Unwanted healing - How pharmaceutical companies prevent a drug

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Movie
Original title Unwanted healing - How pharmaceutical companies prevent a drug
Country of production Germany
original language German
Publishing year 2009
length 44 minutes
Rod
Director Klaus Martens
script Klaus Martens
production Mathias Werth
music Detlef Kleinert
camera Christa Fuchs
cut Roswitha Patommel
occupation
  • Peter Altmeyer
  • Axel Gottschick
  • Thomas Hein
  • Ronald Januchowski
  • Karsten Klingelhöller
  • Wolfgang Knirsch
  • Thomas Schettler
  • Markus Stücker
  • Rüdiger Weiss
  • Torsten Zuberbier

Unwanted healing - How pharmaceutical companies prevent a drug is a documentary by the journalist and filmmaker Klaus Martens , who ran in the series Die Story in Erste . The 44-minute film was first broadcast on October 19, 2009 on Das Erste . The film was broadcast in a 60-minute version on October 23 and 24, 2009 on Phoenix and on November 4 and 5, 2009 in EinsExtra . A repeat of the film on WDR television announced for November 30, 2009 has been canceled.

action

The documentation by Klaus Martens describes the case of the former medical student Karsten Klingelhöller , who mixed vitamin B 12 with avocado oil during his studies 20 years ago . The remedy is said to be effective against neurodermatitis and psoriasis and supposedly worked on his girlfriend who was affected by neurodermatitis at the time. The doctors appearing in the film, who examined the ointment in smaller clinical studies , expressed themselves positively impressed by the effectiveness after initial skepticism and described it as free of side effects . Encouraged by the positive study results, Karsten Klingelhöller tried to persuade numerous pharmaceutical companies to market the product for which the name “Regividerm” was already intended. However, all manufacturers canceled or did not want to give any guarantee that the ointment would appear in stores. Based on the inventor's statements, the screenwriter derived the charge from this act that companies in the pharmaceutical industry had refused for years for strategic reasons to produce and market the ointment for the treatment of atopic eczema (neurodermatitis) and psoriasis (psoriasis), although they would have had no doubts about its effectiveness. The sale of their own products from these manufacturers, which usually have significantly stronger side effects, should not be threatened by the ointment.

Klaus Martens also represented these theses in an episode of the discussion program Hart aber fair , and it is also the subject of the book of the same name for the film, which appeared on November 5, 2009 and immediately entered the top 10 of the Spiegel bestseller list .

Reactions

The program initially received a positive response from those affected. The psoriasis self-help working group described the film as enlightening and thanked the author and WDR for having the courage to broadcast the documentary. The media also initially reported positively about the film without questioning it critically. A little later, more and more critical voices came in from specialist circles, the press and patient organizations. Critics such as the FAZ , the Süddeutsche Zeitung , Ökotest , the Stern and the German Psoriasis Association suspected a targeted PR campaign by Klaus Martens for the ointment and the book on the film.

Two days after the film was broadcast, it became known that the Swiss company Mavena Health Care AG wanted to bring the cream onto the market, whereupon Martens had suggested that this step was a reaction to his film. In fact, this decision was made weeks before it was broadcast, so that the product could come onto the market just four weeks after it was broadcast, at the same time as the book about the film was published. A little later it turned out that the film Heilung was even offered on CD by the Mavena company in Turkey as a promotional film for the ointment. According to the German Neurodermatitis Association, the ARD has journalistically sidelined.

The content of the film was also criticized. The studies carried out were too small and methodologically inadequate to prove beyond any doubt the effectiveness in atopic dermatitis and psoriasis, as claimed in the film. In later statements, the doctors appearing in the film put their statements into perspective. The clinical pharmacologist Peter Schönhöfer , called upon by the WDR to assess the clinical studies , warned the broadcaster during the production that the studies were insufficiently informative. The designation of the ointment as a drug is also misleading, as it should come on the market as a medical product . In addition, the accusation that the pharmaceutical manufacturers were not interested in marketing the ointment in order to protect their own products cannot be transferred to all the rejecting manufacturers.

In addition, the film and book title “Unwanted healing” was criticized as manipulative and misleading, as it suggested a healing effect of the ointment. In the film, too, it was repeatedly claimed or at least suggested that the ointment could not only alleviate the symptoms, but heal them. In fact, a severe chronic skin disease such as neurodermatitis cannot be cured. For example, the immunologist Beda Stadler said: "If you pretend that a stupid avocado oil with vitamins would make a serious illness disappear from the earth, then that is a fraud."

Also, some further manipulation and errors in the film were revealed over time, then the in the film as a dermatologist called Dr. Dr. Kroll from Kleve is actually a chemist and general practitioner , and the American doctor Ronald Januchowski, who in the film Dr. Januchowski is called and referred to as a dermatologist, is actually not a doctor, but a Doctor of Osteopathy , which is not to be equated with an academic doctorate, and works in the hospital shown in the film as a general practitioner and not as a dermatologist. Also frank plasberg came in for criticism, as he in his mission but fair Hart a few days after the broadcast of the film healing undesirability Mr Martens gave a presentation in which he could point out the ointment and the movie again. This was criticized as part of the promotional campaign for the ointment. In the show Hart aber Fair, the journalist Markus Grill exposed another mistake in the film: The price of the ingredients does not determine the price of a drug. On the contrary, a pharmaceutical company that owns the patent rights could charge almost any price for the ointment if it worked better than comparable products. In the film Healing Unwanted, it was suggested that the low production price of the ointment jeopardized the profits of the pharmaceutical companies through much more expensive preparations and that they therefore wanted to prevent the ointment.

