Doctors and pharmaceutical companies could share in costs for GP courses
The system of Continued Medical Education (CME), used by doctors in the UK to keep abreast of the latest developments in healthcare, could be set for massive structural change, with new GP courses.
At present, numerous CME programmes are funded entirely by the pharmaceutical industry, a situation which many feel may give the industry undue influence over doctors and their choice of treatment options. However, it now looks likely that this will change, with costs in the future to be split 50-50 between industry and doctors themselves.
Clinicians are given an annual budget for training every year from the NHS, and it appears that these funds would be put towards CME training under the proposed new system.
The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) has put forward the new proposals to change the funding system for GP courses as part of its "VITA Agenda", which aims to promote trust and openness and improve industry relations.
The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) has indicated that industry should not be relied upon to provide CME for GPs, and that doctors themselves should take more responsibility for their ongoing educational needs.
When consulting on CME, the RCP received conflicting views, with some of its members stating that industry is currently too intimately involved in education, while others felt that industry sponsorship was a good thing, helping them to learn about new medicines as they become available.
Once ABPI has completed a full consultation with its members, it will then open up the issue for wider debate before GP courses are formalised. Any changes that are agreed will then be incorporated into the new ABPI code some time in the coming year.
GP courses: http://masterclasses.bmj.com/GPs
At present, numerous CME programmes are funded entirely by the pharmaceutical industry, a situation which many feel may give the industry undue influence over doctors and their choice of treatment options. However, it now looks likely that this will change, with costs in the future to be split 50-50 between industry and doctors themselves.
Clinicians are given an annual budget for training every year from the NHS, and it appears that these funds would be put towards CME training under the proposed new system.
The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) has put forward the new proposals to change the funding system for GP courses as part of its "VITA Agenda", which aims to promote trust and openness and improve industry relations.
The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) has indicated that industry should not be relied upon to provide CME for GPs, and that doctors themselves should take more responsibility for their ongoing educational needs.
When consulting on CME, the RCP received conflicting views, with some of its members stating that industry is currently too intimately involved in education, while others felt that industry sponsorship was a good thing, helping them to learn about new medicines as they become available.
Once ABPI has completed a full consultation with its members, it will then open up the issue for wider debate before GP courses are formalised. Any changes that are agreed will then be incorporated into the new ABPI code some time in the coming year.
GP courses: http://masterclasses.bmj.com/GPs
