When Doctors Receive Expensive Gifts and Kickbacks, Patient Care May Take a Back Seat. When patients visit their doctor for medical care and advice, most believe they are getting unbiased medical attention that puts the patient’s well-being first. But most patients are unaware that some doctors’ advice might be affected by expensive gifts, lavish trips to luxury resorts, gourmet dinners and high-priced tickets to Broadway shows and sporting events. These pricey gifts come courtesy of pharmaceutical companies as a way of encouraging doctors to prescribe their drugs to patients, even when those drugs are not recommended for the patients’ illness.
