Overcoming Ethical Issues Surrounding the Relationships Between Physicians and Pharmaceutical Companies in Rural Hospitals

Conflicts of interest (COIs), such as the relationships between pharmaceutical companies and patients and/or their families, can be a significant ethical issue in the field of medicine. The relationship between physicians and pharmaceutical company representatives is just one non-clinical ethical dilemma frequently encountered in medicine. For example, our family medicine department has a COI stemming from its relationship with pharmaceutical companies. We reflected on this COI and discussed a concrete approach from which we implemented evidence-based learning to overcome the challenges presented by this particular COI. This editorial reviews this case and demonstrates an effective approach to addressing COIs.