Code of Conduct - Question & Answers

11. Service Oriented Items - February 2006

Question 1:
We plan on launching a new program destined to assist nurses who are involved in the sexual education of Canadian teenagers. These include school nurses and nurses in family planning clinics. These nurses are often called to visit different schools to give sexual education classes or seminars which mean they have a lot of information and samples to carry with them.

We plan to provide these nurses with a case which contains 10 zippered see-through pockets that are meant to store their educational materials, such as sexual health pamphlets, charts and product information booklets. We have pre-stocked the case with a condom and plastic uterus model. The case can be hung from a hook so that the see-through pockets cascade downward to display any education materials the nurse may have added.
We have put this case within a bigger bag intended to be a convenient carrying case for the product samples nurses keep on hand for demonstrations to their students and other bulky educational tools. We pre-stocked this bigger bag with information booklets on:

     • The various methods of birth control
     • Sexually transmitted diseases
     • The gynecological examination
     • Breast exams

It also contains a chart comparing the different methods of contraception and a Canadian Contraception Guide produced by the SOGC. The above-mentioned pieces do not promote our products and bear our company name only.

Can we add PAAB approved patient information pamphlets on our contraceptive products, keeping in mind that nurses will be adding other product information to the kit?

Response:
Unfortunately, we cannot act as pre-clearance for individual commercial initiatives. However, as described, this initiative appears to have contravening potential.

Acceptable service oriented items must have as a primary goal to enhance HCP's or patient's understanding of a condition or its treatment (11.2). Moreover, their distribution must be justifiable if subjected to scrutiny by members of health professions and the public (11.1).

Complex items such as the one described with “see-through pockets”, “product booklets” and “bigger bags” acting as “carrying cases” with “company name” may be contentious.

It might be prudent to reassess the intent, packaging and possible distribution of some of these components before proceeding.