Ethical relationships between doctors and industry

The Position Statement on Doctors’ Relationships with Industry 2010 sets out major principles for doctors’ relationships with industry, including managing potential conflicts of interest.

AMA President, Dr Andrew Pesce, said the AMA believes that collaboration between doctors and industry contributes beneficially to the quality of health care that Australians receive.

“However, doctors have a responsibility to ensure that their relationships with industry are consistent with their duties to their patients and to society at large,” Dr Pesce said.

“Ethical relationships between doctors and industry ensure that doctors’ independence and integrity are protected.”

The major principles guiding doctors’ relationships with industry include:

• The doctor's primary obligation is to the patient - considerations involving industry are appropriate only insofar as they do not intrude into or distort that primary obligation;
• The primary objective of relationships between doctors and industry should be the advancement of the health of patients;
• Doctors must maintain their professional autonomy, clinical independence and integrity.  Relationships between doctors and industry must not compromise doctors’ professional judgement or their ability to act in their patients’ best interests;
• The patient’s health needs should be the primary consideration when utilising products and services; and
• Doctors should manage potential conflicts of interest appropriately so as to maintain the public’s trust and confidence in the medical profession.

The Position Statement specifies that it is ethically acceptable for industry to sponsor meetings that contribute to doctors’ education and Continuing Professional Development (CPD), but the sponsorship must be transparent and at arm’s length from organising and hosting such meetings.

“CPD activities should primarily address the educational needs of the targeted medical audience and not the marketing needs of the sponsor companies,” Dr Pesce said.

The Position Statement also stipulates that:

• The distribution of product samples should not involve any form of material gain for the doctor or their practice;
• Practising doctors should not ask for, accept, nor allow their prescribing habits to be influenced by personal gifts from industry; and
• Doctors in active practice may accept educational materials appropriate to their areas of practice.

The Position Statement – available on the AMA website here - was revised as part of the AMA’s regular policy review process.  It was last revised in 2002.

1 April 2010

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