BMJ  2003;327:1005 (1 November), doi:10.1136/bmj.327.7422.1005

News

Cochrane plans to allay fears over industry influence

Ray Moynihan

Barcelona

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

The leadership of the global Cochrane Collaboration is acting to allay fears that drug company funding could damage the organisation's independence and credibility.

Jim Neilson, a joint chairman of the collaboration, told the BMJ that the collaboration's international steering group was taking the issue seriously. "We are very conscious of the need to maintain the credibility and unbiased nature of Cochrane reviews."

The collaboration produces and disseminates systematic reviews of the evidence about healthcare interventions, and the question of industry funding has dominated its annual colloquium, being held this week in Barcelona, Spain.

The opening plenary session on Monday featured a heavily divided panel, followed by fiery contributions from the floor, in front of an audience of more than 600 who on several occasions expressed strong support for the idea of prohibiting industry sponsorship. Coincidentally, the debate was part sponsored by AstraZeneca, who paid for the simultaneous translation between Spanish . . . [Full text of this article]


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