Compliance With Ethical Standards in Healthcare Isn't Optional

An open letter regarding my resignation from the Clinical Essential Committee at AACAP.

I love writing about compliance. And today, in a moment of sadness and pride, I brought up a relevant compliance issue. It related to my role on a planning committee for CME. Next, I promptly resigned.

I've been working with my colleagues at AACAP for the past six or more years to help build the Clinical Essentials Task Force into an official committee. We make continuing medical education content. And, for that content to count, it needs to be planned by those who don’t have conflicts of interest with Ineligible Companies.

And, importantly, even the committees planning those educational products not only must disclose conflicts of interest but, if they exist, we can not be involved in planning. At all.

Today, I tendered my resignation after raising the compliance concern about my participation. I think this is not a brilliant standard…because it essentially penalizes compliance with disclosure, but also because I don’t believe it meaningfully protects anyone from actual conflict o…