3 ms·

On multiple occasions I have asked my doctor about drugs that I had researched on my own (not seen through ads) and my doctor was unaware that the drug even exi

On multiple occasions I have asked my doctor about drugs that I had researched on my own (not seen through ads) and my doctor was unaware that the drug even existed. Doctors have to cover a lot of ground, they don't always have time to learn about every treatment option for every possible human ailment.

arcticbull 6y ago
I don't think the information should be hidden from you, I just think it should be available on a pull model instead of on a push model, by people with a vested interest in your purchasing their drugs.
- umvi 6y ago
  I guess my question is - how would a pull model work? Seems hard to escape advertising, because even if a drug ad isn't being pushed to your face while watching TV, researching your condition (on Google for example) would lead to advertisements of available drugs. You'd need some sort of non-profit repository that indexes all drugs as they become available maybe?
  - arcticbull 6y ago
    The US pharmacopeia has all the drugs listed [1]. I actually like Canada's compromise, where drug advertisers are allowed to tell you that a drug exists to treat a condition (without telling you what that drug is), or reminding you that a certain drug of a certain name exists, without telling you what it does. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Pharmacopeia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Pharmacopeia
    - sukilot 6y ago
      Can I buy two commercials in the same time block, one for the disease and one for the drug?
wolco 6y ago
In Canada doctor will take it as a personal afront to bring up medicine the never heard of.
- bluGill 6y ago
  They should. They should know every possible treatment for the condition you have. This includes how to properly ensure they have the right diagnosis even if you have the 1 in a million case and not the typical case everyone else has. The above probably isn't humanly possible for everything.

arcticbull 6y ago

I don't think the information should be hidden from you, I just think it should be available on a pull model instead of on a push model, by people with a vested interest in your purchasing their drugs.

umvi 6y ago
I guess my question is - how would a pull model work? Seems hard to escape advertising, because even if a drug ad isn't being pushed to your face while watching TV, researching your condition (on Google for example) would lead to advertisements of available drugs. You'd need some sort of non-profit repository that indexes all drugs as they become available maybe?
- arcticbull 6y ago
  The US pharmacopeia has all the drugs listed [1]. I actually like Canada's compromise, where drug advertisers are allowed to tell you that a drug exists to treat a condition (without telling you what that drug is), or reminding you that a certain drug of a certain name exists, without telling you what it does. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Pharmacopeia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Pharmacopeia
  - sukilot 6y ago
    Can I buy two commercials in the same time block, one for the disease and one for the drug?

wolco 6y ago

In Canada doctor will take it as a personal afront to bring up medicine the never heard of.

bluGill 6y ago
They should. They should know every possible treatment for the condition you have. This includes how to properly ensure they have the right diagnosis even if you have the 1 in a million case and not the typical case everyone else has. The above probably isn't humanly possible for everything.