Healthy Skepticism Library item: 19845

Warning: This library includes all items relevant to health product marketing that we are aware of regardless of quality. Often we do not agree with all or part of the contents.

Publication type: Magazine

Vawser M
Info on medication samples
Australian Medicine 1998 Aug 37

Full text:

I am concerned that specialist prescribers are creating difficulties for GPs through the prescribing of samples of new medications.

Pharmaceutical company representatives provide samples of new medications to specialists for trialing on their patients before information about those medications is widely available in general practice.

Patients may subsequently present to their GP for associated or unrelated problems, and the GP – particularly after hours or on weekends – may not have easy access to information about the new medication which may be important for the management of the patient’s problem. Even when ‘consumer medication information is included in the box with a medication, that information is not always available to the GP during a consult.

The problems associated with ‘Prosicor’ are a case in point.
I ask that specialists who prescribe samples of new medications to patients ensure a system of timely, direct communication about such a prescription to the patient’s usual GP and include a copy of the product information. This should be in addition to ensuring that the ‘consumer medication information’ is present in the sample of medication provided to the patient.

Dr Mark Vawser
Highbury, SA