Dear Doctor:
We’re all accustomed to chiropractors and organized health flinging mud at each other, but this time, it’s more than just gossip — a distinguished scientist has blown the whistle on a major pharmaceutical firm, claiming that they trained him to lie about drugs to boost sales, misleading doctors and endangering patients for profit.
Dr. David Franklin says he was recruited to participate in a carefully orchestrated mission at drug giant Warner-Lambert to deceive and entice doctors to prescribe medications in large quantities, whether or not the patient’s condition called for it.
The scandal swirls around the drug gabapentin, brand name Neurontin, FDA approved for epilepsy, but pushed by Warner-Lambert “off-label” to be used for a wide spectrum of problems, with absolutely no evidence whatsoever that there would be a positive outcome. Doctors were even directed to use Neurontin instead of more reliable drugs, risking patients’ lives. Franklin stated, “It was a matter of…perverting the science to greatly increase sales and profitability.
Franklin confessed to NBC Dateline that in 1996, he acted on behalf on Warner-Lambert, pretending to be an expert in a variety of different medical specialties to persuade doctors to try and then to double and triple the dosages of Neurontin, in spite of knowing that the drug had no effect on the conditions being treated. Finally, he couldn’t stand the blatant disregard for patient welfare, and after four months hawking Neurontin he resigned, worried about the legal repercussions of his actions in the future. The investigation is ongoing.
This disturbing turn of events results from putting business ahead of quality health care, pointing out a basic flaw in health care delivery today. Whether it’s the cost containment strategies of the managed care companies or the ruthless victimization of health care consumers through mercenary pharmaceutical firms, a more natural, patient-centered return to wellness lifestyle principles will ultimately prove a better alternative. In truth, fields like chiropractic, nutrition, acupuncture, and exercise physiology are safer, more consistent with the healing process, and fulfill what baby boomers want — not just relief, but better quality of life and increased longevity. Ironically, they’ll cost less in the long run, too.
This shocking news supports what natural healers have been saying for decades, and underlines the need for the establishment of not only better controls for drug usage, but an examination of the science and philosophies that encourage it. If drugs were used only when needed, and people took more responsibility, there would be a shift in lifestyle, without the dangers and uncertainty of chemical agents, and without tempting unscrupulous entrepreneurs to capitalize on unsuspecting citizens. Be proud to be a chiropractor, and tell people the truth.
Dennis Perman DC, for The Masters Circle
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