, following ethical promotion rules, and reporting safety concerns promptly
- Providing monetary incentives to induce prescriptions
- Concealing adverse events from the company
Correct Answer: Maintaining transparent records, following ethical promotion rules, and reporting safety concerns promptly
