Financial Support Details and Policies
A: Principles about financial and other support
Equilibrium abides by the principle that financial support should be
balanced from a variety of sources including private donors, corporate
supporters (from all sectors), conventional health and
science support trusts, research and health promotion trusts and
international and other organisations focussing on public health,
stigma of mental illness and mental health education on a wider scale.
Equilibrium does not and will not associate itself with any one pharmaceutical company in particular, nor will it associate itself with promotion or endorsement of any specific drug treatment or other form of commercially available treatment.
Equilibrium stongly supports the principle of 'Evidence Based Treatment'. This involves making treatment decisons based on the independent assimilation and evaluation of the available evidence for and against individual and combination treatments. Such information needs to be made available in a digestible way- not only for professionals, but also in a form suitable for the public. We also believe that more treatment studies should be carried out outwith the framework of the pharmaceutical industry.
To use the UK as an example, the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) is well aware of general issues of potential conflicts of interest between industry and clinicians/voluntary sector organisations and has a strict code of practice which has recently been tightened up. This includes the area of donations to charitable organisations.
We are in the process of developing a clear policy regarding
‘unrestricted grants and donations’ which legally assures our absolute
right to independence from any contributors in industry.
B. Sources of Support during start-up period
Financial and significant prob-bono work contributions:
Private individuals
Individual private donors
Online donations
Corporate support:
Pharmaceutical Sector : Organon UK, Eli Lilly , Pfizer
Non-Pharmaceutical Sector: Decherts LLP (International Law firm), Minervation ( Information technology)
Other: University of Oxford
