Charles Perkins Centre and School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Charles Perkins Centre and School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
BMJ Open. 2019 Aug 20;9(8):e030253. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2019-030253.
To describe the nature, frequency and content of non-vitamin K oral anticoagulant (NOAC)-related events for healthcare professionals sponsored by the manufacturers of the NOACs in Australia. A secondary objective is to compare these data to the rate of dispensing of the NOACs in Australia.
This cross-sectional study examined consolidated data from publicly available Australian pharmaceutical industry transparency reports from October 2011 to September 2015 on NOAC-related educational events. Data from April 2011 to June 2016 on NOAC dispensing, subsidised under Australia's Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS), were obtained from the Department of Health and the Department of Human Services.
Characteristics of NOAC-related educational events including costs (in Australian dollars, $A), numbers of events, information on healthcare professional attendees and content of events; and NOAC dispensing rates.
During the study period, there were 2797 NOAC-related events, costing manufacturers a total of $A10 578 745. Total expenditure for meals and beverages at all events was $A4 238 962. Events were predominantly attended by general practitioners (42%, 1174/2797), cardiologists (35%, 977/2797) and haematologists (23%, 635/2797). About 48% (1347/2797) of events were held in non-clinical settings, mainly restaurants, bars and cafes. Around 55% (1551/2797) of events consisted of either conferences, meetings or seminars. The analysis of the content presented at two events detected promotion of NOACs for unapproved indications, an emphasis on a favourable benefit/harm profile, and that all speakers had close ties with the manufacturers of the NOACs. Following PBS listings relevant to each NOAC, the numbers of events related to that NOAC and the prescribing of that NOAC increased.
Our findings suggest that the substantial investment in NOAC-related events made by four pharmaceutical companies had a promotional purpose. Healthcare professionals should seek independent information on newly subsidised medicines from, for example, government agencies or drug bulletins.
描述澳大利亚制药商赞助的新型口服抗凝剂（NOAC）相关事件的性质、频率和内容，供医疗保健专业人员参考。次要目标是将这些数据与澳大利亚 NOAC 的配药率进行比较。
本横断面研究分析了 2011 年 10 月至 2015 年 9 月期间澳大利亚制药行业透明度报告中公开的有关 NOAC 相关教育活动的综合数据。有关澳大利亚药品福利计划（PBS）下的 NOAC 配药数据（2011 年 4 月至 2016 年 6 月）从卫生部和社会服务部获取。
NOAC 相关教育活动的特征，包括费用（澳元，$A）、活动次数、参加医疗保健专业人员的信息和活动内容；以及 NOAC 配药率。
在研究期间，共有 2797 次与 NOAC 相关的事件，制造商为此共花费 1057.8745 万澳元。所有活动的餐饮费用总计为 423.8962 万澳元。活动主要由全科医生（42%，1174/2797）、心脏病专家（35%，977/2797）和血液学家（23%，635/2797）参加。约 48%（1347/2797）的活动在非临床环境中举行，主要是餐厅、酒吧和咖啡馆。大约 55%（1551/2797）的活动由会议、会议或研讨会组成。对两次活动的内容分析发现，NOAC 被推广用于未经批准的适应症，强调了有利的效益/危害特征，而且所有发言者都与 NOAC 制造商有密切联系。在与每种 NOAC 相关的 PBS 上市后，与该 NOAC 相关的活动数量和该 NOAC 的处方数量都有所增加。
我们的研究结果表明，四家制药公司对与 NOAC 相关的大量投资具有宣传目的。医疗保健专业人员应从政府机构或药物公报等独立来源获取有关新补贴药物的信息。
