The Bottom Line
Overdosed America, by John Abramson, M.D. is a thought-provoking assessment of health care in America. Pointing to evidence which is both stunning and shocking, the book leaves you wondering what else you don't know and what else you should be questioning. Information about the marketing of Celebrex and Vioxx, safety and efficacy of the drugs, and clinical trial information that was not included in trusted medical journals is especially interesting to arthritis patients.
Pros
- Revelations about health care in America.
- Spotlights the influence of the pharmaceutical industry on health care decisions.
- Addresses why critical information is left out of the most trusted medical journals.
- Written by John Abramson, M.D., a prominent doctor and faculty member at Harvard Medical School.
- Leaves you wanting to talk to your doctor.
Cons
- Is all direct-to-consumer advertising just propaganda? Is any educational?
- Is doctor-patient communication harmed by pharmaceutical marketing tactics?
- Are patients and doctors just victims of the drug industry?
Description
- Stimulates awareness of drug industry problems.
- Encourages patients to be responsible about their own health care.
- A must-read for doctors and patients.
- Is American medicine on the wrong track? You decide.
- Presents a case for what causes health care costs to soar.
- Explanations are clearly written, and not over the head of health care consumers (patients).
- I came away from the book feeling good about the relationships I have with my doctors. Will you?
- After reading, you may feel unsettled, wondering if the trust you put in your doctor is misplaced.
- You are in control. If you react to a drug advertisement, you knowingly are reacting to hype.
- A look at VIGOR (Vioxx) and CLASS (Celebrex) trials let's you in on what wasn't disclosed.
Guide Review - Overdosed America
Have you ever asked your doctor to write a prescription for a medication you saw advertised? Did your doctor write the prescription without any discussion of the benefits or risks associated with the medication? Before you asked for the prescription, did you ask yourself if the marketing campaign was based on hype or fact? If your doctor had declined your request, would you have been unhappy? So, who is leading who?
Newer, more expensive treatments are pushed on doctors and consumers because they are more profitable.
Clinical trial results are compromised by the financial and political influence of the pharmaceutical industry.
Drug and medical device companies fund 80% of clinical research.
Experts who write study guidelines are paid by the drug companies whose products they recommend.
Doctors who depend on medical journals to keep them informed are not always seeing complete, unbiased reports.
Dr. Abramson's book is not vague about what it points to as conflicts of interest in the health care industry. For example:
A dark side associated with the pharmaceutical industry is now exposed. Yet, there is also a bright side. Drugs have been developed and will continue to be developed which make a remarkable difference in the quality of life of people who live with serious illnesses (e.g. TNF blockers for rheumatoid arthritis). No one is suggesting that be overlooked. Dr. Abramson wants integrity and responsiblity to return to health care.
