AAMC Considers Conflict of Interest Disclosure Guidelines

The Association of American Medical Colleges is considering adopting "strict" guidelines that would require researchers at medical schools and teaching hospitals to disclose any financial stake they have in patient studies, the AP/Nando Times reports. The conflict of interest guidelines would also require researchers attempting to publish findings in medical journals to disclose any financial ties to the study. The AP/Nando Times reports that although it is routine practice for drug companies to pay researchers to study the safety and effectiveness of new drugs and equipment, the potential influence of this "financial link" has caused "growing concern" about patient safety. Harvard is currently the only "top" medical school that prohibits scientists from holding stock in companies "that could be affected by their research results," according to a November New England Journal of Medicine report. Harvard Medical School Dean Joseph Martin said, "We need to do everything we can to remove even the perception of a conflict that would in any way endanger the health of our patients" (Perlman, AP/Nando Times, 2/9).