Pharmaceutical sales representatives and patient safety: a comparative prospective study of information quality in Canada, France and the United States.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

The information provided by pharmaceutical sales representatives has been shown to influence prescribing. To enable safe prescribing, medicines information must include harm as well as benefits. Regulation supports this aim, but relative effectiveness of different approaches is not known. The United States (US) and France directly regulate drug promotion; Canada relies on industry self-regulation. France has the strictest information standards.

Methods

This is a prospective cohort study in Montreal, Vancouver, Sacramento and Toulouse. We recruited random samples of primary care physicians from May 2009 to June 2010 to report on consecutive sales visits. The primary outcome measure was "minimally adequate safety information" (mention of at least one indication, s

SUBMITTER: Mintzes B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3785667 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature