While I often update my disclosures page without a whole post about it, this one needs attention called to it. Because, transparency.
Last week, I signed a contract with AstraZeneca Global, to participate in the Global Asthma Patient Partnership Program, after engaging in an initial webinar to get a feel for the experience, and receiving an invitation to join the Program for a year. I will receive financial compensation for my involvement on projects that I can opt-in-and-out of on a project by project basis. The initial webinar was also compensated by AstraZeneca.
I had hesitations. I thought long and hard. I asked questions about the contract. I deliberated alongside others in the same position; others aware of and sharing in the concerns I have about being involved as a patient with a pharmaceutical company. (You can also see this post from 2015 about going on a trip to Denver to learn about a GSK sponsored school asthma program on GSK’s tab, and my thoughts.)
AstraZeneca and its products are no longer a player in my own asthma management (I do have a Turdoza inhaler at home, although that’s a long story and is not actually one of my meds). I switched out Pulmicort for Qvar and then Symbicort for Zenhale close to five years ago. Had I been on AstraZeneca meds, this would actually be much harder, if that even makes sense, as their product(s) would be the ones keeping me healthy.
Do I think I am “partnering” with AstraZeneca?
No, not exactly—more accurately I’d call it consulting. AstraZeneca can take or leave my feedback. I receive compensation either way. Just like I do and will write honestly, I’ll give them feedback honestly, too. Compensation won’t change that (unlike physician prescribing practices—see: Who Pays For the Pizza). I won’t be switching my meds out anytime soon. It’s likely that I won’t discuss AstraZeneca at all, which has been the case with GSK (considering I even get embargoed press releases since Denver).
Learn more about the AZ Patient Partnership Program by checking out the FAQ.
Know that this is a trial run for me, too. I’m still getting a feel for this and how exactly I want to move forward. I can terminate my agreement at any time, but I am hoping that this is a positive experience—while it probably (almost certainly) won’t change how I see pharma, hopefully it changes how AstraZeneca sees asthma patients, which is maybe even more important.
Have questions? I cannot disclose anything discussed in the projects I consult on with AstraZeneca. (Nor, you know, their products/drugs, because I am not a doctor.) Otherwise, please let me know if you have questions or concerns and I will do my absolute best to address them.
Disclosure: As I have signed a contract with AstraZeneca, I provided this post for review by the Patient Engagement Director prior to publication (the only edits requested and made were referring to AstraZeneca by its full name). AstraZeneca did not ask me to write this post (rather, the opposite per the contract, although the Patient Engagement Director was encouraging). Transparency, however, is extremely important to me. I want you to know these things, so that we—as patients—can be more critical.
Here’s the deal (official disclosure, again, below): GSK US is paying for everything associated with the Summit and trip to Denver. I know that there are all kinds of perceptions around this—my own perception changed drastically after meeting Joe and Jerry from the Clinical Open Innovations team from Eli Lilly: Pharma creates these opportunities because there are people in these organizations who legitimately care about patients. The perception that it is us [patients] vs. them [pharma] needs to change. I won’t deny that for a time pharma likely was the cause of this (because like, “yes, we’d like to help you but this drug is $570,000,000 so pay us and stuff,” can be how it seems, and is perhaps to an extent, accurate), but there are people working for these companies now who are there because they realize that this ideology exists and they know that, for our wellbeing, that needs to be changed. Two weeks ago I met, again, Helene from GSK Canada, as well as people representing AstraZeneca and Boeringher Ingelheim. They sat in on our National Asthma Patient Alliance meetings, because they also responded to the ASC’s need for funding to make those meetings happen and get us all there from our varied map-dots across Canada. Similarly, GSK US didn’t just turn me away because I’m Canadian—I’m still jumping on a plane to Denver tomorrow, and Dia is, too, because they (hopefully.) realize that the only way to create solutions for patients… is to create them WITH patients.