Conflict of Interest Initiative

Transparency in Relationships with Commercial Interests

The American Society of Nephrology is committed to maintaining educational and scientific objectivity as well as institutional integrity through disclosure, evaluation, standardization, and transparency in interactions with industry.

ASN Action

• A Message from ASN: Scope of the Issue
• NEW! ASN Provides Key Information to Senate
• Conflict of Interest Management Committee
• ASN's Ongoing Self-Assessment Process
• Public Policy Forum: Conflicts of Interest in Medicine, Christopher R. Blagg Endowed Lectureship (ASN Renal Week 2009)

ASN Policy

• "ASN Policy on Managing Conflicts of Interest" (J Am Soc Neph 20: 1853-59, 2009)
• "Managing Conflicts of Interest: The Road Ahead" (J Am Soc Neph 20: 1860-62, 2009)

Informational Resources

• On The Hill: Conflict-of-Interest Legislation
• Organizational Recommendations for Addressing Concerns about COI
• Conflict-of-Interest Awareness: A Timeline:

Press: Conflict of Interest Issues in the News Media

In this section, ASN highlights recent articles addressing and debating conflict of interest issues related to medical education, the practice of medicine, and medical professional societies published in the general news media.

• The New York Times: Senator Grassley Seeks Financial Details From Medical Groups (12/07/09)
• The New York Times: Steps To Greater Accountability in Medical Education (10/20/09)
• International Committee of Medical Journals (Ed.): Uniform Format for Disclosure of Competing Interests in ICMJE Journals. (11/05/09)
• American Medical News: Commercial CME loses funding from second drug firm (10/19/09)
• Academic Medicine: Commentary: Disclosure's Failings: What Is the Alternative? (9/09)
• Academic Medicine: Perspective: Disclosing Hidden Sources of Funding (9/19/09)

Click here to view ASN's press release on managing conflicts of interest.

ASN Seeks Your Feedback

ASN members are encouraged to provide comments on conflicts of interest, commercial bias, and related issues. Please direct your feedback to coi@asn-online.org. ASN appreciates your participation in the Society's ongoing efforts to maintain high ethical standards in all organizational activities.

Contact ASN Staff

Please contact ASN's Policy Associate, Rachel Shaffer, at rshaffer@asn-online.org or by phone at (202) 416-0660 for further assistance.