41
Monday, July 12, 2010
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
WJbe Midpigan ~Eaitij
MARK BURNSI
I'm just asking for an hour
Edited and managed by students at
the University of Michigan since 1890.
420 Maynard St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
tothedaily@umich.edu
ANDREW LAPIN
EDITOR IN CHIEF
RYAN KARTJE
MANAGING EDITOR
ALEX SCHIFF
EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR
Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of the Daily's editorial board.
All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely thesviews of their authors.
Purging the influence
Medical schools nationwide should follow 'U' example
E very day, medical professionals are relied upon by people at their
most vulnerable, and often, their most desperate. But their duty to
society is so vital that blind faith and deference to their moral scru-
ples is simply irresponsible. Every conceivable measure to prevent ethical
lapses among doctors should be taken in order to prevent the possibility
of anything but the patient's health influencing their decision-making. To
that end, the University Medical School's decision to discontinue corporate
sponsorship of postgraduate classes is a commendable step that should be
emulated by institutions across the country.
The steel grated doors are lifted,
and the fifty sad faces already sit-
ting in the plastic chairs look up
at me for answers. But I don't have
any; I never do. I don't know where
their next meal or paycheck is going
to come from. I don't even know if
they're going to make it through the
week. I just wish that, once, I'd see
that door lifted and not have to see
the same faces I see every Thursday.
Then I'd know something better had
happened in their lives.
But every week, I'm going to see
many familiar faces at the Delonis
Center - a soup kitchen on the west
side of Ann Arbor. As students at the
University, we have the moral obli-
gation to help those in need, whom-
ever they may be, because we have
the time to do so and because of the
self-fulfillment received in lending a
helping hand to someone who needs
it.
Opportunity. At the University,
every one of us has the ability to fur-
ther our education. We can utilize the
various resources the University has
to offer. We can increase the possibil-
ity of our success in the future. Not
only do we have the distinguished
opportunity to obtain a college
degree, but we're able to receive that
education and "college experience"
from the highly acclaimed University
of Michigan. Most people do not have
the opportunity to attend college
for a variety of reasons: inadequate
financial resources, poor standard-
ized test scores, lack of family sup-
port, poor guidance, etc. But we do.
Since we are given the not-so-com-
mon opp"rtunity tdo something
great with our lives, it' sour responsi-
bility to help those who might not be
able to help themselves. I know some
of you might say, "It's not my prob-
lem." But when that mentality rears
its ugly head, no progress can be
made. Thatithought process should
be non-existent when another person
needs help.
Time. Before my mom and dad got
married, they met with the priest
who was performing the ceremony.
He told them, "There are 168 hours in
a week, and God is only asking you to
commit one of those hours to Mass."
Well, I'm not God, but I'm asking
you to commit just one hour a week
too: through a community service
organization on campus, the Ronald
McDonald House near the Medi-
cal Center, raising money for breast
cancer research - something tangi-
ble that takes effort on your part. If
you already perform an hour of ser-
vice every week, maybe you can give
another hour.
Perhaps you think you don't have
time. But if you counted up the num-
ber of hours a week you spend Face-
booking, watching random television
shows, playing Nintendo 64 or Xbox
and screwing around with your house-
mates - you're bound to find at least
one you could devote tota person or an
organization instead. 168 hours a week
- someone is only askingfor one.
Self-fulfillment. That's what one
hour a week will give you. After serv-
ing eighty or so people every Thurs-
day, I might not get a thank you from
all of them. But receiving a thank
you should not be your motivation
for helping others - there has to be
a deeper purpose for giving your
time. Legendary UCLA basketball
coach John Wooden said it best: "You
can't live a perfect day without doing
something for someone who will
never be able to repay you."
Opportunity. Time. Self-fulfillment.
It's our duty to go out of our way to 0
do something that will better the
community, whatever that may be. It
doesn't even have to be something big
- just something meaningful. Our
opportunity lies before us to lend a
helping hand. The time commitment
isn't too great. The self-fulfillment
received will make your week. 168
hours - you just need to give one.
Mark Burns is the Daily's
summer Managing Sports Editor.
Nationally, as much as half of
the funding for continuing medi-
cal education classes comes from
private corporations like pharma-
ceutical and medical device man-
ufacturers. These classes, which
are offered to teach practicing
clinicians about new methods
and treatments, are mandatory
for doctors in many states, On
the recommendation of the Medi-
cal School's Conflict of Interest
Group, officials decided to end
any corporate sponsorship of
CME classes starting next Janu-
ary. The Medical School says that
it expects to make up for the lost
revenue with thriftier spending
and higher registration fees for
participating doctors.
The importance of impartial-
ity in medicine couldn't be more
black and white. Where patients'
lives are at stake, medical profes-
sionals should only be focused on
improving their condition, not
repaying an implicit debt to phar-
maceutical and device companies
who sponsored their classes. And
it's equally important for CME
instructors who teach doctors to
be isolated from the corporations
that indirectly pay them.
But the expectation that medi-
cal instructors can essentially be
paid by private industry without
any resulting bias in the way they
present the corporations' prod-
ucts is absurd. Whether or not
doctors are willingto recognize it,
commercial sponsorship presents
clear potential for the develop-
ment of biases among clinicians.
And while critics often cite stud-
ies in which doctors report no
bias in the way CME classes are
taught, it's necessary to remem-
ber that such a bias might be sub-
tler than doctors immediately
recognize. More importantly,
the doctors surveyed had an
interest in reporting no bias, as
they would have to pay more for
required CME classes were cor-
porate sponsorship banned.
And while doctors are gener-
ally well-paid, precautions should
be taken so that the costs for doc-
tors to attend CME classes don't
become excessive without com-
mercial sponsorship. To counter
this new problem, government
agencies could create CME fund-
ing pools. Pharmaceutical cor-
porations who want to sponsor
doctors' education about new
products - of which they will
certainly benefit - would give the
money to an independent entity
rather than directly funding
classes. Such a policy would put
distribution of CME funds in the
hands of governments and insti-
tutions, eliminating conflicts of
interest while preserving private
enterprise as a source of funding.
But the University Medical
School is among the first to bar
corporate sponsorship of CME
classes. In order to protect the
trust vested in the medical com-
munity, other institutions should
follow suit by purging their class-
rooms of corporate influence.
When I struck it, it just had to go in."
--Spanish soccer player Andres Iniesta, on his World Cup-winning
goal, as reported by ESPN yesterday.
LIKE WHAT YOU SEE HERE?
Want to see more? Check out more from Daily columnists, additional view-
points from students and more cartoons posted online throughout the week.
Go to michigandaily.com and click on 'Opinion.'
* LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters are edited for style, length, clarity and accuracy. All submissions
become property of the Daily. Send letters to tothedaily aumich.edu or visit
michigandaily.com and click on 'Letter to the editor.