A Historical Perspective of Pharmaceutical Promotion and Physician Education

The Ethics of Industry-Funded Speakers’ Bureaus—How They Disseminate Innovation and Could Corrupt Medicine

“…Still, if the goal is independent, high-quality medical product education, there are better models. Podolsky and Greene have argued that the medical profession should reclaim responsibility for clinician education, which takes professional time and money to do well. The Institute of Medicine has similarly called for a transition to a model akin to continuing legal education.…”

Conflict of Interest and the Integrity of the Medical Profession

“…Whether these and other ties to industry are important is not a new issue for medicine. Considerations regarding the potential influence of commercial ties date back at least to the 1950s and 1960s . In 1991, Relman reminded physicians that they have “a unique opportunity to assume personal responsibility for important decisions that are not influenced by or subordinated to the purposes of third parties.” However, examples of potential subordination are easily found.…”

Industry support of physician education in the USA

“…Industry support of CME dates to the 1960s, when there was explosive growth in new drugs brought to market and CME accreditation was being formalised 7. Despite early voiced concerns about industry funding CME and its attendant biases,8 by 2007, close to half of all accredited CME expenditures had been paid by industry, ∼$1.2 billion according to reports from the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) 9.…”