title: The influence of an academic representative on prescribing by general practitioners.
abstract: 1. The effect of providing information about medicines by a short 'sales' interview between individual general practitioners and an 'academic representative' on prescribing was investigated. 2. The promotional campaign was designed to encourage a rational approach to prescribing of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents in an intervention group of 101 general practitioners selected at random from the Leeds Family Practitioner Committee (FPC). The remaining general practitioners in the Leeds FPC acted as a reference group. 3. The prescribing data for each group for 5 months immediately prior to and 5 months following intervention were compared. 4. Intervention produced a significant increase (P less than 0.005) in the prescribing cost of ibuprofen, the non-steroidal promoted as first choice agent, which was sustained for at least 5 months. 5. Prescribing of the second choice agent, piroxicam, decreased in the reference group but not in the intervention group. 6. There was a decrease in the average prescribing cost of pounds 6.60 per doctor per month in the intervention group compared with the reference group.
authors.affiliation: Pharmacy Department, General Infirmary, Leeds.
authors.forename: F A
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Newton-Syms
authors.forename: P H
authors.initials: PH
authors.lastname: Dawson
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cooke
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Feely
authors.forename: T G
authors.initials: TG
authors.lastname: Booth
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Jerwood
authors.forename: R T
authors.initials: RT
authors.lastname: Calvert
mesh_terms: D003365:Costs and Cost Analysis; D004346:Drug Information Services; D011307:Drug Prescriptions / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005194:Family Practice; D006801:Humans