New Guidelines Examine Drug Firm, CME Relations

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Abstract
NEW ETHICAL guidelines that address the relationship between pharmaceutical companies and continuing medical education (CME) programs are expected to be approved this month by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME). The new guidelines build on and strengthen previous guidelines adopted in 1984, and address several ethical concerns that were previously ambiguous. Throughout the 1980s, funding of CME programs and other symposia emerged as the fastest growing area in pharmaceutical marketing. A congressional survey reveals that industry funding of symposia increased 14-fold between 1975 and 1988 (adjusted for inflation). During the same period, expenditures for gifts and reminder items increased only two to three times (adjusted for inflation). While acknowledging that funding from industry serves an important and beneficial function, the public and the medical community have voiced increasing concern that the influence of industry in these programs could compromise the integrity of physicians' continuing education. Extravagant promotional schemes,

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