Drug companies, lax on drug safety, seem to apply the same standards to smartphone apps
You can’t trust everything you see on the Internet. And that goes for apps on your smartphone and iPad as well.
About one year ago, Pfizer sent a letter to warn doctors about a major app glitch. It seems the “Pfizer Rheumatology Calculator” was miscalculating. The letter instructed doctors to remove the app from their devices.
Writing on his Pharma Marketing blog, John Mack had this observation…
“Shouldn’t the pharma industry develop best practices for mobile apps to assure that they are rigorously tested before they are made available to doctors and consumers?”
I’ve been laughing all day since I read that.
Drug companies don’t rigorously test drugs for safety before they’re available. So why would they bother to test an app for accuracy?
It does not compute.
Sources:
“The First Ever ‘Dear Doctor’ Letter Regarding a Mobile Medical App Recall” John Mack, Pharma Marketing, 2/20/13, pharmamkting.blogspot.com
