Healthy Skepticism Library item: 15942

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: news

Reed J.
Med students take the no-freebie pledge
6minutes.com 2009 Jul 6
http://www.6minutes.com.au/articles/z1/view.asp?id=489321

Full text:

Medical students are pledging a lifetime of abstinence – from drug company freebies, hoping to educate fellow students about alleged marketing tactics employed by pharmaceutical companies.

Fearing their future prescribing habits could be shaped by the pens, stethoscopes, and tape measures on offer at sponsored meetings and briefings, the students say their stance brings awareness and extends further than idealism.

They’ve launched Pharma Phacts, a national campaign from healthyskepticism.org to highlight the strong ties the medical industry has with drug manufacturers, including CME. The optional online pledge is to never accept another pharma freebie.

Australian Medical Students Association (AMSA) president Tiffany Fulde says the rationale behind Pharma Phacts was “aspirational”, but whether it was realistic was difficult to determine due to wide exposure in the workforce.

While AMSA does not directly endorse the campaign, it was launched at the AMSA Global Health Conference over the weekend, and it ties in with some of AMSA’s own pharmaceutical sponsorship guidelines, says Ms Fulde.

“There’s been research into pharmaceutical sponsorship of different educational events, that if an event is sponsored by a particular company, students were less likely to be critical of that company later on,” says Ms Fulde.

“Ultimately education of students is all about patient care down the track, and if the way that education is delivered, or funded, impacts upon that quality, Pharma Phacts is designed to try and make students aware of that and help combat that if that’s the case,” she told 6minutes.