Healthy Skepticism Library item: 19159

Warning: This library includes all items relevant to health product marketing that we are aware of regardless of quality. Often we do not agree with all or part of the contents.

Publication type: Journal Article

Trevisol DJ, Ferreira MB, Karnopp ZM
[Drug advertisement in a medicine school in the Southern of Brazil]
Cien Saude Colet 2010 Nov; 15:(3):3487-96
http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1413-81232010000900023&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en

Abstract:

This is a quali-quantitative study
on drug advertisement in a Medicine
school in Santa Catarina state.
Participants were medicine students,
faculty physicians and patients of
school ambulatories, totaling 1,231
interviewees. The focal group
technique was used to the
qualitative research; the
quantitative research with a
semistructured questionnaire. 53.6%
of the faculty physicians considered
they were rarely or never influenced
by the propaganda, and 53.7% claimed
their colleagues are. Among the
students, 43.2% believe that, after
graduated, they will rarely or never
be influenced; while 42.0% believe
that graduated are always or
frequently influenced. For 41.7%,
the information given by the
representatives of the
pharmaceutical industry is good or
excellent. Also, 74.8% reported that
the pharmaceutical industry will be
able to contribute for their
professional practice. This study
identified that the distribution of
free drug samples are one of the
main advertising and propaganda
techniques used by the
pharmaceutical industry; as there is
a certain pressure of the medical
preceptor upon the choice of the
prescription; although no direct
impact of the influence of the
pharmaceutical industry on the
ambulatories was observed. Drug
prescription is usually not
rational.