17 Comments
Jun 28, 2022·edited Jun 28, 2022Liked by Paul D. Thacker

Sic a team of people like Jessica Rose on this data before it's gone. Publish a secure database somewhere. Make it searchable by the public

Exposing the link between payments and suffering or death would be a litigants dream..

Expand full comment

Unfortunately, litigation is very difficult in these cases, given how much pharma companies can spend on lawyers. Here is more information: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=osPyE3CHVls

Expand full comment

Life isn't easy.

That video. The guy starts off with a "hackers attacked me" comment. Makes me doubt everything he stated.

Expand full comment
Jun 28, 2022Liked by Paul D. Thacker

Very interesting interview! Certainly the more graphic form of disclosing financial conflict of authors will cause a much needed pause and more discernment when reading journal articles.

Expand full comment
author

And, not hiding it at the bottom of the study!

Expand full comment
Jun 28, 2022Liked by Paul D. Thacker

Great article and interview. This is the way it has always worked in the human world, good and bad. Sounds like the code would be just right to change the direction of a great deal of corporate influencing and short circuit the unconscious greed of so many medical influencers. Do get it into the hands of those who will use it. Refine it, let its use grow. The flowers of it will be amazing.

Expand full comment
Jul 1, 2022Liked by Paul D. Thacker

An old joke: "What's the difference between a physician and God?". "God does not believe he is a physician".

Expand full comment
author

Stealing this.

Expand full comment

You're most welcome, at a symbolic 10% commission

Expand full comment
Jul 1, 2022Liked by Paul D. Thacker

Excellent! High time somebody takes on the way industry money and academic careers mesh. For example, in Covid-19-related publications one very often sees just "No conflict of interest" without supplying financial support data. Also, I see very many "heavy" studies that state "no funding support". After 40 years in academia, I do know that this is impossible. And yet, the most prestigious scientific publications prefer to close an eye on these very transparent transgressions

Expand full comment
Jun 28, 2022Liked by Paul D. Thacker

Alex Rich is doing great work. The question is, what can we do about the pharma money and influence? Here is another great talk about corruption of medicine and medical science: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=osPyE3CHVls

Expand full comment
author

Thanks for this, Yulia.

Expand full comment
Jul 1, 2022Liked by Paul D. Thacker

Oh, thank YOU for great reporting. Or if you mean the link to the video, I am super-happy that you liked it. I arranged Healy's talk for Ethics and Leadership Series in my college. I think that his research of corruption in medical science deserves to be known more widely. Then there is hope that it sparks the long-overdue political action

Expand full comment
Jun 28, 2022Liked by Paul D. Thacker

I've been at various times a corporate auditor and a lawyer, two natural enemies of the doctor, so I'm well aware of the ego thing.

It's such a social status-driven thing, I end up thinking the only solution we have is to somehow instill a secular form of *shame* into the zeitgeist.

Expand full comment
author

I'm not sure how this is done. Two major themes in journalism are "follow the money" and "name and shame." But when you write about these doctors taking corporate cash, nothing seems to happen, in most cases.

Expand full comment

The capacity for shame has to be instilled in a person and shared among their social group. I can't imagine that any of these people actually feel it when caught at something like this, especially in our culture.

Expand full comment

Please start referring to the PANDEMIC OF THE VACCINATED

Expand full comment