Comments on: "Avoiding drug companies and their advertisements is not the answer" http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2007/04/avoiding-drug-companies-and-their.html medical blog Sun, 22 Nov 2009 19:59:44 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Greg P http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2007/04/avoiding-drug-companies-and-their.html/comment-page-1#comment-73840 Greg P Thu, 12 Apr 2007 01:04:00 +0000 http://clients.emmense.com/kevinmd/2007/04/avoiding-drug-companies-and-their-advertisements-is-not-the-answer.html#comment-73840 There are times when you can simultaneously give the patient a benefit from the samples and also not necessarily play into the drug reps hands.<br/>Like giving the patient samples of something that also comes in a similar version but is cheaper; you try them out on the Brand, prescribe the generic-very-similar drug. There are times when you can simultaneously give the patient a benefit from the samples and also not necessarily play into the drug reps hands.
Like giving the patient samples of something that also comes in a similar version but is cheaper; you try them out on the Brand, prescribe the generic-very-similar drug.

]]> By: Anonymous http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2007/04/avoiding-drug-companies-and-their.html/comment-page-1#comment-73828 Anonymous Wed, 11 Apr 2007 22:51:00 +0000 http://clients.emmense.com/kevinmd/2007/04/avoiding-drug-companies-and-their-advertisements-is-not-the-answer.html#comment-73828 I dont think that avoiding them should be enforced by regulators, but it is the answer for some. I think that is an individual decision. What is clearly irresponsible is to consider them a sufficient and reliable source of information.<br/><br/>If you have the time to go to presentations that you know you have to dissect with a detailed knowledge of the drugs, then fine. My time is too valuable for that (well, ok maybe not, I am surfing blogs afterall).<br/><br/>The problem I had with samples was that I discovered that giving them to the people who asked for them meant they went to the most entitled, not the neediest. Once I set my mind to targeting the samples to the needy, I found it was more effective to use the pharmaceutical assistance programs--and I didn't have to beg drug reps. I dont think that avoiding them should be enforced by regulators, but it is the answer for some. I think that is an individual decision. What is clearly irresponsible is to consider them a sufficient and reliable source of information.

If you have the time to go to presentations that you know you have to dissect with a detailed knowledge of the drugs, then fine. My time is too valuable for that (well, ok maybe not, I am surfing blogs afterall).

The problem I had with samples was that I discovered that giving them to the people who asked for them meant they went to the most entitled, not the neediest. Once I set my mind to targeting the samples to the needy, I found it was more effective to use the pharmaceutical assistance programs–and I didn’t have to beg drug reps.

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