On October 27, 2009 the film was temporarily removed from the ARD media library with the reason: "Unfortunately, for legal reasons, the video" Unwanted healing "can no longer be shown in Das Erste Mediathek".

One of Wolfgang Stock submitted program complaint against the post has the WDR -Programmausschuss upheld. Stock argued that “the feature violated the principles of journalistic fairness in that the difficult medical situation was presented in a very simplified and one-sided way.” The science press conference magazine described Martens film as a modern folk tale . The WPK quoted the Broadcasting Council after the film presented a difficult medical situation in a very simplified and one-sided way and stated that since 2003 it was the first of 14 program complaints that had been granted.

Release from service and termination

On May 14, 2010, the WDR released Martens from service due to alleged violations of the WDR's programming principles and false information given to the WDR in connection with its feature healing undesirable (2009, see below) and its subsequent book publication and initiated legal action. In connection with the documentation, doubts about Marten's independence had been expressed in the case, and the director accused Martens of breach of trust.

Cancellation of termination by labor and state labor courts

On January 20, 2011, the Cologne Labor Court overturned the WDR's dismissal. According to the court ruling, after a review, the allegations against Martens turned out to be largely incorrect. Due to Martens' previously renowned journalistic work, the reasons for an immediate dismissal were not sufficient.

After the WDR nevertheless intended to lead the process, the Cologne Regional Labor Court suggested a comparative dispute settlement. It “strongly” suggested continuing the employment relationship and moving Martens to another editorial office or another area of ​​responsibility before it would pass judgment on the matter itself. When the WDR went to court, the Cologne Regional Labor Court ruled on December 14, 2011 that the termination without notice was ineffective. WDR bore the costs of the proceedings. A revision of the judgment is not permitted.

Proof of effectiveness

The manufacturer refers to two new studies. As a placebo control, however, the ointment without the addition of B12 was not used, so that the effectiveness can already be explained by other additives such as urea and avocado oil.

literature

  • Klaus Martens: Healing undesirable. The dramatic story of a drug. Dumont Literature and Art Publishing House; Edition: 1st (November 5, 2009), ISBN 978-3-8321-9531-1 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Review: Unwanted healing - How pharmaceutical companies prevent a drug, WDR from October 19, 2009 ( Memento from October 12, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
  2. ↑ Self-help association defends ARD film "Unwanted healing"
  3. ↑ a b Köppelle, Winfried (2009): Surreptitious advertising for Quackalbe and Wunderbuch. Laborjournal, November 2009, 68-70. Full text version ( Memento of the original from November 15, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.laborjournal.de
  4. ↑ Süddeutsche Zeitung: The great itch
  5. ↑ Frankfurter Allgemeine: Psoriasis therapy - rose red is hope
  6. ↑ Öko-Test: Neurodermatitis Cream - False Promises of Salvation ( Memento of the original from December 13, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.oekotest.de
  7. ↑ a b c Inpatient admission: Regividerm: Chronicle of a media scandal (Update 83). Accessed September 3, 2018 .
  8. Jump up ↑ Regividerm. Statement from the German Neurodermatitis Association Hamburg, October 22, 2009  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.neurodermitis-bund.de  
  9. ↑ http://www3.ndr.de/sendung/zapp/archiv/medien_wirtschaft/salbe102.html
  10. ↑ WDR.de - Reactions to "Unwanted healing" ( Memento from October 24, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
  11. ↑ a b Stefan Niggemeier | Clarification undesirable? Frank Plasberg and the miracle drug against neurodermatitis. Retrieved September 3, 2018 (German).
  12. ↑ Ann-Christin Sievers: At WDR it goes round - the strange story of a program complaint , Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung of May 21, 2010, features section p. 37.
  13. ↑ WDR Broadcasting Council: Press release from May 20, 2010 - WDR Broadcasting Council decides on program complaints against "cure undesirable" and "hard but fair". May 20, 2010, archived from the original on May 21, 2010 ; Retrieved on May 21, 2010 : "A large majority of the committee came to the conclusion that the program" Unwanted healing "violated the requirement of journalistic fairness (Section 5, Paragraph 4, Clause 3 of the WDR Law)."
  14. ↑ a b Lehmkuhl, M. (2010): Research undesirable !? The fairy tale of a healing ointment and evil pharmaceutical giants . Editorial. In: wpk-Quarterly, quarterly magazine of the WPK-Die Wissenschaftsjournalisten 8 (1): 2 - 3., similar to I / 2011 WPK-Quarterly 16 The Martens case, by Markus Lehmkuhl, 2011
  15. ↑ WDR press release of May 14, 2010 ( Memento of June 27, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
  16. ↑ File number 6 Ca 4641/10 ( Memento of the original from September 6, 2018 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Press release Labor Court Cologne: Labor Court Cologne: Termination without notice of a WDR editor ineffective  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / juris.de @1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.justiz.nrw.de  
  17. ↑ Cologne Labor Court, 6 Ca 4641/10
  18. ↑ http://www.lag-koeln.nrw.de/service/sitzungsresult/index.php?daten=05.10.2011  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.lag-koeln.nrw.de  
  19. ^ Anne Burgmer: dismissal dispute: WDR loses again in dismissal dispute . In: Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger . ( ksta.de [accessed on September 6, 2018]).
  20. ↑ The "pink cream" and the evidence . In: Deutsche Apotheker Zeitung . ( deutsche-apotheker-zeitung.de [accessed June 27, 2020]).