As evidence increases that doctors' prescribing habits are influenced by drug companies, a series of related articles in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) argue that doctors, drug companies and patients would benefit from greater distance between doctors and drug companies.
The articles examine the relationship between doctors and the drug companies and its effect on research, on how doctors prescribe and the consequences for patients.
Doctors are increasingly accepting benefits from drug companies, including free pens, pizza lunches, sponsored conferences, golf outings and "unaffordable" holidays.
Plus, studies have found that research funded by drug companies is four times as likely to produce results that favor the drug company’s product than research funded by other sources.
Further, doctors who saw drug reps at least once a week were more likely to believe in principles that would lead to unnecessary drug prescriptions. And, according to two U.S. reports, drug companies fund 300,000 events for doctors each year.
The articles identify 16 ways in which doctors are intertwined with the drug industry. The authors stress that the theme is not anti-drug company, but rather an attempt to show the entanglement of two parties that is resulting in bias in the decisions made about patient care.
Several countries, professional organizations, including the World Medical Association, and the industry itself have developed codes to inhibit such practices. However, the codes are neither explicit nor enforced.
Moreover, information supplied to doctors by drug companies is often distorted. If a journal publishes a trial that favors drug A over drug B, is that a scientific judgment or a business investment to be repaid in lucrative reprint sales? Journals need systems to prevent advertising from influencing editorial content, as without sponsorship from drug companies many journals would not survive.
Drug development and marketing is a multi-billion dollar industry, and many tricks can be used to make trials turn out the way the companies want. For instance, comparing a new drug to a placebo rather than a standard treatment or comparing the drug with an inappropriate dose of an existing drug can produce biased results.
U.S. medical reform groups are calling for a greater distance in the relationships between doctors and drug companies. Already, the University of California is considering banning free lunches from drug companies and American medical students are taking a revised Hippocratic oath that forbids the accepting of money, gifts or hospitality.
BMJ May 31, 2003;326:1155-1156 (Full Text Article)
Drug companies are spending about $15 billion a year on physician marketing.
Most physicians have no clue that the drug companies are spending (on average) $10,000 per doctor to influence their behavior. The doctors, of course, do not receive a check, but the perks are quite significant.
They also don't realize that they actually lose that much income and more if they factor in the time they lose by sitting with the drug company reps and going to their "free" meals and lectures. Doctors also often overlook what a fiduciary responsibility is and therefore don’t’ realize that they need to carefully analyze the costs involved in recommending expensive drugs.
Though drugs are sometimes appropriate and at times can save a person’s life, most of the time they are unnecessary, harmful and expensive. They cause patients to divert much of their hard-earned income to the drug companies, which further perpetuates this indirect physician subsidy.
If you are a doctor, you can stop this process by getting your information on drugs from real evidence, rather than from drug company reps, and only prescribing drugs when they are truly necessary. If you are a consumer, it is up to you to arm yourself with facts about prescription drugs prior to making your decision to take them.
If you want to regain control of your health, if you believe the above is true--even in part--you can help change the medical paradigm by passing this message, or any Mercola.com article of interest, on to your family and friends. Just use the simple "E-mail a Friend" feature in the upper-right corner of the articles. Including a personal letter of encouragement is often more effective than simply passing it along, but that’s up to you.
This may be one of the best gifts you can give someone this year: A practical resource to help them recapture their health.
Finally, if you want to further understand how corporations and government manipulate science and the media by preying upon the public trust--and you want to know how to protect yourself--I highly recommend the book Trust Us, We're Experts. It is truly one of those books that all Americans should read, and would make an important gift for any young adult who wants to maintain control over him or herself as they enter "the real world."
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Drug Companies Greatly Influence Doctors’ Prescribing Habits
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Why Would You Take a Drug Because a Celebrity Promotes It?