Comments for consumers
This page/column contains information which may be of interest to consumers. The information is based on articles which appear in Australian Prescriber. As Australian Prescriber is written for health professionals, you should discuss any issues raised by this page/column with your doctor or pharmacist. They will be able to give a more detailed answer to your questions by reading the main article.
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Australian Prescriber Vol. 22 No. 4 1999
The Australian Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association Code of Conduct: guiding the promotion of prescription medicines
Australians want their doctors to prescribe the best available treatment. They do not want the choice of treatment to be unduly influenced by advertising. However, many millions of dollars are spent promoting medicines to health professionals. To prevent the outrageous claims that are sometimes seen overseas, the advertising of medicines is controlled in Australia.
Drug companies which belong to the Australian Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Associationfollow a code of conduct. This code guides how they advertise their products in medical journals, promotional letters and in computer programs. Advertising must be fair, factual and not misleading.
The code of conduct also advises on the behaviour of drug company representatives. For example, they cannot give a health professional money in exchange for an appointment to talk about their products. Although prescription-only medicines cannot be advertised directly to Australian consumers, the code also deals with communications to the general public.
As the industry largely regulates itself, it relies on complaints about advertising. Most of the complaints come from drug companies. In 1997-98, there were 39 complaints and 32 of these breached the code. A company that breaches the code may be fined or have to retract its advertising.
