Physician-Industry Collaboration

Many of the most important, life-changing healthcare innovations of the past half-century have come as a result of physicians sharing their expertise with the manufacturers of pharmaceuticals, medical device and healthcare products of all types.  Strengthening these working relationships in a principled manner was the focus of the first National Dialogue for Healthcare Innovation (NDHI) project in 2010.

The issue of physician-industry collaboration rose to prominence as a result of the Physician Payments Sunshine Act, a component of the Affordable Care Act.  As Sunshine Act provisions were being developed and implemented, the NDHI effort brought together leaders from all fields of healthcare as well as government policymakers, academic health centers, and patient organizations to discuss the value and future of physician-industry collaborative efforts on behalf of patients.

The NDHI project resulted in the development of consensus principles on transparency and research independence that was disseminated to leaders in the executive and legislative branches of the federal government, and the creation of a database of transformative innovations that came as a result of physician-industry collaboration.

An initiative of the