APBI's Code of Practice reaches 50th anniversary

The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry has launched a campaign to promote the UK drugmakers' Code of Practice, to coincide with its 50th anniversary later this year. The theme of the promotion is: "the ABPI Code: Still nifty at fifty?"

The ABPI Code first came into effect on October 2, 1958, with several changes made to it over the years, the Prescription Medicine Code of Practice Authority noted. The first edition of the Code (called the Code of Sales Promotion Practice for Medical Specialities in the United Kingdom) has expanded from being only two pages long to 33 pages. Transparency has also increased over the years, with more and more detail being published in case reports - since 1995 case reports have included "more or less all that was stated by the parties involved," the PMCPA said.

The central focus point of the campaign will be Code Awareness Week which will take place in early October. This will be an expanded version of Code Awareness Day, which has run successfully for the past two years. During this period, employees from pharmaceutical companies across the UK will talk to doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other stakeholders about the Code. An event in central London marking 50 years since the Code first came into operation is also planned during Code Awareness Week.