Motherisk: Toronto Star reports that the pregnancy drug maker Duchesnay is financially linked to the Hospital for Sick Children's Motherisk program and to the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada - "both of which have played significant roles in shaping the drug’s reputation." The Star also reveals that Motherisk founder and director Dr. Gideon Koren, is "planning to retire."

 

HEADING:  "Pregnancy drug maker Duchesnay financially linked to Motherisk, obstetrician group," by reporter Rachel Mendleson,  David Bruiser and Jesse McLean, published by the Toronto Star on April 24, 2015. "

SUB-HEADING: "Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, Sick Kids and Duchesnay all refuse to detail the amounts given by the drug company and what the money was specifically used for."

PHOTO CAPTION:  "Koren is a paid consultant to Duchesnay, according to his biography on the hospital’s website, and is described as a paid speaker for the company in a disclosure on a journal article he co-authored last year."

GIST: Money is the tie that binds the maker of a popular morning sickness pill to some of the medical organizations whose endorsements have helped make it the go-to choice for pregnant women and their doctors. The Star’s probe of Toronto doctor Nav Persaud’s frustrated request for information about the drug Diclectin reveals that its maker, Duchesnay, has a financial relationship with Sick Kids’ Motherisk program and the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada — both of which have played significant roles in shaping the drug’s reputation. Duchesnay has provided funding for Motherisk and its founder, Dr. Gideon Koren, “for a variety of purposes, including research,” the Hospital for Sick Children confirmed. Koren is a paid consultant to Duchesnay, according to his biography on the hospital’s website, and is described as a paid speaker for the company in a disclosure on a journal article he co-authored last year.........Arthur Schafer, director of the Centre for Professional and Applied Ethics at the University of Manitoba, said medical organizations that study the effectiveness of a certain drug or provide advice on its use should not accept funding from the manufacturer because it could create a conflict of interest.........Sick Kids, which called the lack of disclosure of Duchesnay’s ongoing financial support to Motherisk “regrettable,” has temporarily removed the booklet and added a disclosure statement to its website. The hospital also reassigned medical oversight of the Motherisk program, including its counselling lines, to Dr. Shinya Ito, and began investigating the drug company’s ties to Koren. This week the hospital said Koren, who declined multiple requests for comment, is planning to retire."

The entire story can be found at:

http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2015/04/24/pregnancy-drug-maker-duchesnay-financially-linked-to-motherisk-obstetrician-group.html

PUBLISHER'S NOTE: 

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.
 
I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at:

http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith

Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
 
http://smithforensic.blogspot.ca/2013/12/the-charles-smith-award-presented-to_28.html
 
I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com.
 
Harold Levy; Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog