Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 4, 2025

Intracranial Pharmacotherapy and Pain Assays in Rodents
Published on: April 9, 2019
Inside "Operation Change Agent": Mallinckrodt's Plan for Capturing the Opioid Market
Daniel Eisenkraft Klein1, Ross MacKenzie2, Ben Hawkins3
1University of Toronto.
Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals used aggressive sales tactics, including targeted marketing and motivational strategies, to promote its opioid painkillers during the US opioid crisis. This research challenges industry claims about opioid sales practices.
Area of Science:
- Pharmaceutical Marketing
- Public Health
- Corporate Strategy
Background:
- The US opioid crisis escalated due to prescription painkiller overuse.
- Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals was a major opioid manufacturer during the crisis (2006-2012).
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate Mallinckrodt's strategies for increasing market share.
- To analyze the "Operation Change Agent" campaign promoting a new opioid.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of internal corporate documents from the Opioid Industry Document Archive.
- Structured search yielding 464 documents (2010-2020).
Main Results:
- Mallinckrodt employed hypertargeting of high-prescribing doctors and provided trial kits.
- Sales strategies included emotional language and overcoming prescriber resistance.
- Managers used sports and ultramarathon metaphors for sales incentives.
Conclusions:
- This study counters industry assertions that sales teams merely educated prescribers.
- Findings have implications for regulatory policy and consumer protection in the pharmaceutical market.
More Related Videos
09:54Combining Laser Capture Microdissection and Microfluidic qPCR to Analyze Transcriptional Profiles of Single Cells: A Systems Biology Approach to Opioid Dependence
Published on: March 8, 2020
07:23Assessment of Morphine-induced Hyperalgesia and Analgesic Tolerance in Mice Using Thermal and Mechanical Nociceptive Modalities
Published on: July 29, 2014
Related Concept Videos
Opioid Analgesics: Synthetic and Semisynthetic Opioids
Analgesia and Pain Management
Opioid Receptors: Overview
Opioid Analgesics: Morphine and Other Natural Cogeners
Drug Delivery: Miscellaneous Routes
Oral inhalation and nasal sprays swiftly transfer drugs across the respiratory epithelium's mucosal layer. Inhaled glucocorticoids and bronchodilators directly target lung conditions such as asthma, while fluticasone nasal spray mitigates allergic rhinitis.
Transdermal patches transport drugs...
Drugs Affecting GI Tract Motility: Opioids as Antidiarrheal Agents
Opioids, widely used antidiarrheal agents, mitigate diarrhea by slowing down...