Drug's information and publicity: A challenge for the pharmaceutical legislation

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Giraudo, Federico Javier | Hugo, Zaragoza Mariano

Affiliations: Faculty of Chemical Sciences, Catholic University of Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina

Note: [] Correspondig author: F.J. Giraudo, Avenida Armada Argentina 3555, Campus Universitario. X5016DHK. Córdoba – Argentina. Tel.: +54 351 4938060; E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract: Publicity has always been the most effective way to make known a product's virtues, highlighting the benefits of its frequent use and sustained over time. Technological advances in communications have not done more than enhance the advertiser professional and communicators skills to increasing the drives (consumption habits) in users. The products used for health and most of all pharmaceuticals have also followed this trend. Given this, the intervention of the State in terms of regulations is necessary, to not only protect people, but to provide them tools for choosing safe and responsibly the products they will use for their health care. During the past 10 years, the important growth of mass media that has taken place together with the complex technology by which an advertising message can reach an addressee produced the effect of a difficult control and monitoring of the advertising guideline by the State, which is often unable to do so effectively due to scarce resources available. The implications of this complex context not only affect local jurisdictions in terms of legislation, but also do so at the cross-border level through new information and marketing channels, where ethical and self-regulatory aspects are truly important.

Keywords: Advertising as topic, legislation, Drug's information

DOI: 10.3233/PPL-140392

Journal: Pharmaceuticals, Policy and Law, vol. 16, no. 3-4, pp. 321-337, 2014