Introducing a new financial disclosure policy

Issue: October 2006

Douglas W. Jackson [photo] --- Douglas W. Jackson, Chief Medical Editor

During dinner recently with the leaders at SLACK Incorporated who are responsible for Orthopedics Today and me, we discussed our new financial disclosure policy. Before I cover the details of the policy, let me share a few thoughts on how we arrived at it.

Orthopedics Today is a scientific newspaper that covers our field and related topics of interest to all of us. In addition, we are proactively moving to cover in more depth the changes and adaptations in the business of orthopedics.

(See our enhanced "The Business of Orthopedics" section covering health policy, patient and practice issues, begining on page 16.)

We meet a monthly deadline and this poses a challenge to bring to you timely orthopedic news articles and analysis. It means covering a story, writing it, formatting it into our upcoming issue.

During this fast-paced process — we ask the author or contributor of the story to read and sign off on it for accuracy before you see our final product. The entire staff at SLACK does all of this efficiently, and in a timely way. Now we are asking that one more step be added.

This change is being made not only because it is indicated but also because some of you have discussed with me about your concerns with conflicts of interest and "following the money." We feel responsible to do more for our readers while maintaining our high standards. Is this really necessary?

Trust but verify

It is my opinion from spending years attending many meetings and talking in depth with many of you that you are not naïve in this area.

I hear the comment repeatedly after a presentation by a speaker on the circuit who is pushing a device or procedure that you are well aware there may be some additional incentives for them to think the way they do. This is not to say hearing and learning from them is a negative. Potential conflicts of interest are everywhere in every field. But, it is certainly something we need to be aware of when reading articles and opinions.

We will institute a new policy in keeping with the current thinking and practices of other scientific publications, and even other responsible newspapers. We work under a time frame that may not always allow us to succeed because we depend on responses from busy individuals. We will tell the reader when that occurs in a non-judgmental way.

New standard query

Our standard query for sources for Orthopedics Today articles will be as follows: If applicable, please disclose financial interest: Are you an employee of any company mentioned in this article? Do you have a direct financial interest in any products mentioned in this article? Are you are a paid consultant for any companies mentioned? If yes to any of the above, please specify.

We will apply this policy to articles in which we mention a specific product or brand, and when there are possible ties to a source.

We will include the information in the "For More Information" section at the conclusion of an article. This is how we will word the replies:

Dr. Jones has no direct financial interest in the products discussed in this article, nor is he a paid consultant for any companies mentioned.
Dr. Jones has no direct financial interest in the products discussed in this article. He is a paid consultant for COMPANY X.
Dr. Jones has a direct financial interest in the product named in this article. He is not a paid consultant for any companies mentioned.
Orthopedics Today was unable to determine whether Dr. Jones has a direct financial interest in the products discussed in this article or if he is a paid consultant for any companies mentioned. (We use this last one if the source does not answer our question, before the deadline for the upcoming issue.)

Sometimes sources have their own wording for disclosures (I accept reimbursement for travel to meetings. I am a member of the Speakers Board for COMPANY Y). When that happens, we will likely use their wording.

As always, if you have thoughts or comments, please contact me or the editors of Orthopedics Today.