Filmmaker's New Movie Courtesy of Neurontin

Pfizer pays big to educate prescribers about pharmaceutical influence

Madison, WI (PRWEB) June 18, 2007 -- According to the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education, more than 60 percent of program credits are funded by pharmaceutical companies and medical device manufacturers. Filmmaker and consumer health advocate Kathleen Slattery-Moschkau (www.sideeffectsthemovie.com) was selected by the MGH Institute of Health Professions, Inc. to produce a "pharma-free" continuing medical education (CME) documentary about drug industry influence and its affect on prescribers. The film, entitled PERx: Prescribing Evidence-Based Therapies, is part of a larger Web-based program for medical professionals that will be launched Monday, June 18 at www.perxinfo.org.

PERx is one of several CME programs that are being developed through grants from the $430 million Neurontin settlement that reconciled allegations that pharmaceutical giant Warner-Lambert (a division of Pfizer, Inc.) conducted an unlawful marketing campaign that violated state consumer protection laws. Similar to the Big Tobacco settlement, $21 million of the Pfizer payout was earmarked to provide physicians and consumers information about pharmaceutical marketing.

PERx is an informative and entertaining documentary that examines the FDA drug approval process, drug marketing strategies and industry influence on prescribing practices of health care providers. The film also offers strategies to improve prescribing based on scientific evidence rather than pharmaceutical promotions. Slattery-Moschkau features interviews with renowned opinion leaders such as Jerry Avorn, MD of Harvard Medical School and Joel Lexchin, MD of The World Health Organization.

Slattery-Moschkau's personal mission is to educate through entertainment. Her previous films, Side Effects (starring Katherine Heigl) and Money Talks: Profits Before Patient Safety are used as important resources for consumers, health organizations, doctors and medical schools across the country. Both films expose the vast conflicts of interest that exist surrounding pharmaceutical marketing.

"The MGH Institute selected Kathleen because of her expertise and familiarity in the content area, as well as her experience as a former pharmaceutical sales rep," said Elissa Ladd, PhD, APRN, Clinical Assistant Professor at MGH Institute of Health Professions. "It was important that we work with a credible collaborator."

News organizations like the New York Times, NBC Nightly News, CBS News, CNN, USA Today, The Economist, and Atlantic Monthly, as well as more than 100 other media outlets worldwide have turned to Slattery-Moschkau for real advice on how people can become better consumers of prescription drugs and take control of their health.

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