Most doctors prescribe medication on basis of drug company bribe

When your doctor prescribes you a drug, you naturally assume he’s doing so because it’s the best for your problem. Think again – he is just as likely to be influenced by a great gift from the drug company. Doctors are still ‘unduly influenced’ in their drug recommendations by gifts from the manufacturer. Astonishingly, doctors are able to rationalize the practice and their conduct, and consider them their just reward for the sacrifices they made in obtaining their medical degree. A survey of 301 doctors found that up to 60 per cent of them were influenced by the drug companies’ gifts – which the researchers described as “barely disguised bribes” – which included pens, paper, free dinners and trips to exotic locations. (Source: Journal of the American Medical Association, 2010; 304: 1204-11).