Leaders have a responsibility to set an example for others in their institution

I'm going to take advantage of the delay of the promised report containing "a methodical assessment of policies, guidelines, procedures and practices" concerning the University of Illinois ethics matters to send the University folks a helpful reference document.Entitled "Conflict of Interest Policies for Academic Health System Leaders Who Work With Outside Corporations" this article in the Journal of the American Medical Association states:New “Sunshine Act” requirements for disclosure by pharmaceutical and medical device companies of payments to faculty have led to increased conversation about conflict of interest (COI). Conflict of interest is defined as “circumstances that create a risk that professional judgments or actions regarding a primary interest will be unduly influenced by a secondary interest.” Conflict of interest is particularly relevant for those in the upper echelons of academic health system leadership—presidents, vice presidents, provosts, deans, chief executive officers, and the senior administrators who report to them.A pertinent excerpt for the University to consider--as it thinks about a Dean of Medicine who serves on the board of a major pharmaceutical and medical device company--and as it thinks about the chief of a department and that Dean and a Vice President who recklessly used the name and reputation of the University in support of a private business--is the following:Unlike most faculty and staff, senior institutional official...

Source: Running a hospital - March 18, 2014 Category: Health Managers Source Type: blogs