Further to my June 24 blog and as reported in the The Boston Globe, Harvard Medical School has joined the ranks of medical educational facilities that have enacted new, tough conflict-of interest rules affecting the payment of educators and others by Big Pharma and Medical Device manufacturers. Under its new policy professors at Harvard Medical School will no longer be able to accept gifts, travel, or meals from such companies, nor will they be able to take industry money to speak about drugs or devices.
Harvard also reduced by half (to ten thousand dollars) the amount of money a faculty member may accept for studying a product or drug. Harvard is one of the few universities to impose such a cap. The changes resulted from an analysis of a 34 member review panel. They were accepted this week by the dean of the medical school and will go into effect over the next year.
This is yet another step toward the emancipation of medical education from industry money and influence. Are we seeing a trend, perhaps?
