Clarification: The article referenced was published by the New York Times Company - apparently in the Boston Globe. This is what lead to the late night "distress" amongst the diarist, arodb and others. All seems resolved. My apologies for the confusion
I receive articles from a physician management listserve (LinuxMedNews.com). The host does a pretty good job of sending articles from all parts of the political spectrum regarding healthcare issues, but this is the first one that I would classify as "humor."
Open the package insert below, and see what I mean ...
The article is from the N.Y. Times (apparantly the 5/18/07 edition) and is by a gentleman by the name of Scott Lassman.
He starts by posing the softball question - "what is the best and most appropriate way for a company that researches and manufactures a prescription medicine to educate physicians about the products it develops?"
He then goes on to talk about the "lunch and learn" sessions that pharmaceutical reps do in physician offices, and noted:
Eighty-three percent of doctors report receiving food from the pharmaceutical companies in the workplace. Pharmaceutical representatives commonly find that busy doctors would rather meet over a modest lunch in a workplace setting -- probably equal in value to the $20 check made out to the doctor by the study's authors -- rather than block out time better spent meeting with patients.
The "joke" to this is that he was trying to compare the $20 that physicians got for completing the above noted survey to the "modest lunch" provided by the pharm rep. What Mr. Lassman does NOT note or discuss is that this "modest lunch" generally consists of "upscale" take-out from some place like Panera Bread and is not just for the doc, but his or her ENTIRE office staff. In a multi-doc office, you might catch one or two docs but ten or more staff persons, and in some offices, this is a near DAILY event.
Mr. Lassman then goes from causing us to wonder about his math skills to some mild chuckles with the following:
Every day, patients depend on the knowledge, expertise, and independent clinical judgment of doctors to help make increasingly complex decisions about their personal health. These professionals are duty-bound to provide patients with the latest, most accurate information regarding complex healthcare choices. I'm not a doctor, but it seems to me to be insulting, as many critics do, that a meeting, a pizza, or a pen would inappropriately influence a physician's prescribing decisions.
Who better to know about the scientific complexities of prescription medicines than the companies that create them? Pharmaceutical experts are a key source of information for healthcare providers on side effects and new studies regarding medicines they may prescribe. Clearly, patients benefit from these exchanges. Picture the opposite. What would a patient's reaction be if a doctor shrugged his or her shoulders in confusion when asked about a drug that may be life changing?
Who is Mr. Lassman kidding? The latest and most "accurate" information about a drug comes from a person who may or may not have a whit of scientific, let alone clinical medical experience, but who does get bonuses and promotions based on selling that self-same drug? Oh - I'm sorry, these folks are "pharmaceutical experts!" I forgot!
And to cause you to break out into open laughter - try this one.
Patients are the clear winners when doctors and pharmaceutical experts communicate. Any effort to quell discussion or limit the sharing of research and information is not in patients' best interests. ... This debate is really about trust. The industry values the relationship its representatives have built with the nation's healthcare professionals, and it is critical to the mission of helping patients that these interactions be maintained at the highest ethical standards. Just as patients trust their physician, it is equally important that physicians trust their pharmaceutical representatives.
No comment needed.
But here is the final punch line ...
Scott Lassman is the senior assistant general counsel for the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America.
ROTFLMAO
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