Fifty years on from the first launch of the ABPI's code of practice, the Association is marking the anniversary with its new "Nifty at Fifty" campaign, which will examine how the code and regulatory environment has changed since then.
The campaign will run throughout 2008, during which time, it will target the pharmaceutical industry, MPs,health professionals, patient organisations and PR and marketing professionals as part of Code Awareness Week - an extension of Code Awareness Day, which has run successfully for the past two years. The week-long event will take place in early October 2008.
The ABPI Code first came into operation on 2 October 1958 and has been amended many times over the years. The first edition of the Code has expanded from being only two pages long to the 33 pages of the current Code. Transparency has also increased over the years with more and more detail being published in case reports.
The Code and its operation is being revised following thepublication of a revised European Federation of PharmaceuticalIndustries and Associations (EFPIA) Code covering interactions between the pharmaceutical industry and health professionals and the introduction of a new EFPIA Code covering relationships between the pharmaceutical industry and patient organisations. The ABPI Code will also come into operation on 1 July 2008.
