Characteristics of Top-Searched Individuals in Japan’s Yen for Docs Conflicts of Interest Database During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Transparency in healthcare has led to increased public disclosure of doctors' conflicts of interest, with the "Yen for Docs Database" in Japan emerging as a pivotal source. Nevertheless, there remains ambiguity regarding the backgrounds and influence of highly-searched persons, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. The primary objective of this study was to examine if the database was utilized for its intended purpose in 2021, a year marked by the introduction of vaccines and treatments, the addition of new COVID-19-related data, and the frequent appearances of expert statements in various media outlets. MethodsWe conducted a descriptive analysis on the 10 most frequently searched individuals in the "Yen for Docs Database" between August 27 and September 23, 2021, and determined the amount of money they received from pharmaceutical companies and other organizations over the four-year period between 2016 and 2019. To characterize frequently searched individuals' academic profiles and appearances in the mass media, we identified their h-index and affiliation, their activity on Twitter, and the number of TV appearances. ResultsThere were 72,904 searches during the study period, with the top person accounting for 4,905 of those searches. All top 10 were male, mostly affiliated with universities and specialists in infectious diseases or related fields. Their median number of COVID-19 articles was five, and the median h-index was 34. Four of these top 10 had Twitter accounts, with followers ranging from 12,000 to 195,000.

Unveiling, Analyzing the Mechanisms of, and Proposing Solutions for Bribery in Japan's Medical Device Sector

“…In comparison, the medical device industry is segmented into 106 categories and encompasses 20 professional medical organizations under the Japan Federation of Medical Devices Associations (JFMDA), which is the largest trade organization of medical device companies and their associations in the country; yet, its market size is still about 4.41 trillion JPY (28 billion USD) as explained above. This indicates a much larger number of smaller-scale companies in the medical device sector compared to the more consolidated pharmaceutical industry [20]. In fact, Zeon Medical is headquartered in central Tokyo but has only 216 employees as of April 1, 2021 [21].…”