A new study and database highlights which American medical schools have the most stringent clinical conflict of interest policies. These include rules managing gifts and meals from pharmaceutical and device manufacturers, along with physicians' consulting and speaking engagements for company-sponsored events.
Investigators from the Institute on Medicine as a Profession evaluated clinical conflicts of interest policies in 2011 for accredited medical schools. Each school's policies were scored as "permissive," "moderate," or "stringent," based on recommendations issued by the Association of American Medical Colleges, the Institute of Medicine, the American Board of Internal Medicine Foundation and IMAP.
The top five medical schools that came closest to meeting national clinical conflict of interest standards were:
• Emory University School of Medicine (Atlanta)
• University of Massachusetts Medical School (Worcester)
• University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine (Iowa City)
• Boston University School of Medicine
• University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences College of Medicine (Little Rock)
Schools with the weakest policies included:
• St. Louis University School of Medicine
• George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences (Washington, D.C.)
• Weill Cornell Medical College (New York City)
• University of Nebraska College of Medicine (Omaha)
• Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine (Cleveland)
Researchers also concluded that although many schools have taken steps to better manage physicians' ties to the pharmaceutical and device industries, less-than-stringent policies still prevail in 11 of the 12 clinical conflicts of interest areas. Less-than-stringent policies remained typical for all areas except ghostwriting, which refers to any written work published under the name of healthcare personnel that was written in part or in full by pharmaceutical industry staff or paid writers. Still, nearly a third of medical schools have no policy prohibiting ghostwriting.
Researchers explored the connection between a medical school's status, hospital affiliation or source of funding and how these traits affected their policy strength. Hospital ownership and public or private status had no impact, but medical schools with greater funding from the National Institutes of Health were more likely to have stricter policies than those with less funding, according to the release.
More Articles on Conflict of Interest Policies:
Common Investment Mistakes of Trustees
4 Important Areas of Board Education Before a Hospital Transaction
2 CaroMont Trustees Urged to Resign Over Conflicts of Interest in "Cheat Death" Campaign