Healthy Skepticism Library item: 16137

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

Pharma PR: Who do you trust?
World of DTC Marketing 2009 Jul 29
http://www.worldofdtcmarketing.com/files/507516ba83b07b4c9353f2069d2634b0-760.html#unique-entry-id-760

Full text:

It would be interesting to do a survey among the public and ask them how much they trust pharmaceutical public relations to “convey” the truth when it comes product or safety issues. Considering that some companies have been caught manipulating data in order to defuse issues one has to wonder, when it comes to PR, who comes first investors or patients?

Public Relations, or as I prefer to call it investor relations, is a company function and as thus the PR people do what they are told sometimes against their better judgement. Public relation’s main roles today are building and sustaining a public image and
generating awareness to influence public opinion an (PR) is often an umbrella term that includes activities ranging from community and press relations to speech-writing and issues management. However with the growth of the Internet transparency and speed have become necessities and PR people seem to forget this.

All too often it seems that PR people, when confronted with issues, hide behind sayings like “we’re studying the data” or “there is no indication that…” People today want and need transparency especially when the media reports potential new side effects with a prescription drug that we may be taking. But PR is a company function and as thus they do what is necessary to support the company no matter how foolish or blind it makes them look.

If Pharma is to become more customer driven and transparent it must do so from the the top down. Information has to be released with one objective in mind: we have to do what is right for our patients not investors.