BMJ 2014;348:g2241 doi: 10.1136/bmj.g2241 (Published 18 March 2014)
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News
NEWS GSK is to employ doctors to speak about its drugs Zosia Kmietowicz BMJ
The UK based pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline has said that it plans to employ doctors to educate their peers, rather than pay key opinion leaders to speak about its products at conferences and other events. GSK announced last December that it was changing its marketing practices to end undue influence on prescribers.1 It said that by the start of 2016 it would stop paying doctors fees to speak on its behalf or to attend conferences. In an interview with the news agency Bloomberg, Deirdre Connelly, head of GSK’s US pharmaceuticals business, said that employing doctors and scientists to speak as in-house representatives of the company would provide more transparency.2
She said, “We’ll continue to disseminate this very important information on drug benefits and risks, but we’re just not going to do that by hiring external speakers. We want to ensure that no one even perceives us to be doing anything wrong.”
A spokesperson for GSK said, “It’s important that we continue to provide important information to doctors about the benefits and risks of our medicines, but we want to do this in a modern way that removes any perception of conflict of interest. Part of the changes we’re making to our sales and marketing practices will involve strengthening our own scientific and medical capability. This doesn’t mean we will simply be bringing KOLs [key opinion leaders] in-house but does mean having more
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in-house doctors and scientists who can engage with their peers in a transparent way that makes it clear they are GSK employees.” GSK has reduced its sales force by more than 30% since 2009 and expanded the number of educational roles within the company, such as those targeting pharmacies, Connelly said.
The company has faced a number of scandals in recent years, and some commentators see the changes as a way to rebuild its reputation.3 4 Senior GSK executives in China are under investigation for alleged criminal activity in bribing doctors to boost drug sales,5 and the company was fined a record $3bn (£2bn; €2.4bn) in the United States last year for unethical and illegal marketing practices relating to several of its best selling drugs.6 1 2 3 4 5 6
Kmietowicz Z. GSK is to stop paying doctors to talk about its drugs and attend conferences. BMJ 2013;347:f7579. Kitamura M. Glaxo to bring doctors in-house as educational speakers. Bloomberg, 17 Mar 2014. www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-03-17/glaxo-to-bring-doctors-in-house-asspeakers-in-marketing-reform.html. Roehr B. GlaxoSmithKline is fined record $3bn in US. BMJ 2012;345:e4568. Dyer C. GSK fights compensation claims from UK patients who took rosiglitazone. BMJ 2013;346:f695. Parry J. GSK executives admit to bribery and tax crimes, China claims. BMJ 2013;347:f4541. Roehr B. GlaxoSmithKline is fined record $3bn in US. BMJ 2012;345:e4568.
Cite this as: BMJ 2014;348:g2241 © BMJ Publishing Group Ltd 2014
Subscribe: http://www.bmj.com/subscribe
Page 1 of 1
News
NEWS GSK is to employ doctors to speak about its drugs Zosia Kmietowicz BMJ
The UK based pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline has said that it plans to employ doctors to educate their peers, rather than pay key opinion leaders to speak about its products at conferences and other events. GSK announced last December that it was changing its marketing practices to end undue influence on prescribers.1 It said that by the start of 2016 it would stop paying doctors fees to speak on its behalf or to attend conferences. In an interview with the news agency Bloomberg, Deirdre Connelly, head of GSK’s US pharmaceuticals business, said that employing doctors and scientists to speak as in-house representatives of the company would provide more transparency.2
She said, “We’ll continue to disseminate this very important information on drug benefits and risks, but we’re just not going to do that by hiring external speakers. We want to ensure that no one even perceives us to be doing anything wrong.”
A spokesperson for GSK said, “It’s important that we continue to provide important information to doctors about the benefits and risks of our medicines, but we want to do this in a modern way that removes any perception of conflict of interest. Part of the changes we’re making to our sales and marketing practices will involve strengthening our own scientific and medical capability. This doesn’t mean we will simply be bringing KOLs [key opinion leaders] in-house but does mean having more
For personal use only: See rights and reprints http://www.bmj.com/permissions
in-house doctors and scientists who can engage with their peers in a transparent way that makes it clear they are GSK employees.” GSK has reduced its sales force by more than 30% since 2009 and expanded the number of educational roles within the company, such as those targeting pharmacies, Connelly said.
The company has faced a number of scandals in recent years, and some commentators see the changes as a way to rebuild its reputation.3 4 Senior GSK executives in China are under investigation for alleged criminal activity in bribing doctors to boost drug sales,5 and the company was fined a record $3bn (£2bn; €2.4bn) in the United States last year for unethical and illegal marketing practices relating to several of its best selling drugs.6 1 2 3 4 5 6
Kmietowicz Z. GSK is to stop paying doctors to talk about its drugs and attend conferences. BMJ 2013;347:f7579. Kitamura M. Glaxo to bring doctors in-house as educational speakers. Bloomberg, 17 Mar 2014. www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-03-17/glaxo-to-bring-doctors-in-house-asspeakers-in-marketing-reform.html. Roehr B. GlaxoSmithKline is fined record $3bn in US. BMJ 2012;345:e4568. Dyer C. GSK fights compensation claims from UK patients who took rosiglitazone. BMJ 2013;346:f695. Parry J. GSK executives admit to bribery and tax crimes, China claims. BMJ 2013;347:f4541. Roehr B. GlaxoSmithKline is fined record $3bn in US. BMJ 2012;345:e4568.
Cite this as: BMJ 2014;348:g2241 © BMJ Publishing Group Ltd 2014
Subscribe: http://www.bmj.com/subscribe
