Posted by laima on January 7, 2007, at 18:30:09
In reply to Re: zyprexa pens » laima, posted by ed_uk on January 7, 2007, at 18:06:25
It's true- I think of doctors giving their needier patients supplies of drugs to be the silver lining of the heavy marketing efforts of the drug companies. I am quite sure that the companies do not like this practice- I don't think that's why they load up the doctors with the samples. Most of the samples I've seen come with some kind of "Welcome to your new medication! Don't forget to take your script to the pharmacy on time every month! The drug only works for as long as you take it, and your condition is chronic!" literature or insert. However, it dawned on me that having such a supply around may very well be the deciding factor when a doctor is choosing a medication for a patient. And like you say, a good way to get the patient interested in starting the most expensive new drug right away- how many of us here in the US got Emsam sample boxes? And the prescription then, for those without adequate insurance- whoops- is about 500$ per month. I mean, I believe if the expensive drug is the one that works for someone- that's great, and it's great that the patient was able to experiment with a sample before investing. But if something cheaper works just as well or better- why not consider?Fortunately, the American Medical Association denounced many of the drug marketing practices last year, and I thought I heard that regulations may change to prohibit the most extreme doctor perks.
> Hi Laima
>
> The problem with samples is that people often end up starting treatment with a highly expensive new drug (which may eventually prove difficult to afford) when they might respond equally well to a much less expensive drug. An example is people starting on Effexor XR instead of generic fluoxetine. I've always found the whole concept of samples rather amusing (we don't have them in England). I can just imagine doctors opening drawers packed with shiny new meds.
>
> Pharm reps in the UK are not like they used to be. They hardly ever bring nice gifts anymore because the government restricts these activities.
>
> Ed
>
>
poster:laima
thread:719688
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20070107/msgs/720245.html