PharmedOut to host conference to explore influence of pharmaceutical industry on medical education

Conference explores perils of CME funding by industry and examines successful programs without such funding

PharmedOut, an initiative aimed at increasing physician access to unbiased information about drugs, will host a conference to explore the issues of pharmaceutical industry funding on continuing medical education. The conference, "Prescription for Conflict: Should Industry Fund Continuing Medical Education?" will be held June 25, 2010 at Georgetown University. PharmedOut is an independent project at Georgetown University Medical Center (GUMC). The conference is a collaborative effort with the Kennedy Institute of Ethics at Georgetown University and the Georgetown University Law Center.

"Our goal is to explore the influence of the pharmaceutical industry on continuing medical education," says Adriane Fugh-Berman, MD, the lead researcher of PharmedOut. "This is an important issue because what doctors learn about drugs affects patient care as well as prescription costs." Fugh-Berman is an associate professor in the Department of Physiology and Biophysics, and the Department of Family Medicine at GUMC.

During the conference, Fugh-Berman will discuss novel research that uncovers marketing messages hidden in medical journal manuscripts and CME modules. Attendees will also hear from Josh Sharfstein, MD, principal deputy commissioner of the FDA; Paul Thacker, an investigator for Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa); Edmund Pellegrino, MD, Professor Emeritus of Medicine and Medical Ethics at GUMC; Carl Elliott, MD, PhD, a philosopher at the University of Minnesota and author of Better Than Well; industry representatives; and former industry insiders including "whistleblower" Glenn DeMott, a former pharmaceutical sales representative.

Conference topics include: professionalism, what's known about industry influence on continuing education of prescribers?; bioethicists and pharma; the pros and cons of industry-funded education; and models for sustainable industry-free CME.

The conference will take place from 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. in the Intercultural Center Auditorium at Georgetown. General registration will be $495, with discounts for community physicians, nurses, physician assistants and students.