Is this Right ???

[Feena]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/6271086.stm

[LazyGun]

Broadly speaking, yes

[netibiza]

I thought this was common knowledge.

[jno]

yep, doctors are offered huge amounts of promotional material... free pens... trips to conferences... nice holidays... space trips... I think they're allowed to accept pens and paper and stuff but not much else. The pharmaceutical business is big but constantly on a knife-edge - they can spend zillions trialling a drug and then it doesn't get approval; so once a drug is on the market they are desperate for doctors to prescribe it. Hence the generosity

[Feena]

I agree it's common knowledge neti but it still does'nt make it right. Gp's go off for 1-2 weeks at a time taking their families with them. Top hotels etc as jno rightly states but who pays for it? We do. The "Pharma" reps leave free samples of new meds and who do the gp's try them out on? their patients without knowing anything about said samples.. This is how 1,000's of patients receive defective drugs such as Thalidemoide, Seroxat etc.

[jno]

if anyone is actually caught doing this, Feena, he'd be at risk of being struck off. If you believe your GP is at it, notify the BMA.

[bundleone]

I'm sure the drugs given to G Ps have already passed the safety tests, so we're not being used a guinea pigs, they just want to sell their particular product

[netibiza]

Well, my doctor has often given me a new drug (medicine/cream) from his desk drawer which has been given as a promotional trial, which is fine by me.