Are large of amounts of people really this sick or are medications being dolled out like candy? I'd say a combo platter of both.
I am not doctor, I am merely a psychiatric social worker and a new one at that. I am fresh out of graduate school and have much to learn before I can dare think of myself as a seasoned professional.
I will say that I have not fully immersed myself in either the pro or anti medication camp.
I have witnessed various pros and cons of medication. I agree that some individuals are over medicated, I agree that at times psychiatrists prescribe medications far too quickly, and I also agree that patients need to become their own advocates as there may not be anyone else to advocate for them.
I encourage individuals to conduct their own research and take it to a professional. I think when one researches a medication the information may become overwhelming. When this information is brought into a doctor's office, the man or woman in the big white coat will see that they need to offer extra attention to the studious patient. They will need to clarify, explain and break down the process and effects of the anti-depressant or psychotic.
Then get a second opinion! A third if need be.
But what is it that makes this nation so willing to take medications?
We all know the song, a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down. I began thinking of that jovial song and thought...well the industry certainly provides us with sugar. Some may argue that one of the reasons that doctors hock meds so easily is due to the abundance of advertisement.
As I mentioned earlier I have not fully immersed myself in the camp of anti or the camp of pro. I believe that medications are often a blessing. I believe that we are quite fortunate that science has gotten us this far. I also believe that medications are often viewed as a quick fix even by the professionals who are supposed to understand better than anyone that there is no such thing.
So what gives?
Changing Our Minds movie trailer - Depression & Dysthymia - Information, Drug Facts, Therapy
I have not see this film but came across the trailer on YouTube. To learn more about the film for yourself visit the website here.
Why is it that the practice of prescribing medication not more regularly executed with discretion and care?
Well, as mentioned earlier, the drug market is a multi-million dollar industry. Doctors and other mental health professionals actually receive a big push from the industry itself.
I received my first taste of this as a clinical social work intern during graduate school. During my first year of grad school I interned for an mental health outpatient facility and during my second year I interned at a mental health inpatient facility.
During these years drug reps would trot out to our building to hand out free goods. Pens, mugs, computer mice, and other freebies with the generic name of a specific medication displayed across it.
Initially, I really enjoyed receiving these trinkets. I was humored by the ridiculousness of it all. I thought it so tacky and corny that a drug be presented on a cozy mug. I was once given a computer mouse that had liquid inside and fake Zyprexa pills swimming around in it.
Eventually, I was able to put aside the humor. It wasn't kitschy it was sad. These are medications that none of my patients really wanted to take but rather took because they knew it would assist them.
Sure, when one works in a tough environment such as mental health, it helps to add humor to bring balance and ease. But really, there is a greater issue involved.
Just recently I read an article from Psychology Today (a magazine that I often find to be too much a pop psych review) that drug companies have actually agreed to stop sending free goodies to doctors.
Dr. Jeffrey F. Caren, a cardiologist in Los Angeles, created a display of the hundreds of pens given to him by the drug industry.
Dr. Jeffrey F. Caren, a cardiologist in Los Angeles, created a display of the hundreds of pens given to him by the drug industry.
The above photo was taken for a New York Times article.
J. Emilio Flores for The New York Times
The above photo gives a close up of just some of the pens that drug reps have offered to health and mental health workers. When I first saw this image I realized that I own several of the pens featured, and yes they were all given to me by drug reps.
So, just why are drug companies so willing to end the barrage of drug centered trinkets? According to the New York Times article some are skeptical and feel that the moratorium is superficial. Never the less I think it's a positive step.
“It’s not just the pens — it’s the paper on the exam table, the tongue depressor, the stethoscope tags, medical calipers that might be used to interpret an EKG, penlights,” said Dr. Robert Goodman, a physician in internal medicine at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx.
In 1999 Dr. Robert Goodman started a non-profit organization called No Free Lunch. The organization encourages doctors to reject drug company freebies.
Here is an excerpt from the late 2008 New York Times article.
The new voluntary industry guidelines try to counter the impression that gifts to doctors are intended to unduly influence medicine. The code, drawn up by Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, an industry group in Washington, bars drug companies from giving doctors branded pens, staplers, flash drives, paperweights, calculators and the like.
The guidelines also reiterate the group’s 2002 code, which prohibited more expensive goods and services like tickets to professional sports games and junkets to resorts. And it asks companies that finance medical courses, conferences or scholarships to leave the selection of study material and scholarship recipients to outside program coordinators.
Diane Bieri, the executive vice president of Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, said the updated guidelines were not an admission that gifts could influence doctors’ prescribing habits. Instead, she said, they were meant to emphasize the educational nature of the relationship between industry and doctors.
“We have never said and would never say that a pharmaceutical pen or notebook has influenced any prescription,” Ms. Bieri said.
But some critics said the code did not go far enough to address the influence of drug marketing on the practice of medicine. The guidelines, for example, still permit drug makers to underwrite free lunches for doctors and their staffs or to sponsor dinners for doctors at restaurants, as long as the meals are accompanied by educational presentations.
“Pens or no pens, their influence is not going to be diminished,” said Dr. Larry M. Greenbaum, a rheumatologist in Greenwood, Ind.Some professionals may feel that there is no link between the amount of prescribing one does and the amount of advertising one is exposed to. Whether this is true or not, I'd think the principle of the matter would be enough to ruffle some feathers. Enough to get us thinking.
In general advertising companies take their strategies too far. Almost anywhere you set your eyes there is an advertisement for something. Are billboards truly necessary? Is it necessary to place a website on top a basketball backboard during an aerial viewed shot?
I'd say not. But the entire point is to sell product. So, if a label across a pen or slab of paper does little to influence us why did drug companies care to distribute them to begin with?
An interesting blog entitled Drug Rep Toys features photos of various freebies the author of the blog has collected or been sent. He no longer updates the blog as frequently due to the fact that pharmaceutical companies no longer offer free items. Even so, it's an interesting site to visit.
For those who would like to find out more information about how to advocate for medical and mental health to remain free of marketing scheme check out the below links.
No Free Lunch - USAssociation for Independent Medical Education
Promotes the expansion of non-industry funded medical education.
A national campaign to stop formula company marketing in maternity hospitals. This isn't just prescription drugs we're talking about--this is mother's milk!
Committed to broadening the public's awareness about the quality problems that pervade the American health care system.
Drug Promotion Data Base (WHO/NGO)
A database developed by Joel Lexchin containing everything ever written about pharmaceutical promotion.
Working for better controls on drug promotion and more rational use of medication.
Defending health care from misleading and harmful marketing.
A database posted by The Center for Science in the Public Interest of scientists who consult for or have other affiliations with chemical, gas, oil, food, drug, and other companies.
Founded to restore physicians' primary emphasis on the core values of the profession: service, integrity, and advocacy Works to ensure equitable, affordable, high quality health care for all people.
Seeks to eliminate conflicts of interest created by industry marketing by promoting policy change among academic medical centers, professional medical societies and public and private payers.
Public Citizen's Health Research Group
Fighting for citizen and consumer justice since 1971, HRG promotes research-based changes in health care as well as providing advice and oversight regarding drugs, healthcare delivery and medical devices.
Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP)
Advocating for a universal, comprehensive single-payer national health care program in the U.S.
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