Category — Medical Devices

Here is a thread from The BMJ where NHS physicians enter into the argument of the value (moral, ethical and commercial) of medical (pharmaceutical) sales reps.

The original letter from Dr Shane O’Hanlon starts like this:

It was switching to decaffeinated coffee that started it all. In a flash of lucidity I realised the dubious ethical basis for drug company representatives’ courtship of doctors.

Doctor – Sorry to say but so long as anybody works for money, including doctors, they could be asked the same thing. Doctors are very quick to court sales people when they “need” something. Medical Journals are quick to solicit and accept drug company advertising, and there is nothing wrong with that. It is also very ethical.

It becomes unethical when the conversation between a doctor and a sales rep concerning a product or service cannot be published in the local newspaper – that’s the acid test. In 99% of cases it can be.

The argument is the same one that has been made for years and usually ranges from “I don’t like them, they waste valuable time, they are (yes) commercial” etc.

The counter argument is that in fact the medical sales rep does provide a service – even if it is to only alert the doctor to a new product so that he or she can go and do their own research (which is what hopefully they do anyway).

Obviously there are good and bad sales people (and doctors) in every industry. I am making an assumption that most are good, so here goes.

Doctors, you get what you deserve – many of you treat appointments with sales reps with little respect for the content of their message (after having kept them waiting way past scheduled (and cancelled) appointment times). Even when the sales person is finally in front of many of you – you look at your watch and say “you have two minutes” as you continue to click on the keyboard.

If you have pre-determined that the sales rep will have nothing useful to say – then why agree to the appointment in the first place?

Without a doubt there are medical / surgical sales reps that are way better trained on a particular subject than the doctor is. This is of course the reason why so many sales people are invited into the OR (Operating Theatre) to explain the use of complex, and often life saving medical devices.

It is true that with modern media there are now improving ways of getting the message across to the doctor, which is good for all. In the mean time next time you the doctor complains or is rude to a sales rep – think first about the value of pharmaceutical and medical companies, especially when you demand samples of products, a demonstration, or support for an important clinical trial that you are going to publish.

Pharmaceutical companies – make sure you have the right message and you are sending it in the most effective way.

(To all the pharmaceutical representatives out there looking for a job – rest assured that you have great value. If you can succeed and survive selling into the hospital jungle – you can excel anywhere).

France based EDAP has announced 510k approval for it’s new lithotripsy device.

Marc Oczachowski, EDAP’s Chief Executive Officer, said, “We are very pleased that the U.S. FDA has granted 510(k) approval for Sonolith I-Sys, which marks a clear milestone for EDAP, further validates our technology and supports our objective to expand the Sonolith I-Sys into additional geographic territories. With the U.S. approval, we will be positioned to enter one of the largest global markets for lithotripsy. This is an excellent opportunity for EDAP. We will now actively market Sonolith I-Sys and its patented electroconductive technology. We strongly believe that this is the most advanced and robotized lithotripsy system and that it will play a role in the high end market in the U.S. as it was designed to respond to the specificities of this established market.”

EDAP, publically traded in the US saw it’s shares jump significantly from 1.37 USD to over 4 USD.

The medical durables business in France continues to suffer with recently acquired Corona (operation of Paramount in Japan) announcing a plant closure, with production moving to China.

This in contrast to medical device manufacturers Urgo in the Burgundy region and Vygon that have announced good results and resultant investment programs.

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Advanced Medical Optics , spun off from Allergan, Inc. in 2002, has just been acquired by Abbott.

Advanced Medical Optics (AMO), specialized in corneal, refractive and cataract products, competes with industry ophthalmic heavy weights, Alcon, Bausch and Lomb and Carl Zeiss Meditec.

John Capec, EVP Abbott said:

“With AMO, Abbott will immediately become a global leader in vision,” said John M. Capek, executive vice president, Medical Devices, Abbott. “The business is poised for long-term growth, driven by advances in refractive surgery technologies, including LASIK, and an aging global population.”

Makes sense with one possible caveat – ophthalmology requires focus and the most successful companies have been largely independent. This changes with the Abbott acquisition, but also comes short on the heels of the new majority shareholding by Novartis in Alcon…

We will see.

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Bruno Cocheteux is a Managing Partner at Sibaya LifeScience!