Interactions between pharmaceutical representatives and doctors in training
- 1 August 2005
- journal article
- review article
- Published by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in Journal of General Internal Medicine
- Vol. 20 (8), 777-786
- https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1525-1497.2005.0134.x
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Medical school and residency are formative years in establishing patterns of prescribing. We aimed to review the literature regarding the extent of pharmaceutical industry contact with trainees, attitudes about these interactions, and effects on trainee prescribing behavior, with an emphasis on points of potential intervention and policy formation. DESIGN: We searched MEDLINE from 1966 until May 2004 for English language articles. All original articles were included if the abstract reported content relevant to medical training and the pharmaceutical industry. Editorials, guidelines, and policy recommendations were excluded. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Contact with pharmaceutical representatives was common among residents. The majority of trainees felt that the interactions were appropriate. A minority felt that their own prescribing could be influenced by contact or gifts, but were more likely to believe that others’ prescribing could be influenced. Resident prescribing was associated with pharmaceutical representative visits and the availability of samples. A variety of policy and educational interventions appear to influence resident attitudes toward interactions with industry, although data on the long-term effects of these interventions are limited. Overall, residents reported insufficient training in this area. CONCLUSIONS: The pharmaceutical industry has a significant presence during residency training, has gained the overall acceptance of trainees, and appears to influence prescribing behavior. Training programs can benefit from policies and curricula that teach residents about industry influence and ways in which to critically evaluate information that they are given. Recommendations for local and national approaches are discussed.Keywords
This publication has 64 references indexed in Scilit:
- Interactions between Emergency Medicine Programs and the Pharmaceutical IndustryAcademic Emergency Medicine, 2004
- Defining and Evaluating Professionalism: A Core Competency for Graduate Emergency Medicine EducationAcademic Emergency Medicine, 2002
- Pharmaceutical Branding of Resident PhysiciansPublished by American Medical Association (AMA) ,2001
- AAMC FocusJournal of the Association of American Medical Colleges, 1997
- When pharmaceutical manufacturersʼ employees present grand rounds, what do residents remember?Academic Medicine, 1996
- Managing pharmaceutical sales activities in an academic anesthesiology departmentJournal of Clinical Anesthesia, 1995
- Pharmaceutical representatives and emergency medicine residents: A national surveyAnnals of Emergency Medicine, 1993
- Beliefs and practices of emergency medicine faculty and residents regarding professional interactions with the biomedical industryAnnals of Emergency Medicine, 1993
- Teaching drug promotion abuses to health profession studentsAcademic Medicine, 1980
- Effect on student attitudes of a program of critical evaluation of claims for drugsAcademic Medicine, 1966