Tahir Shaila, Rafique Adeela, Ghafoor Farkhanda, Saleem Akif, Khan Amanullah
Fatima Memorial College of Medicine & Dentistry, Lahore, Pakistan;
J Med Ethics Hist Med. 2013 Apr 5;6:4. eCollection 2013.
Interaction of pharmaceutical companies (PC) with healthcare services has been a reason for concern. In medicine, awareness of the ethical implications of these interactions have been emphasized upon, while this issue has not been highlighted in dentistry. This study undertook a cross-sectional rapid assessment procedure to gather views of dentists in various institutions towards unethical practices in health care and pharmaceutical industry. The purpose of this study was to assess the need for the formulation and implementation of guidelines for the interaction of dentists with the pharmaceutical and device industry in the best interest of patients. A group of 209 dentists of Lahore including faculty members, demonstrators, private practitioners and fresh graduates responded to a questionnaire to assess their attitudes and practices towards pharmaceutical companies' marketing gifts. The study was conducted during 2011 and provided interesting data that showed the pharmaceutical industry is approaching private practitioners more frequently than academicians and fresh graduates. Private practioners accepted the gifts but mostly recognized them as unethical (over 65%). Both groups considered sponsoring of on-campus lectures as acceptable (over 70%). Respondents are not fully aware of the ethical demands which are imperative for all health care industries, and there is a dire need of strict guidelines and code of ethics for the dentist's interaction with the pharmaceutical and device industry so that patient interest is protected.
制药公司与医疗服务之间的互动一直令人担忧。在医学领域，人们已强调对这些互动伦理影响的认识，而在牙科领域，这个问题尚未得到突出关注。本研究采用横断面快速评估程序，收集不同机构牙医对医疗保健和制药行业不道德行为的看法。本研究的目的是评估制定和实施牙医与制药及器械行业互动指南的必要性，以维护患者的最大利益。拉合尔的209名牙医，包括教职员工、示范人员、私人执业者和应届毕业生，回答了一份问卷，以评估他们对制药公司营销礼品的态度和行为。该研究于2011年进行，提供了有趣的数据，表明制药行业与私人执业者接触的频率高于学者和应届毕业生。私人执业者接受礼品，但大多认为这是不道德的（超过65%）。两组都认为赞助校园讲座是可以接受的（超过70%）。受访者并未充分意识到所有医疗保健行业都必须遵守的道德要求，迫切需要为牙医与制药及器械行业的互动制定严格的指南和道德准则，以保护患者利益。
