Watchdog frowns on Botox tweet
pharmafile | February 15, 2012 | News story | Medical Communications | Allergan, Chugai, PMCPA, Twitter
Allergan have been found in breach of the UK Code of Practice after an employee used Twitter to communicate about one of its brands.
Watchdog the PMCPA has ruled the company broke the rules after receiving an anonymous tip-off that an Allergan employee had tweeted a patient organisation and an individual representing that organisation.
The tweet referred to Botox and stated “..we could do something around stroke rehab..”. Botox is licenced to treat certain kinds of spasticity associated with stroke in adults.
In its defence, Allergan said its employee had used a personal Twitter account to respond to a tweet from a friend who worked for an agency that worked for the patient organisation.
But the Panel nevertheless ruled that a prescription only medicine had been advertised to the public, which is a breach of the Code (clause 22.1). A further breach – ‘High standards’ having not been maintained (9.1 clause) was also ruled.
The Panel noted that the tweet was sent in error by an individual using a personal account and without the knowledge or authority of Allergan.
Pharmaceutical company employees needed to ensure that business relationships and personal relationships were kept very separate, particularly when such business relationships were subject to the Code. In the Panel’s view pharmaceutical company employees needed to be extremely cautious when using social media.
Allergan’s company policy clearly states that no Allergan employee is allowed to comment in a social media forum about an Allergan product or business activity. The Panel noted this policy in place should have prevented the tweet being sent, and said it considered that Allergan had been “badly let down by its employee.”
However, the Panel said it did not consider that case was severe enough to be a breach of Clause 2 (bringing discredit to, or reducing confidence in the industry) which is one of the most serious breaches.
Chugai complaint dismissed
Another recent case centred on an anonymous allegation about the conduct of a Chugai sales representative. The anonymous complainant claimed to have overheard the rep boasting in public that sales of its Granoctye (lenograstim, G-CSF) product were ‘wrapped up’ because of ‘pay- offs’ (the complainant quoted a low five figure sum) to local consultants which the complainant alleged ‘had been going on for years’.
The complainant stated that the representative had claimed that his/her manager knew about it and they were “laughing all the way to the bank” in terms of bonus.
But efforts to establish the accuracy of the claims found the sales rep had last been in the particular town eight weeks before the complaint was submitted, and Chugai’s investigation indicated that the rep had not attended a stand meeting, speaker meeting or audio-visual meeting in the town since starting employment with Chugai.
The Panel considered that there was no evidence before it to suggest that any kind of gift was offered to a health professional as an inducement to prescribe or recommend Granocyte.
It also concluded there was no evidence to indicate the sales rep had failed to maintain a high standard of ethical conduct, and no breach of the Code was ruled including Clause 2.
Andrew McConaghie
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