The drugmaker recruited Bridgette Heller as executive vp and president of its consumer health care unit, succeeding Stan Barshay, who postponed retirement to serve in a transition role Merck’s acquisition of Schering-Plough. Heller, 48, will report directly to Merck ceo Dick Clark and will serve on the executive committee. The unit includes such brands as Claritin, Dr. Scholl’s, MiraLax and Lotrimin.

The move reflects a growing conviction among drugmakers that a consumer products business is a desirable, even necessary, leg in a multi-pronged strategy. You may recall that Pfizer was more than happy to snap up Wyeth’s consumer products business last year, having forsaken the same sort of operation by selling an earlier unit to Johnson & Johnson.

For the past three years, Heller was president of J&J’s Baby global business unit and, prior to that, she was global president of J&J’s Baby, Kids and Wound Care business. Before joining J&J, Heller was a consultant; chief executive of Chung’s Gourmet Foods, a big maker of egg rolls, and executive vp and general manager of Kraft Foods’ coffee division (see statement).

This is the fourth major hire from outside Merck and Schering-Plough in recent weeks….

Merck tapped Julie Gerberding, who was previously Centers for Disease Control director, to run its vaccines unit; Michael Kamarck, a former Wyeth exec, to run vaccine and biologics manufacturing, and its BioVentures unit; and Michael Rosenblatt, who was previously Dean of Tufts School of Medicine, as chief medical officer, in a bid to settle shareholder lawsuits and strengthen drug-safety procedures (see here).