August 11, 2016
By Alex Keown, BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff
MUMBAI, India -- Ashish Awasthi, the Abbott sales representative who blamed unreasonable sales expectation in a suicide note last month, may not be the only member of the Indian sales force to feel extreme pressure to meet high goals.
A New York Times investigation revealed that “some” Abbott managers demanded an “at any cost” approach to meeting sales goals. An approach that happens to be in violation of Indian law, medical standards and Abbott’s own ethics guidelines, the Times said. Over several months, before the suicide of Awasthi, reporters from the Times interviewed a number of Abbott sales reps in India about the pressures they faced in order to meet sales quotas. One method they used was to hold “health camps” at local doctors’ offices, have area residents come out for health screenings, then have the physicians prescribe Abbott drugs to those patients when necessary. However, the Medical Council of India told the Times that such tactics amount to practicing medicine without a license. That type of quid pro quo behavior is also a violation of Indian medical ethics.
Drug sales in India are estimated to be about $16 billion annually, making it one of the fastest growing markets in that country. Drug sales have grown annually by about 10 percent over the past few years, the Times said. That growth though has made competition fierce among individuals seeking these sales positions, driving them to meet goals at any cost.
Abbott’s Indian division defended the practice to the Times, saying the health camps are conducted within Indian law and said company policies did not allow for the camps to be conducted as part of a quid pro quo scheme with the local doctors.
If sales representatives balked at holding these medical camps out of fear of violating national law, they faced termination, several reps told the Times.
Another tactic that was encouraged in order to meet sales goals was to have the sales reps themselves buy medicines in order to meet sales targets. Kickbacks to doctors for prescribing Abbott drugs was also a tactic used, the Times said.
Awasthi, the man who committed suicide in late July, was part of Abbott’s neuro life division. He was with the company for about two years, serving as a Territory Business Manager. However, several months before his death, Awasthi complained to his wife of a new manager who demanded “inhuman and unnatural” sales goals. On the day of his death, Awasthi was scheduled to meet with his new boss. Despite having been a top performer for the company, Awasthi’s widow said her husband expected to lose this job during the meeting.
Following his suicide and the discovery of the note in his pocket that blamed the company’s sales demands, there was an outcry among his colleagues and a local medical representative union that staged demonstrations. Manish Thacker, secretary of Indore Unit of Madhya Pradesh-Chhattisgarh Medical & Sales Representatives Union, blamed Abbott for unethical trade and marketing practices and for forcing its employees to involve themselves in unethical businesses.
Abbott has refuted any role in the death of the rep, saying he was among the region’s top performers and had “recently qualified for a training certification meant for high performers.” The company also said its policies, practices and employee training are aligned with applicable laws, regulations and industry codes.
Abbott has had a long presence in India and employs more than 14,000 people in that country. Abbott India told The Hindu Businessline that the company has been “consistently rated as a preferred employer by employees and prospective talent, over the past few years.”
