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Characterizing the interaction between physicians, pharmacists and pharmaceutical representatives in a middle-income country: A qualitative study

BACKGROUND: Studies around the world have shown that interactions between pharmaceutical companies, pharmacists and physicians have a great influence on prescribing and drug dispensing practices. In middle-income countries, the nature and extent of these interactions have not been well researched. O...

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Autores principales: Hajjar, Rima, Bassatne, Aya, Cheaito, Mohamad Ali, Naser El Dine, Rabie, Traboulsy, Sarah, Haddadin, Fadi, Honein-AbouHaidar, Gladys, Akl, Elie A.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Public Library of Science 2017
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5595332/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28898296
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0184662
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author Hajjar, Rima
Bassatne, Aya
Cheaito, Mohamad Ali
Naser El Dine, Rabie
Traboulsy, Sarah
Haddadin, Fadi
Honein-AbouHaidar, Gladys
Akl, Elie A.
author_facet Hajjar, Rima
Bassatne, Aya
Cheaito, Mohamad Ali
Naser El Dine, Rabie
Traboulsy, Sarah
Haddadin, Fadi
Honein-AbouHaidar, Gladys
Akl, Elie A.
author_sort Hajjar, Rima
collection PubMed
description BACKGROUND: Studies around the world have shown that interactions between pharmaceutical companies, pharmacists and physicians have a great influence on prescribing and drug dispensing practices. In middle-income countries, the nature and extent of these interactions have not been well researched. Our objectives were to qualitatively explore the nature of the interactions between pharmaceutical companies, physicians and pharmacists, their impact on drug prescription and dispensing practices in Lebanon. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We used grounded theory approach as well as the known sponsor, purposive, and snowballing sampling strategies to identify interviewees from the three respective groups: physicians, pharmacists, and pharmaceutical representatives. We conducted semi-structured and analyzed transcripts thematically. This study encompassed 6 pharmaceutical representatives, 13 physicians and 13 pharmacists. The following themes emerged: purpose and driver for the interactions, nature of the interactions, incentives, impact on prescription practices, ethical considerations, and suggestions for managing the interactions. The main purposes for the interaction were educational, promotional, and monitoring prescription practices and dispensing, while the main drivers for these interactions were market potential and neighborhood socio-economic status. Physicians, pharmacists and pharmaceutical representatives who engage in these interactions benefit from a variety of incentives, some of which were characterized as unethical. It appears that pharmaceutical companies give prominence to selected physicians within their communities. Although members of the three interviewed groups refer to some of the interactions as being problematic, they described a culture of acceptance of gift giving. We developed a framework that depicts the prevailing politico-cultural environment, the interactions between the three professional groups, and their impact on drug prescription. Underreporting is the main limitation of this study. CONCLUSION: Interactions between physicians, pharmacists and pharmaceutical representatives are frequent. Although these interactions can be beneficial, they still have a substantial effect on drug prescription and dispensing practices. Hence, the need for new policies that regulate these interactions and penalize any misconduct.
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spelling pubmed-55953322017-09-15 Characterizing the interaction between physicians, pharmacists and pharmaceutical representatives in a middle-income country: A qualitative study Hajjar, Rima Bassatne, Aya Cheaito, Mohamad Ali Naser El Dine, Rabie Traboulsy, Sarah Haddadin, Fadi Honein-AbouHaidar, Gladys Akl, Elie A. PLoS One Research Article BACKGROUND: Studies around the world have shown that interactions between pharmaceutical companies, pharmacists and physicians have a great influence on prescribing and drug dispensing practices. In middle-income countries, the nature and extent of these interactions have not been well researched. Our objectives were to qualitatively explore the nature of the interactions between pharmaceutical companies, physicians and pharmacists, their impact on drug prescription and dispensing practices in Lebanon. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We used grounded theory approach as well as the known sponsor, purposive, and snowballing sampling strategies to identify interviewees from the three respective groups: physicians, pharmacists, and pharmaceutical representatives. We conducted semi-structured and analyzed transcripts thematically. This study encompassed 6 pharmaceutical representatives, 13 physicians and 13 pharmacists. The following themes emerged: purpose and driver for the interactions, nature of the interactions, incentives, impact on prescription practices, ethical considerations, and suggestions for managing the interactions. The main purposes for the interaction were educational, promotional, and monitoring prescription practices and dispensing, while the main drivers for these interactions were market potential and neighborhood socio-economic status. Physicians, pharmacists and pharmaceutical representatives who engage in these interactions benefit from a variety of incentives, some of which were characterized as unethical. It appears that pharmaceutical companies give prominence to selected physicians within their communities. Although members of the three interviewed groups refer to some of the interactions as being problematic, they described a culture of acceptance of gift giving. We developed a framework that depicts the prevailing politico-cultural environment, the interactions between the three professional groups, and their impact on drug prescription. Underreporting is the main limitation of this study. CONCLUSION: Interactions between physicians, pharmacists and pharmaceutical representatives are frequent. Although these interactions can be beneficial, they still have a substantial effect on drug prescription and dispensing practices. Hence, the need for new policies that regulate these interactions and penalize any misconduct. Public Library of Science 2017-09-12 /pmc/articles/PMC5595332/ /pubmed/28898296 http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0184662 Text en © 2017 Hajjar et al http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) , which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
spellingShingle Research Article
Hajjar, Rima
Bassatne, Aya
Cheaito, Mohamad Ali
Naser El Dine, Rabie
Traboulsy, Sarah
Haddadin, Fadi
Honein-AbouHaidar, Gladys
Akl, Elie A.
Characterizing the interaction between physicians, pharmacists and pharmaceutical representatives in a middle-income country: A qualitative study
title Characterizing the interaction between physicians, pharmacists and pharmaceutical representatives in a middle-income country: A qualitative study
title_full Characterizing the interaction between physicians, pharmacists and pharmaceutical representatives in a middle-income country: A qualitative study
title_fullStr Characterizing the interaction between physicians, pharmacists and pharmaceutical representatives in a middle-income country: A qualitative study
title_full_unstemmed Characterizing the interaction between physicians, pharmacists and pharmaceutical representatives in a middle-income country: A qualitative study
title_short Characterizing the interaction between physicians, pharmacists and pharmaceutical representatives in a middle-income country: A qualitative study
title_sort characterizing the interaction between physicians, pharmacists and pharmaceutical representatives in a middle-income country: a qualitative study
topic Research Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5595332/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28898296
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0184662
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