Pharmaceutical industry is main influence in GP prescribing. (News).

GPs rely heavily on information provided by the pharmaceutical industry and its representatives when they prescribe new drags.

They are more likely to rely on data provided by drug companies than on independent sources, the results of a new study have shown.

"The significant first stage in the decision-making process is awareness of a new drug. The most important sources were the pharmaceutical industry, in particular the company representative, non-peer reviewed literature, the mass media, and, to a lesser extent, hospital colleagues," said the authors of the study in Family Practice (2003; 20:61-8).

"Important biomedical influences were the failure …