UK physicians' group report on health care innovation offers 42 points for improvement

A multisector working party convened by the UK's Royal College of Physicians has published a report, welcomed by the Association of the  British Pharmaceutical Industry, which argues that, unless points of  contention between the pharmaceutical industry and the medical  profession are resolved satisfactorily, future advances in the quality  of patient care may be put at risk. The RCP's report, titled: Innovating  for Health: Patients, Physicians, the Pharmaceutical Industry and the  National Health Service, identifies a number of critical threats to  clinical research in the UK. These are centered around two key themes:

- patient disillusionment with medicines policy  Evidence submitted to the group suggests that patients remain concerned  that they do not enjoy equal access to medicines, or they believe that  the full range of innovative medicines that are available is brought to  their to attention, thus undermining their confidence in the entire  prescribing process. Sampled patients also confirm a willingness to  participate in clinical trials, or other drug related research but  report a lack of opportunity; and

- A failure of trust between the NHS and the pharmaceutical industry  There are also major issues in the relationship between industry and the  medical profession in recent years, with physicians' education being one  of the most contentious areas. Some doctors claim that continuing  professional development programs are "too dependent on industry  support," while drugmakers cite "widespread ambivalence within the NHS  and academia" towards partnerships as a key obstacle to future  innovation.