I guess it depends on what role you decide to pursue. When it comes to clinical studies where it involves dealing with patients, then I think a clinical background may be necessary. Dealing with different types of people isn’t always easy, and the skill to remain calm and interact with them accordingly requires some experience. However, I don’t think its necessary to have a clinical background if your role is a Statistician in clinical research. The skills for this role doesn’t involve dealing with patients, so the clinical background isn’t necessary. I’d say that having the knowledge associated with clinical research is necessary so that it is understood why certain procedures are done.