Child psychiatry and its relationship with the pharmaceutical industry: theoretical and practical issues†

The pharmaceutical industry is primarily responsible to its shareholders and so making profit is its primary motivation. The industry’s marketing techniques affect not only prescribing habits of doctors but also concepts of mental health. This editorial examines the impact this has had on both theory and practice in child and adolescent psychiatry. Undue influence by the pharmaceutical industry contributes to a skewing of the literature towards biological disease models of childhood mental health in order to support the use of the pharmaceutical companies’ products. Using fluoxetine and stimulants as two case examples, the article illustrates how pharmaceutical companies have contributed to widespread acceptance of erroneous beliefs about the safety and efficacy of using psychotropic drugs in children and adolescents. Suggestions are made on how child psychiatrists, both individually and collectively, can incorporate this knowledge into their professional development and practice. Sami Timimi is a consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist who works full time in the National Health Service (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service, Ash Villa, Willoughby Road, South Rauceby, Sleaford, Lincolnshire NG34 8QA, UK. Email: [email protected]) and a visiting professor of child and adolescent psychiatry at Lincoln University. He writes from a critical perspective on many topics, including eating disorders, psychotherapy, behavioural disorders and cross­cultural psychiatry.