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Defection from medical journal could be symptom of deeper sickness

We rely on editors. But, when it comes to reporting on scientific journals, we mostly act as if they don’t exist — to the detriment of transparency in scientific and medical research.

Five Reporting Tips From Reuters Health's Investigation of Medical Research Conflicts of Interest

Journalists can learn a lot from Reuters Health's investigation into financial conflicts of interest in medical research. Here are some tips for your own reporting.  

Accusations come full circle for Texas doctor and sheriff who attacked whistleblowers

Texas sheriff Robert Roberts and doctor Rolando Arafiles, accused of intimidating whistleblower nurses, get their day in court - while Arafiles has found another hospital job despite the controversy.

The Shadow Practice: Pharma wholesaler's slippery business model begs for scrutiny

When a company tries to mimic a well-known and respected brand, health journalists should be suspicious. Consider The Harvard Drug Group. Most people hearing about a pharmaceutical wholesaler with that name might assume that it was affiliated with Harvard University. It's not.

The Markingson Files: Conflicts of interest in clinical trials should be transparent

It can be uncomfortable asking people about their finances. In journalism, though, there is an obligation not only to ask, but to ask for proof — especially with clinical trials.

Media should stop calling Nadya Suleman "Octomom"

"Octomom" Nadya Suleman went to Dr. Michael Kamrava as a troubled patient. She was treated instead by her physician - who lost his license this week - as a customer. And now the media has chosen to treat her as a criminal.

Transparent medical boards still failing in Public Citizen’s medical board rankings

Every time Public Citizen ranks state medical boards for their effectiveness, some official will say that it is an unfair assessment because state boards all work differently in overseeing doctors. This is partly true — and it is also part of the problem.

 

The Markingson Files: Why health writers should track the money behind medical studies

One of the biggest oversights a health writer can make is to cover a scientific study and not talk about its funders. William Heisel examines what can happen when a study's funding is overlooked.

The Markingson Files: Can pressure to recruit patients subvert a clinical trial?

Bioethicist and writer Carl Elliott used many documents to piece together the story of how a research team desperate for patients helped create a pipeline for clinical trial participants by setting up a psychiatric ward. Here's how he did it.

Q&A with Dr. Stephen Hollis: Can't protect patients from their own stupidity

Before he was busted for prescribing drugs over the Internet, Dr. Stephen Hollis wrote 43,930 prescriptions for drugs in just one year, about about 170 scrips every workday. How is that even possible? Hollis tells me how.

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