Offering an Indirect Industry Supported Grant as an Industry Partner

Industry Partners can offer Indirect Industry Supported Grants that cover some of the fees related to PCR Course attendance. Healthcare Professionals who wish to attend a Course can apply for these grants. If an applicant's profile matches the criteria, his or her attendance is either partially or fully covered, depending on the type of grant.

Since January 2018, Indirect Industry Supported Grants must comply with the Code of Ethics. 

The regional associations on medical technology and trade introduced new regulations (Code): 

• MedTech Europe
  The European trade association represents the medical technology industries on the continent. For detailed information about the “Code of Ethical Business Practice”, please refer to the Ethical MedTech platform
• APACMed
  It is the Asia Pacific Medical Technology Association. Find out more about its Code of Ethical Conduct for Interactions with Healthcare Professionals
• MECOMED
  It is the medical devices, imaging and diagnostics trade association, which serves as the voice of international medical technology manufacturers across the Middle East and Africa. Access its approved Code of Ethical Business Practice to learn more.

These rules are also applicable in the geographical scope of each association.

As a result,  the support that can be offered by industry members towards Healthcare Professionals has moved from a direct to an indirect approach. In other words, industry members can no longer directly invite healthcare professionals. They have the obligation to allocate Indirect Industry Supported Grants to trusted third parties, such as the PCR Organising Team at Europa Group.

In general, Industry Partners based in the geographical areas placed under the jurisdiction of the previously mentioned associations must comply with the new rules in order to offer support to delegates/Faculty/Presenters at educational events.

More precisely, the regulations apply to you if:

• Your company or any of its subsidiaries is a corporate member, or a member of a national company that has ratified the Code for either:
  • MedTech Europe (access list of corporate members)
  • APACMed (access list of corporate members)
  • MECOMED (access list of corporate members)
    Please note that internal policy decisions might imply that you are required to comply with the support process, even if your company is geographically based outside MedTech Europe’s - or echoing associations’ - jurisdiction.
• Your company’s headquarters is based in a region where these regulations apply.

If neither of the two points above apply, you can elect to invite delegates through direct sponsorship. You can, however, decide to adhere to the principles of the new MedTech Europe Codes, i.e. opt in for an Indirect Industry Supported Grant scheme to support delegate attendance to PCR Courses.

More questions on MedTech? Consult MedTech Europe Code of Ethical Business Practice.

For further questions or assistance in the delegate support process, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Industry Partners must deliver Indirect Industry Supported Grants through PCR, most precisely through the PCR Organising Team at Europa Group, the Course organiser.

PCR acts as a trusted third party

The PCR Organising Team at Europa Group (the Professional Conference Organiser operating on behalf of all PCR Courses), was one of the very first to be recognised as a Trusted Partner. It is therefore equipped to receive grants from Industry Partners, allocate Educational Allowances to participants and has already built up valuable experience in the matter.

A purely administrative role in the selection process

Europa Group (of which PCR is an integral part) takes care of the administrative management of educational allowances, as determined by the Codes of Ethics.

Europa Group is one of the first PCOs (Professional Conference Organisers) to have been recognised as a Trusted Partner, and it already acts for more than 50 medical societies. Over the past 30 years, the Group has established a virtuous long-term working collaboration with countless Industry Partners in a joint mission to enhance healthcare professionals’ clinical skills for the benefit of the patient.

What makes Europa Group a trustworthy partner for delegate support management?

• It has a solid expertise, strengthened by long-term business relationships with the medical industry.
• It has a large and solid database of prominent specialists, as well as an extensive list of potential Healthcare Professional guest members.
• It has successfully managed delegates for PCR Courses since 2018. Previous pilot projects resulted in high satisfaction rates.
• It has been recognized as a MedTech Trusted Partner

A purely administrative role in the selection process

Europa Group (of which PCR is an integral part) takes care of the administrative management of Indirect Industry Supported Grants, as determined by the Code of Ethics:

• Since 1 January 2018, industry sponsorship of Healthcare Professionals (HCPs) has transitioned from a direct to an indirect scheme in certain regions of the world.
• Financial support by industry partners must be anonymously delivered in the form of an Educational Allowance via a trusted third party. This includes the sponsorship of HCPs’ participation in interventional cardiology congresses such as PCR Courses.
• The Codes of Ethics that regulate the indirect sponsorship of HCPs by industry members were introduced by the following associations:
  • MedTech Europe in Europe
  • APACMed in Asia Pacific
  • MECOMED in the Middle East/Africa.

• Basically, as industry partners can no longer directly sponsor HCPs (physicians, nurses and allied professionals), Educational Allowances must be provided in one of two ways:
  • Through the healthcare institution where the HCP works, or their national society 
  • Through a recognised ‘trusted third party’ such as PCR/Europa Group.

The PCR Organising Committee’s role is to apply a strictly methodical blinded matching process, according to the following attribution order:

• Match with the provided selection criteria.
• Priority given to Presenters of cases/Abstracts selected for a PCR Course.
• A first-come, first-served rule for equivalent profiles.

We’ll be happy to accompany Industry Partners in their delegate invitation process. To apply and learn about the different options offered by Europa Group, simply get in touch with us.

As an Industry Partner, you can define the funding scope of each Indirect Industry Supported Grant. Overall, these may cover registration fees for participation at PCR Courses, accommodation and travel, or part thereof. 

Yes. The only requirement is that the criteria cannot be so specific as to identify or match specific  individual Healthcare Professionals.

Indirect Industry Supported Grants remain a viable option for group invitations. Group support needs to comply with Indirect Industry Supported Grants principles as described above.

Indirect Industry Supported Grants are allocated to another applicant whose profile matches the selection criteria.

Regardless of the option chosen by the Industry Partner, the delegate is asked to inform the PCR Organising Team ahead of time of his/her cancellation, in order to allow the re-allocation of the grant to another applicant. Delegates who do not notify the Team of their inability to attend will not be able to apply for future Indirect Industry Supported Grants.

Management of delegates has been successfully conducted by Europa Group for PCR Courses since 2018. Experience indicates that the last minute no-show rate remains extremely low.

No, the Industry Partner remains anonymous, as per the Code of Ethics’ rules.

Industry Partners cannot contact selected applicants, except for certain legal obligations.

PCR/Europa Group is committed to allocating all of the collected grants to as many Healthcare Professionals as possible, under the provision that the applicants match the profiles determined by the Industry Partner. Should there be unspent Indirect Industry Supported Grants, Europa Group will notify the Industry Partner and find an arrangement.