ABPI Code of Practice

In this edition, find out what gifts, samples and medical and educational goods and services the pharmaceutical industry can provide in accordance with the ABPI Code...

The promotion of prescription medicines to health professionals and information made available to the public about prescription only medicines are regulated by The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) Code of Practice for the Pharmaceutical Industry.

It is important that you know about the ABPI Code so that you know what to expect from pharmaceutical companies and how to get the most out of your relationships with them.

If you are concerned about a pharmaceutical company’s activities, contact the Prescription Medicines Code of Practice Authority (PMCPA) which administers the Code at arm’s length from the ABPI (full details can be downloaded via the link below).

Gifts (Clause 18)
• No gift, benefit in kind or pecuniary advantage should be offered or given as an inducement to prescribe, supply, administer, recommend, buy or sell any medicine.
• Promotional aids that are relevant to the recipient’s profession can be provided. These must be inexpensive - the limit is £6, excluding VAT, and of a similar perceived value.
• Items must not be offered for personal benefit.

Medical and educational goods and services (Clause 18.4)
• The provision of medical and educational goods and services which enhance patient care or benefit the NHS while maintaining patient care is permitted under the Code. Such goods and services must not constitute an inducement to prescribe, supply, administer, recommend, buy or sell any medicine.
• Medical and educational goods and services must not bear the name of any medicine, but can bear a company name.
• The involvement of the pharmaceutical company must always be made clear to health professionals.

Samples (Clause 17)
• A sample is a small supply of a medicine provided to health professionals to familiarise themselves with it and acquire experience in dealing with it.
• No more than 10 samples of a particular medicine may be provided to a health professional qualified to prescribe that product during the course of a year.
• Each sample must be no larger than the smallest pack on the UK market.
• Samples may only be supplied in response to written requests that have been signed and dated.
• Samples must be labelled as such and accompanied by a summary of product characteristics.
• Companies must have adequate systems of control and accountability for samples which they distribute and all medicines handled by representatives.

**Find out about the rules around meetings and hospitality in the next newsletter**

The Intelligent Practice by Dr Foster

Background

The health service is in the midst of significant change: a shift from a system dominated by providers to one which is aiming to meet the needs of those who use it. GPs are at the forefront of this process. They are best placed to understand the needs of their local
communities and to design services accordingly.

One of the key aims of the policy is to actively engage GPs and increase their role in aligning the allocation of resources to the full care pathway (not just what happens within the surgery). Using the information which will be made available to them, practices, or groups of practices, will be able to come up with ways of challenging current services and investing in and designing new services that might be more cost
effective and more convenient for patients.

Under practice-based commissioning (PBC), GP practices are being given their own ‘notional’ budgets with which to ‘buy’ health services for their patients. Commissioning practices are accountable to their PCTs, who negotiate and enter into the contracts with providers in line with past GP referral decisions and remain legally responsible for the
funds. The notional budgets reflect any NHS services their patients receive, including attendances at Accident and Emergency departments, drugs, and all referrals to hospital for outpatient and inpatient treatments.

Most practices are now signed up in principle to PBC via their PCTs. However, it is widely acknowledged that it is a long way before the full benefits of PBC are realised.

There are significant variations between PCTs and practices in their understanding and implementation of practice-based commissioning.

As well as looking at the existing information flows and provisions available to practice based commissioners, the report sets out two information frameworks for driving effective commissioning. The first outlines the indicators required by all GP practices, whilst the second outlines the additional information required by leading-edge commissioners. The report also recommends ways of presenting information to commissioners. It is not prescriptive, but is intended as a guide or starting point for practice based commissioners.

Questions that are addressed include:

What information currently exists to support practice based commissioning?

What other organisations do practice based commissioners need to work with?

What are the information challenges facing GP commissioners?

How should information be presented?

ABPI - Code of Practice

The promotion of prescription medicines to health professionals and information made available to the public about prescription only medicines are regulated by The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) Code of Practice for the Pharmaceutical Industry.

It is important that you know about the ABPI Code so that you know what to expect from pharmaceutical companies and how to get the most out of your relationships with them.
 
If you are concerned about a pharmaceutical company’s promotional activities, contact the Prescription Medicines Code of Practice Authority (PMCPA) which administers the Code at arm’s length from the ABPI (details below).

Meetings (Clause 19)
• Pharmaceutical companies may appropriately sponsor a wide range of meetings including lunchtime audio-visual presentations, hospital meetings, management training courses, meetings of clinical trialists, patient support groups meetings, satellite symposia and large international meetings.
• It must be the scientific or educational content that attracts delegates to a meeting. Meetings wholly or mainly of a social or sporting nature are unacceptable.
• Lavish or deluxe venues must not be used and companies should avoid using venues renowned for their entertainment facilities. 
• Pharmaceutical company sponsorship of meetings must be disclosed in all papers relating to the meeting and any published proceedings. 
• Payment may not be made to doctors or other prescribers, either directly or indirectly, for rental for rooms to be used for meetings. 

Hospitality (Clause 19)
• Hospitality can only be provided in association with scientific meetings, promotional meetings, scientific congresses and other such meetings. 
• Subsistence must be strictly limited to the main purpose of the event and secondary to it.  The costs must not exceed that level which the recipients would normally adopt when paying for themselves.
• Hospitality cannot be offered to spouses or other such people unless they qualify as delegates in their own right. 
• Companies can only provide economy air travel to delegates sponsored to attend meetings. 
• A useful criterion for determining whether the arrangements for any meeting are acceptable is to apply the question ‘would you be willing to have these arrangements generally known?’ If the answer is no, then you probably shouldn’t accept this support.  The impression created must always be kept in mind.

Similar arrangements apply to meetings for patient groups, journalists and the public.

**Find out about the rules governing pharmaceutical representatives in April**