Scientist come from all over the world to present their papers at US meetings, in addition there is a vast number of medical specialists and scientists who come to America to view papers on the latest research from the worlds top scientists. This has been happening since the beginning of organized medicine, scientists love to learn from each other, and test their hypothesis and show off their research.
This past summer the Medical Specialty Society Section of the Alliance for Continuing Medical Education (The Alliance) sent a series of questions to the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) on participation of corporate employees (scientists) as faculty in CME Certified Events.
It is often the case that for Phase II and bellow studies (and epically pre-clinical data) that the only researchers responsible and familiar enough with the data are company employees.
The questions ranged from:
The definition of employee to presentations of original research on translational studies.
The ACCME was firm in their response:
They included the IRS definition of an employee: “…anyone who performs services for you is your employee if you can control what will be done and how it will be done. This is so even when you give the employee freedom of action. What matters is that you have the right to control the details of how the services are performed”.
The ACCME Believes the employer of an industry scientist controls the research, controls the results and controls the presentation of the science. If the research is reported in (the context of a) CME (activity) than the CME is not independent of the control of an ACCME-defined commercial interest.
ACCME has exceptions. ACCME has taken the position that persons who are employees of industry can control some content of some CME (activities). For example, in accredited CME scientists can teach, or report about biology, about pure science, but they cannot teach, or report about products. Also, executives can teach, or report about industry issues but not about their products.
If you manage a large meeting with poster presentations and presentations of basic or translational science it is important to review this information closely and take appropriate actions. One possibility is to offer these sessions independent of the CME activity without credit. There has to be a balance for basic science and translational medicine, perhaps a new accreditation system is adopted by the AMA, for those activities. If we solve this quandary, the presentation of original research will move at greater speed to Europe and Asia.
Questions and Answers from ACCME on Accrediting Basic Science and Translational Medicine