Comments on: Nice work if you can get it: same talk, same slides, week in, week out – at $1,500 a pop

By: Carolyn Thomas

Carolyn Thomas — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 13:58:18 +0000

In reply to Bette.

You’re welcome Bette – and thanks for the nice comments.
cheers,
C.

By: Bette

Bette — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 18:41:25 +0000

Hello Carolyn! I attended one of your “PINOT AND PREVENTION” women’s heart health talks last spring and I have to say we sure got $1500 worth of knowledge and inspiration and entertainment out of your (free!) presentation. Too bad you’re not on that Big Pharma payroll. Just kidding of course – it’s GOOD that you are not, because if you were, you’d be spouting what some corporation wants you to say, instead of speaking to us right from the heart, literally. Thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

LikeLike

By: Carolyn Thomas

Carolyn Thomas — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 21:59:52 +0000

In reply to Nick.

Thanks, Nick!

LikeLike

By: Nick

Nick — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 02:58:13 +0000

Excellent info – excellent site. Smart and savvy. Have bookmarked your site and I like to return frequently, really appreciate your writing.

LikeLike

By: Carolyn Thomas

Carolyn Thomas — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 21:14:37 +0000

In reply to dave kanyer.

And that is precisely the point, Dave. It’s very distressing. There is simply too much money at stake for Big Pharma to leave any stone unturned when it comes to aggressively marketing their drugs. See also Dr. Daniel Carlat’s revealing story of his experience on the speakers bureau for Wyeth Pharmaceuticals at: “Doctor’s Kiss & Tell Tale: My 1-year Career As A Drug Rep” here at: https://ethicalnag.org/2009/11/19/wyeth-drug-rep-carlat/

Thanks for your valuable input as a hospital insider.
Cheers,
C.

LikeLike

By: dave kanyer

dave kanyer — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 19:18:18 +0000

I am a pharmacist with responsibility for a hospital’s drug formulary committee presentations and new drug review. The invitations for drug-related talks are numerous. In the last couple of years the “ethical standards” of drug companies do not allow speakers to deviate from the slides which are provided by the company. Of course questions can be answered but one wonders how much that a speaker who may get upwards of $1,500-5,000 per talk will be willing to deviate from the company side of things. I am a skeptic. With a number of FDA approvals based on unpublished literature, ghostwritten studies, and various other techniques for manipulating results coupled with the potential profits for a new prescription drug, how does one make a rational decision about new pharmacologic entities?

LikeLiked by 1 person

By: Florida Physio

Florida Physio — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 17:16:52 +0000

This helps to explain what didn’t make much sense before – the question WHY? kept coming up the more I hear about these speakers bureaus run by drug companies that are so clearly run to sell drugs. Money talks….

LikeLike