At first glance, one would think that Big Pharma merely encompasses the largest players in the pharmaceutical industry, including AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb, GlaxoSmithKline, Maxim, Merck, Monsanto, Pfizer, Roche, Tanabe and Wyeth. However, a more sinister connotation has emerged as the burgeoning industry is perceived to be conspiring in controversial practices that are deemed not to be in the best interest of the consumer. Rather, Big Pharma is a moniker used to describe the malpractices, derelictions and abuses of the profit driven pharmaceutical industry, which comprises manufacturers, The term has also come to suggest a hidden side of the industry with critics referring to an abstract entity comprising of corporations, regulators, NGOs, politicians and often physicians, all with a hand in the trillion dollar pharmaceutical pie. While there may be different manifestations or interpretations, all the narratives seem to cast Big Pharma as a villain. …show more content…
The key ethical issue that needs addressing is the reconciliation of the conflict of interest between the legitimate business goals of manufacturers and the social, medical and economic needs of providers and the public in rational drug selection and use. This is particularly true where drugs companies are the main source of information as to which products are most effective. Promotional spending by pharmaceutical companies are often huge in comparison to spending on public information on general health. The medical fraternity is often caught in situations where maintaining its independence in caring for their patients are in conflict to its allegiance to the pharmaceutical