American College of Cardiology, Washington, DC 20037, USA.
J Vasc Surg. 2011 Sep;54(3 Suppl):47S-9S. doi: 10.1016/j.jvs.2011.04.069.
Much has been made over the last few years about conflicts of interest in the health care community's relationships with industry members, including individual physicians, academic medical centers, and professional organizations. Not only has the Department of Justice (DOJ) been investigating questionable relationships, but House and Senate Oversight Committees have also weighed in on real and perceived conflicts. Most recently, the Physician Payments Sunshine Act of 2010 requires companies to begin recording any physician payments, including stock options, research grants, knickknacks, consulting fees, and travel to medical conferences that are worth more than ten dollars in 2012 and report them on March 31, 2013. To date, the American College of Cardiology (ACC) has developed and instituted one of the most stringent policies in the medical community to ensure that support from industry has no influence on any of its clinical documents. Furthermore, the need for the ACC's "Principles for Relationships with Industry," the organization's guide in nine key operational areas, are critical given that, when it comes to industry, properly managed partnerships are absolutely essential to maintaining scientific progress in cardiology and other specialties. The ACC relies on industry funding to advance cardiovascular research, as well as cardiovascular workforce training, practitioner diversity, medical education, and life-long learning. Without this funding, the ACC's ability to provide meaningful, unbiased education and to improve quality of care would be far more limited than that which is currently offered to its members and, ultimately, patients. Rather than restricting industry funding for such activities, the focus should instead be on transparency and actively and appropriately managing industry relationships. Ethical and appropriate partnerships with industry can prove beneficial in funding of education, research, and quality improvement activities. In addition, they are critical in the advancement of the quality of care for patients. The challenge is for medical societies to help the media, the public, and policymakers better understand the role of industry in promoting research, education, and innovation in medicine.
在过去几年中，人们对医疗保健界与行业成员（包括个别医生、学术医疗中心和专业组织）的利益冲突进行了大量讨论。不仅司法部（DOJ）一直在调查可疑的关系，而且众议院和参议院监督委员会也对实际和感知到的冲突发表了看法。最近，2010 年《医师支付阳光法案》要求公司从 2012 年开始记录任何医师付款，包括股票期权、研究赠款、小摆设、咨询费和前往医学会议的旅行，只要超过十美元就必须报告，并于 2013 年 3 月 31 日报告。迄今为止，美国心脏病学会（ACC）已经制定并实施了医疗界最严格的政策之一，以确保行业支持不会对其任何临床文件产生影响。此外，鉴于行业的需要，ACC 的“与行业关系原则”（该组织在九个关键运营领域的指南）是至关重要的，因为妥善管理的伙伴关系对于维持心脏病学和其他专业的科学进步绝对至关重要。ACC 依赖行业资金来推进心血管研究，以及心血管劳动力培训、医生多样性、医学教育和终身学习。如果没有这笔资金，ACC 提供有意义、无偏见的教育和改善护理质量的能力将比目前向其成员提供的能力受到更大的限制，最终也会限制患者。与其限制此类活动的行业资金，不如将重点放在透明度上，并积极、恰当地管理行业关系。与行业建立合乎道德和适当的伙伴关系，有助于为教育、研究和质量改进活动提供资金。此外，它们对于提高患者的护理质量至关重要。医学协会面临的挑战是帮助媒体、公众和政策制定者更好地理解行业在促进医学研究、教育和创新方面的作用。
