ASE is committed to ensuring that its educational mission, and all accredited continuing educational programs provide a protected space to learn, teach, and engage in scientific discourse free from influence from organizations that may have an incentive to insert commercial bias into education.
It is the policy of ASE to ensure balance, independence, objectivity, and scientific rigor in all its educational activities. All speakers at the 36th Annual Scientific Sessions have agreed to the following:
• Present recommendations for patient care that are based on current science, evidence, and clinical reasoning, while giving a fair and balanced view of diagnostic and therapeutic options.
• Refer, report, or use in accredited education scientific research in support or justification of a patient care recommendation that conforms to the generally accepted standards of experimental design, data collection, analysis, and interpretation.
• Not present content that advocates for unscientific approaches to diagnosis or therapy, or if the education promotes recommendations, treatment, or manners of practicing healthcare that are determined to have risks or dangers that outweigh the benefits or are known to be ineffective in the treatment of patients.
• Not to accept any payment or reimbursement for their content from any commercial interests.
• Provide content material that is balanced information on all available options for pharmaceutical identification, trade name of drugs and devices to avoid the appearance of commercial bias.
• Disclose to the program audience when products/services are not labeled for the use under discussion or when the products are still under investigation.
• Comply with patient confidentiality requirements as outlined in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), by removing all patient and hospital identifiers from all content materials, including presentation slides and handouts.
While a monetary or professional affiliation with an ineligible company does not necessarily influence a speaker’s presentation, the Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Education and policies of the ACCME requires that all financial relationships with ineligible companies be identified and mitigated prior to engaging in an accredited CE activity. In accordance with these policies, ASE actively identified relevant financial relationships between faculty in control of this accredited CE activity and ineligible companies and implemented mitigation strategies to eliminate any potential influence from persons or organizations that may have an incentive to insert commercial bias in this activity. Disclosure information is referenced below.
ACCME defines an ineligible company as an entity whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients. For specific examples of ineligible companies visit accme.org/standards. ACCME does not consider providers of clinical services directly to patients to be a commercial interest.
RELATIONSHIP CODES
1. SPEAKER/SPEAKERS’ BUREAU
2. CONSULTANT, ADVISOR
3. STOCKHOLDER (NOT INCLUDING DIVERSIFIED MUTUAL FUNDS)
4. RESEARCH FUNDING/SUPPORT (INCLUDES PRINCIPAL OR NAMED INVESTI¬GATOR EVEN IF MANAGED BY INSTITUTION)
5. COMPANY RELATIONSHIP (OWNER, EMPLOYEE)
6. ROYALTIES/PATENT BENEFICIARY
7. OTHER (EDUCATOR OR HONORARIA)
Faculty - Disclosures Faculty - No Disclosures