Surgeon's perception regarding relationship with industry: a qualitative study of non-profit hospitals.

• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2047/D20398292

The Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS) plays an essential role in preventing fraud and abuse among healthcare entities. The broad scope and ambiguous components of the AKS have been linked to a multitude of barriers in providing quality healthcare. Because patients rely heavily on physician's recommendations and guidance, industries often use marketing tactics to influence prescribing practices. The notion of industries having such extensive influence on physician prescribing practices has led to the implementation of regulations that guide ethical medical decisions (Crane, Kingsbury & Lovitch, Roll & American Bar Association, 2015).This study aimed to investigate surgeons' perceptions regarding relationships with industry and the role it plays on influencing prescribing practices through the lens of cognitive dissonance theory. Utilizing qualitative emergent design, structured phone interviews were conducted with convenience sampling of 13 surgeons over three months (June to August 2020). The majority of the participants worked in a structured environment (92.3%) in which the physicians are employees of the organization and 69.2% held leadership and administrative roles. Findings confirm that surgeons' interactions with industry, even in a tightly controlled environment, posed a conflict-of-interest risk due to psychological dynamics such as subconscious and unintended biases. Overall, the conclusion of findings noted continued support for more oversight and education regarding physician-industry relationships. Recommendations for continued investigations and evaluation of industry interactions within multiple service areas. Key Words: Anti-Kickback Prescriber Bias Physician-Industry Relationship