Annex III – QUERIES (Questions and Answers) on the interpretation of the Code of Practice
ARTICLE 8. DIGITAL ENVIRONMENT
12. What measures must pharmaceutical companies adopt with regard to social media usage and participation by their employees?
Pharmaceutical companies must have in place behavioural standards and guides intended for their employees and third parties acting on their behalf, or under their control, or by virtue of a signed agreement, establishing guidelines for responsible conduct in the digital environment, both when sharing information about or in the name of the pharmaceutical company and when using a medium, platform or channel provided by it.
They must likewise train their employees regarding the characteristics, functionality, recipients, risks, limitations, terms and conditions of the main social media networks which exist, both public and private, so as to prevent and avoid any conduct that could be contrary to the Code (such as promotion of prescription-only medicines to the general public, promotion beyond the technical data sheet - off label-, etc.).
It is important for pharmaceutical companies to remind their employees and third parties acting on their behalf, or under their control, or by virtue of a signed agreement, as to their responsibility as users of social media.
In any event, the internal procedures of the pharmaceutical company must cover the obligation promptly and diligently to correct any irregularity.
13. May the pharmaceutical company, its employees, or third parties acting on its behalf, or under its control or by virtue of a signed agreement, distribute via social media the content reproduced during meetings organised or mainly sponsored by the pharmaceutical company? What about the attendants at such meetings?
The pharmaceutical company will be responsible for all content reproduced during this type of meeting. In this regard, depending on the nature and scope of the content, measures will need to be adopted with regard to the presentation and subsequent dissemination thereof.
In the case of promotional content connected with prescription-only medicines, such measures will need to guarantee that both the presentation and subsequent dissemination thereof are confined solely to Healthcare Professionals entitled to prescribe or dispense this type of product. Open-access social media platforms that do not guarantee the restriction or limitation of the recipients of the content must therefore not be used for presentation and dissemination.
These requirements are applicable both to the pharmaceutical company and to its employees or third parties acting on its behalf, or under its control, or by virtue of a signed agreement. As a result, the signed agreements or contracts must, among other aspects, include a clause under the terms of which the parties explicitly acknowledge that they are familiar with their rights, obligations and responsibilities if they are users of social media.
With regard to the use or dissemination of content from the meeting by the attendees, the pharmaceutical company is likewise advised to adopt some type of measure that would serve to accredit that they have been informed of their rights, obligations and responsibilities, if they are social media users.
By way of example, these measures could include the following: (i) include visible, clear and unequivocal messages as to the limitations on the use of content; (ii) make possible attendance or participation conditional on prior acceptance of the rights, obligations and responsibilities with regard to social media; (iii) commitment to request explicit authorisation from the pharmaceutical company before using or disseminating content from the meeting, etc.