tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7772182113499451603.post5975752960102548766..comments2024-03-27T10:50:53.692-05:00Comments on Real Psychiatry: Alkermes And The Pharmaceutical Company DynamicGeorge Dawson, MD, DFAPAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03474899831557543486noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7772182113499451603.post-16170319877835624232014-07-14T09:12:28.941-05:002014-07-14T09:12:28.941-05:00I like the weather and I like to speedskate. My r...I like the weather and I like to speedskate. My reference to the culture was provided to suggest that may have been the origin of my blue collar skepticism of the intentions of corporations, unions, and politicians. In the 21st century I would add bloggers to that list.George Dawson, MD, DFAPAhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03474899831557543486noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7772182113499451603.post-82456694319912251602014-07-14T04:58:36.938-05:002014-07-14T04:58:36.938-05:00Why do you stay in a place that is cold and desola...Why do you stay in a place that is cold and desolate?<br /><br />Because that's where the patients are? Lighting a candle in the darkness?RBnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7772182113499451603.post-17509085436185348142014-07-13T22:53:14.745-05:002014-07-13T22:53:14.745-05:00I think that the "sizzle" used to be: &q...I think that the "sizzle" used to be: "This is the next great drug coming down the pike and it is better than what was previously available?" Most psychiatrists have the experience of listening to patients requesting the next great drug. I think that element of pharmaceutical advertising has been one of the more compelling marketing techniques. In fact, all of the ads I have read for the past 30 years pretty much say that. Before you disagree, I was on a P & T Committee in the 1990s and had to listen to a special appeal from psychiatrists that fluoxetine was an SSRI with special properties and that we should allow it on the formulary so that only psychiatrists could prescribe it without prior authorization. The reason for that very emotional appeal – strictly advertising. <br /><br />I am certainly not suggesting that this is subtle or sneaky, in fact I think that one of the reasons that I am not obsessing about the behavior of pharmaceutical ads on blogs that purport to “Keep psychiatry honest since 2007” is that I know what advertising is and I am not threatened by it. If I can watch a Cadillac commercial or a Corvette commercial and not run out and buy a new car I doubt that a melodramatic pharmaceutical ad is going to do anything. Don’t mistake me for the people who are pouring over pharmaceutical company papers from 20 and 30 years ago.<br /><br />Not approving marketing efforts of Big Pharma seems like not understanding advertising to me. For the record, I guess you would classify me as an “older psychiatrist”. I have not seen a Pharma rep, eaten any of their free food, or accepted any of their promotional materials in about 30 years.<br /><br />I come from a place that is cold and desolate. Nobody there expects anybody to be on their side. People expect people to mind their own business and leave them alone. In terms of people being on my side, the only exceptions I have found have been a few college professors, a couple of fellow Peace Corps volunteers and of course my wife. I would certainly never expect that to come from my any of the people I do business with and definitely not a Pharmaceutical company. And you are correct, working for corporations I have been in contact with administrators who were absolutely toxic. <br /><br />I guess I should have made that more explicit in the post, but I hope this will do.George Dawson, MD, DFAPAhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03474899831557543486noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7772182113499451603.post-13053745501041397112014-07-13T18:11:31.101-05:002014-07-13T18:11:31.101-05:00"Sell the sizzle, not the steak" is hard..."Sell the sizzle, not the steak" is hardly new in advertising. Although I can't quickly find examples online, I have no doubt that pharma ads to doctors have appealed (pandered?) to our emotions from the very beginning. Variations on the Alkermes ad appear regularly in journals: a troubled patient with a face depicted as shards of a broken mirror is literally "made whole" in the "after" picture. Storm clouds in the "before" picture become blue skies. Etc. There's nothing the least bit subtle or sneaky about this, it's how companies sell everything from cars to canned soup. Meds are no exception:<br />http://www.pm360online.com/doctors-make-emotional-decisions-too-even-when-it-comes-to-prescribing/<br /><br />Perhaps I misunderstand what you mean by "anti-Pharma" being a religion. I'm glad the industry exists, but I don't approve of its marketing efforts, either to doctors or the public. Pharma reps visited the older psychiatrists in my suite for years; I always found it awkward that uninvited (by me) salespeople felt entitled to sit in my waiting room and try to strike up conversations with me. I thought it would make about as much sense to invite our ubiquitous San Francisco panhandlers into our waiting room, so they could make <i> their</i> pitches. Now that the older docs have retired and we have new faces here, none of us will allow their promotional materials and glad-handing. If that's a religion, hallelujah.<br /><br />It's sad — and a little ominous — that some senior psychiatrists feel no one is on their side, and therefore find sentimental marketing tropes appealing. By avoiding the grindstone of CorpMed and managed care, by having colleagues nearby who practice likewise, by staying involved in resident education at a nearby medical center, and by conversing with fellow psychiatrists in the blogosphere, I don't feel isolated or unsupported professionally. I'd likely feel beleaguered and discouraged, though, if I worked in a corporate setting. As something of an outsider to that world, I watch with fascination how Pharma can supply both the meds that constitute the sole treatment modality in such settings, as well as the "sympathy" that the providers need to feel valued and understood there.Steven Reidbord MDhttp://blog.stevenreidbordmd.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7772182113499451603.post-18599573537950854002014-07-07T20:06:04.374-05:002014-07-07T20:06:04.374-05:00When they get really good at it they will be makin...When they get really good at it they will be making ads like this <br /><br />http://www.businessinsider.com/thai-life-tearjerker-ad-2014-4<br /><br />Not that we don't have these types of ads from time to time, but in SE Asia they have perfected them, and their viral popularity on social media hasn't gone unnoticed by marketers.<br /><br />Alkermes appeal to clinicians may be breaking new ground but it looks like altruism might just beat out sex for selling these days. After all, you can get sex anywhere, but altruism is getting harder and harder to find.<br /><br />You know, the Unsung Hero really is a good video; too bad it is also an advertisement.<br />RBnoreply@blogger.com