Pharmacoeconomic research--facilitating collaboration among academic institutions, managed-care organizations, and the pharmaceutical industry: a conference report.

To provide a venue to allow for the exchange of information among parties interested in pharmacoeconomic research opportunities within managed-care organizations, an invitational conference was conducted by The University of Arizona's Center for Pharmaceutical Economics on January 20 and 21, 1994, in Tucson, Arizona. The purpose of the conference was to bring together representatives from managed-care organizations, academic institutions, and the pharmaceutical industry to discuss opportunities for collaboration, as well as consider the barriers to conducting pharmacoeconomic research in the managed-care setting. Challenges to collaboration include database development, the need for an integrated perspective, sensitivity to marketing matters, and a variety of technical and organizational barriers. To overcome these barriers, the interested groups must develop trust, recognize common ground, share risk, and communicate effectively. This article describes the emerging themes of the conference based on transcripts of formal presentations and participants' comments.