The Prescription Pill Paradox: Nurse Practitioners' Perceptions About Direct-to-Consumer Advertising

ABSTRACTDirect marketing of prescription medications to consumers through mass media has burgeoned in recent years, accompanied by significant interest in how this advertising affects patients and their health care providers. The purpose of this study is to add to the body of literature on direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) by investigating through a series of in-depth qualitative interviews the perceptions of a population of health care professionals who have largely been neglected in prior studies: nurse practitioners (NPs). Five broad, yet apparent, themes emerged from analysis of the interviews about DTCA with 11 NPs practicing in a variety of specialty areas: communication effects, DTCA learning, quick fix, destigmatization, and paradoxes. These themes, and their implications, are discussed in detail.