Background: Pharmaceuticals are big business, reporting strong market growth year after year. The 'gatekeepers' of this market are prescribers of medicines, who are the major target of pharmaceutical companies, utilizing direct and indirect influences.Methods:  This paper draws on previous...

Background: Prescription medicine samples provided by pharmaceutical companies are predominantly newer and more expensive products. The range of samples provided to practices may not represent the drugs that the doctors desire to have available. Few studies have used a qualitative design to...

Prescription drug samples, as used by the pharmaceutical industry to market their products, are of current interest because of their influence on prescribing, and their potential impact on consumer safety. Very little research has been conducted into the use and misuse of prescription drug...