KARACHI, Aug 2: The Pakistan Medical Association on Monday charged that some pharmaceutical companies have been indulging in immoral activities to force doctors to prescribe their drugs.

It called upon the government to help curb such practices and, if need be, formulate laws to guard against them. It also asked the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) to take notice of such practices at the earliest.

In a press release, the PMA said the doctors should refrain from getting involved in such practices.

The activities included purchase of cars, refrigerators, televisions and furniture, etc, on hire purchase basis, the payment being made by the pharmaceutical companies depending on the number of prescriptions produced; pleasure trips to destinations both inside and outside the country on which the doctors as well as their family members may go; promotion of antibiotics, vitamins and aphrodisiacs through homeopaths, Hakims and medical stores; and, favours and incentives to hospital owners who compel doctors working for them to write certain kind of prescriptions.

The PMA's secretary-general, Dr Shershah Syed in a press release added that objectionable practices were responsible for a lot of sufferings to patients.