The burden of social responsibility is on the pharmaceutical industry. It is producing drugs and medical equipment which have to fulfill high quality standards, because they are very important from society point of view. The main business activity of pharmaceutical companies can be assessed as doing something good. However, a lot of drug producers are also involved in other ways of working for public wellness. There are using a great range of the instruments and programs to manage the corporate social responsibility. The article describes the results of 31 in-depth interviews with the pharmaceutical sales representatives conducted between the June – November 2007. It shows what problems can be created during organizing: charity action, white Sundays, conferences for physicians and other pro bono events. It explains how such actions can meet with public opinion accusations. The main aim of this paper is to answer the questions: What are the advantages of realizing CSR for pharmaceutical companies? Is it true that this conception is used as a marketing tool by drug producers? What the pharmaceutical sales representatives think about charity actions that are conducted in their companies?
Over the last few years, the pharmaceutical industry intensified marketing activity in Poland. One of the most important ways of promotion are visits by pharmaceutical sales representatives in physicians’ offices. Representatives during those meetings are using different sorts of tactics to manipulate physicians such as: gift-giving, free meals, travel subsidies, “fake” research, ‘white Saturdays’, sponsored teaching and conferences. An ethical ambiguity can be easily find in this work. The paper describes briefly the results of the research concerning the influence of the relationship between physicians with the pharmaceutical companies on prescribing habits which were conducted in other countries. The article presents law regulations and ethical codes present in Poland, but it concentrate on describing the results of 31 in-depth interviews with pharmaceutical sales representatives conducted between the June – November 2007. The main aim of this paper is to show how important are ethical and law standards for the pharmaceutical sales representative. Do they know it? Does companies take care about proper training and information in the area for their employees? Work ethics of the pharmaceutical sales representative is very important, and should be discussed. Drugs are special kind of goods which can influence people health and sometimes even lives so we should pay attention to the ways medicaments are advertise and promote.
For many years, the subject of aggressive marketing campaigns conducted by pharmaceutical companies has been raised in Poland. Drug ads are everywhere, on television, the radio, magazines and on the Internet. Therefore, it is extremely important is to ensure both their legal and ethical dimension. In my article I will present the differences between direct-to-consumer advertising of medicines in Poland and in the US. The dissimilarities result mainly from differences in legislation. In Poland the law is much stricter than in the US. For example, in the United States companies are allowed to advertise prescription drugs directly to patients. In the whole of the European Union, and thus in Poland, it is strictly prohibited. The article will present other regulations existing in Poland and in the United States and it will compare them. It will show examples of violations of the law and ethics in the advertising of medicine in both countries. It will briefly outline the negative consequences of unacceptable pharmaceutical marketing.
Celem artykułu jest nakreślenie obszaru badawczego w ramach socjologii medycyny, który socjologowie brytyjscy nazwali socjologią farmaceutyków. Zawierają się w niej: 1) procesy medykalizacji i farmaceutykalizacji, 2) społeczny kontekst tworzenia regulacji dotyczących leków, 3) praktyki marketingowe przemysłu farmaceutycznego, 4) oczekiwania społeczne dotyczące innowacji farmaceutycznych, 5) konsumpcja leków. W artykule omówiono powstanie i rozwój socjologii farmaceutyków oraz dokonano przeglądu badań mieszczących się w tym obszarze. Przedstawiono także argumenty dowodzące użyteczności terminu „socjologia farmaceutyków” w badaniach nad społecznymi konsekwencjami korzystania z leków oraz procesem farmaceutykalizacji.
EN
The aim of the article is to outline the subfield within the sociology of medicine which British sociologists called the sociology of pharmaceuticals. It contains: 1) the processes of medication and pharmaceuticalisation, 2) the social context of drug regulation, 3) marketing practices of the pharmaceutical industry, 4) social expectations regarding pharmaceutical innovations, and 5) drug consumption. The article will discuss the emergence and development of the sociology of pharmaceuticals, and a review of research in this area will be made. Finally, arguments will be presented showing the usefulness of the term sociology of pharmaceuticals in research on the social consequences of drug use and the process of pharmaceuticalisation.
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