Doctors & pharmceuticals-oz style

[Guest guest]

I have watched the recent postings all about drug companies, kick-

backs, conflicts of interest and, dare I say it- high level

corruption within our most esteemed establishments.

I think that we are all aware that the pharmaceutical industry is no

different to any other major global industry, where there appears to

be a blurred line between responsibility to the shareholders and to

the wider community. Fortunately we have our democratically elected

governments, and their regulatory bodies to protect us from

unscrupulous practices, and when these fail, we have this group and

it's highly tuned bull detector to help us determine what is good

for our children.

It might make some people uncomfortable for me to say this ,but

those of us who have been fortunate enough to attend the MAGIC

convention in Chicago have benefitted greatly from the generosity of

the Pharmaceutical industry. We have eaten their food, drank their

drinks, and taken home all the gifts with happy smiling faces. There

wouldn't be many of us who could step forward and cast the first

stone at the drug companies or our doctors.

There is not much we can do about the global pharmceutical giants,

and their relationship with the medical industry, so we have to

concentrate more on our relationship with our own doctors and

pharmacists. They are after all human beings, just like us, and the

better they get to know us and our rare and beautiful children, the

better for everyone. They also have to sleep at night, with their

oath to 'do no harm'.

Recently in Australia a pharmaceutical manufacturer was prosecuted

because their quality control was seriously deficient. Drugs that

they manufactured sometimes contained virtually no active

ingredients, and others provided a dangerous overdose in one pill.

This was shocking and terrible, because medicines are supposed to do

a job -i.e. make us well. The thing is that as consumers we trust

that the products that we buy are what we think they are, and will

do what they claim to do. We trust that the bottle of Chocolate

sauce will not contain engine oil, and we trust that the bottle of

eye drops will not contain battery acid. Do any of us check before

using the stuff we buy? I don't. Likewise we trust our doctors and

pharmacies to do the right thing. Fortunately when we go to the drug

store with a precsription we are not asked if we want to " up-size "

or if we would like and extra dose for just $1! indeed here in

Australia we are asked if we would like to substitute a cheaper

generic brand of the drug prescribed.

This group has unwittingly become a powerful and highly educated

consumer group which helps us to get the best from our doctors. When

Liam's doctor orders some kind of intervention - a test or a new

drug- we know to ask the question " how will this help Liam? What

would happen to him if we do not have the drug/test? " If the doctor

does not know, somebody in this group will at least have an opinion,

or some similar experience.

I'm sure that despite the world that we live in, we are all

confident that the decisions we have made for our children have been

in their best interests, and that we are all doing the best we can.

There are lots of things in life that are beyond our realm of

control, and let's face it , we have enough to cope with and worry

about.

Seasons greetings from down under where it's hot and humid, and

santa rides a surfboard.

Damian