Pharmaceutical Industry Drug Promotion, Research Paper Example

Introduction

Drug promotion by the pharmaceutical industry has been on the rise in the past years and has a result affecting health practices. Various promotion forms/strategies are used most of which leave the targeted customers either informed or misinformed about the drugs. Despite the fact that some of the pharmaceutical companies perform promotion in a credible, clear and transparent manner to enhance health care standards, the increased competition in the pharmaceutical promotion industry has resulted to inconspicuous, unethical promotion forms  that if not regulated have caused detrimental effects especially to the customers (Glenmullen, 2000). Ethical drug promotion by the pharmaceutical industry if encourage on the other hand will have positive impacts of health practices.

Drug promotion by pharmaceutical industry is one of the strategies that have positive impact on health practices especially if conducted ethically. Through drug promotion, customers are educated concerning various medical conditions. When physicians, health care organizations are targeted, drug promotion widens the prescription choices that can be used for customers. Previously, most new pharmaceutical industries were unable to thrive due to existing pharmaceutical giants who used to command the kind of drugs being prescribed in hospitals. Hence drug promotion can be viewed as one of the practices that can be used to bring competition in health a practice which is a very essential development strategy (Joanna, 2010). Drug promotion by pharmaceutical companies keeps all industries on toes doing further research on various medical conditions and hence improving the efficiency of the drugs in the market. Drug promotion by the pharmaceutical industry has thus converted the healthcare environment into a competitive market and thus is promoting development in the industry.

In addition drug promotion by the pharmaceutical industry is changing the marketing mix of the health practices. Through drug promotion, customers are given the chance to actively participate in promoting their own health care through the rich information they are given through various promotion strategies such as the internet. In addition, drug promotion is ensuring practitioners do not have much discretion on drug brands to prescribe to their patients (Glenmullen, 2000). Many drug promotion practices are eliminating the prescription behavior constrains that patients were faced with before and hence creating a democratic healthcare environment. Other than educating the patients about various drugs, drug promotion has also been able to shade light concerning risks and side effects of using certain drugs and hence allowing patients to make informed choices on whether to use these drugs or not.

Drug promotion by the pharmaceutical industry has indirectly increased cost for entering in the health care market. In addition, due to the competition that drug promotion has created, drug prices have reduced and thus have resulted to medical services being accessible to everyone at affordable prices. Drug promotion provides knowledge on various brands that can be prescribed for a given medical condition and thus lowers demand elasticity of the various brands.

However, not all impacts that pharmaceutical industry drug promotion has had positive impact of health practices. Some of the drug promotion that is used in the pharmaceutical industry such as physician oriented promotion strategy is more persuasive than information. A physician will agree to prescribe certain drugs based on how the market persuaded them rather than how effective the drug will be on certain medical condition. Hence, drug promotion has converted the healthcare environment into a business where competition is the order of the day rather than ensuring quality health care practices are employed. Drug promotion has impacted negatively heath practices since most practitioners rely on pharmaceutical industry information in prescribing or dispensing drugs thus encouraging irrational drug prescription. Practitioners no longer use the search methods while making prescriptions and this may in the future affect the lives of many patients.

Drug promotion by the pharmaceutical industry can also be associated with development of drug resistant one of the problems facing the healthcare industry today. In order to reduce cost of production most pharmaceutical industries produce substandard drugs by lowering the active ingredient and thus endangering patient’s health. Drug promotion has also increased the rates of individual prescription and thus negatively affecting healthcare organizations. Individual prescription also endangers the life of the patient since it very easily results to misprescription and thus aggravating the medical condition. Misprescription has also resulted to development of drug resistant strains which is costing the healthcare organizations a lot to develop other mediations that are susceptible.

Drug promotion has resulted to development of corrupt healthcare environment. Mainly as a result of competition arising due to promotion and the heavy regulations set in this industry, most pharmaceutical industries have ventured into bribing and corruption to ensure their drugs remain in the market. Most pharmaceutical companies give doctors commissions for prescribing their drugs (Jaysinh, 2010). In addition, most of the drug promotion methods used are unethical and thus puts the patient’s health and safety at risk. In some cases in order to get market for certain drugs, pharmaceutical industry have been suppressing certain information concerning a drug such as its side effects yet they claim to be promoting vital awareness. Hence drug promotion has had negative impact on health practices by violating the right of the customers to have detailed information concerning a particular product before they use. Drug promotion by the pharmaceutical industry has also increased irrational drug use by customers which if not regulated may have fatal consequences in the future in the health sector.

Conclusion

Drug promotion by the pharmaceutical industry has had both positive and negative impact on the health practices.  Drug promotion has increased customers awareness concerning various drugs and hence has helped them make informed choices on the kind of drug to use. In addition, drug promotion has increased competition in health care practices and thus has reduced the elasticity demand for drug products by providing information concerning other brands. As a result the drug prices have been reduced as one of the ways of enhancing competition. This has made health care accessibility available for most people hence promoting quality health care. However drug promotion by the pharmaceutical industry has also had negative impact on the health practices such as it has promoted irrational drug use by customers and thus reducing customer’s safety. Irrational drug use has resulted to increased rate of development of drug resistant strain which is costing healthcare organization a lot to develop new non resistant drugs. In addition, drug promotion has converted health practices as sites for moneymaking (Joanna, 2006).

Instead of doctors using the search methods to determine the right prescription for the patients, they rely on information given by medical sales representatives. In addition, most drug promotion nowadays target customers not to provide adequate information but to increase customer demand and this has fueled the unethical drug promotion by pharmaceuticals industry hence compromising healthcare standards. Drug promotion has thus had both positive and negative outcomes in the healthcare environment.

References

Glenmullen, J. (2000). Prozac Backlash. New York. British journal of Psychiatry NY: Simon &Schuster.

Jaysinh, J. (2010). Unethical drug promotion: An emerging threat for the Indian society. India: Legalserviceindia online publishers. Retrieved from http://www.legalserviceindia.com/articles/une.htm

Joanna, M. (2006). Psychiatric drug promotion and politics of neoliberalism. UK: University college press.