About Us

De-Fib is a group of students and faculty concerned about the role of drug companies in medical education, patient care, and research. We provide resources to the Rochester medical community and the medical community-at-large to encourage productive debate of the ethics associated with pharmaceutical industry interactions.

About Our Name: De-Fib

De-Fib stands for Demanding Evidence, Forgoing Industry Bias. Our group name reflects our commitment to evidence-based medicine and our concern that interactions with the pharmaceutical industry may compromise our ability to provide evidence-based healthcare.

Our Goals

To ban drug company detailers (pharm rep marketers) from all University of Rochester hospitals and affiliated medical centers.
To provide objective insight concerning the negative impact irresponsible medical and pharmaceutical interactions can have on patient care, our US healthcare system, and the medical profession.
To help all medical professionals be more responsible in our interactions with the pharmaceutical industry.


	UPDATES
	As of August 17, 2008
	Disclosure Bill Governor Patrick of Massachusetts signed a bill limiting gifts to doctors and requiring disclosure of most drug company payments to physicians (gifts over $50 made to a healthcare professional to be publicly reported on the state's Web site). Click here for coverage, and here for the official press release. Disclosure NEJM article reviews the harms and extent of industry payments to physicians, the "hodge-podge" of attempts to ensure that all payments are publicly disclosed, and the specifications of the new Physician Payments Sunshine Act. Zyprexa Downsides Court documents have revealed Eli Lilly trained its sales force to downplay the risks of weight gain and diabetes for Zyprexa and encourage doctors to prescribe the drug beyond approved uses for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, according to Bloomberg.com.

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Organized by University of Rochester School of Medicine Students and Faculty