Since attendance is down at medical grand rounds - those formal hospital meetings at which docs discuss patient cases - a study was conducted in which free food was provided by drugmakers. And guess what? Free food boosted attendance - by 38.4 percent. The study appears in BMC Medical Education and reviewed meetings between September 2002 and June 2004.

There was no word about what was on the menu, but 70.1 percent of the docs indicated they were more likely to attend grand rounds because of complimentary food, 53.6 percent indicated their attendance increased as a result of complimentary food, and 53.1 percent indicated their attendance would decrease if complimentary food was no longer provided, the study found.

Notably, the authors write, 80.3 percent indicated that food was not a distraction, and 81.7 percent disagreed that industry representatives had influence over medical grand rounds because of their financial support for the food.

No, free food was the main reason most of them attended, but it wasn’t a distraction. Sounds like a lot of time and attention was paid, however, to the buffet table. And the reps weren’t an influence? Hmm… Those hungry docs must have been aware how all that free food kept showing up. Sales rep, take note. The study authors drew this conclusion: “Providing free food may be an effective strategy for increasing attendance at medical grand rounds.”

Hat tip to KevinMD and Notes from Dr. RW