Crixivan White-out

From reader Enid Vázquez comes this Crixivan white out. Somehow advertising the ability to erase mistakes along with an anti-HIV drug seems dangerous ground.

Cozaar laser pointer/slide advancer.

I'm thinking this is a developing theme with the reps. First Abbott, then the pleasant people from Merck hawking Cozaar have brought these things.

Hyzaar Reflex Hammer

Not the greatest reflex hammer. Yes, it's the classic shape, but it weighs about half as much as a regular hammer, and a person would have to be severely hyperreflexic to demonstrate any response with this thing.

Hyzaar Flash drive

From the nice folks at Merck, a neat little flash drive. I also like the fact that, saving on paper, this thing came with the promotional literature loaded on it.

Zetia gift bag

This is a little impressive. A nice plastic bag, full of drug rep toys: pens, calendars, articles, and invitations to dinner. And the bag isn't bad either, waterproof too. How fun.

Vytorin pocket protector

Now I've seen everything. As if doctors didn't have enough problems being seen as nerds, now the folks at Merck have decided that the quintessential badge of one is a great way to advertise their product. No thanks.

Cozaar calipers

Another set of calipers. This one places above the Diovan atrocity in compactness, but still below the Coreg or Zetia beauties.

Janumet clipboard

Judging from the reps around here, Merck is pretty excited about Januvia and its sister combination drug, Janumet. A few weeks ago we had the Post-it note pen, and here's the latest I've seen, a clipboard. My complaint about this clipboard is that the writing surface is actually smaller than an 8.5x11 piece of paper, which doesn't make a lot of sense to me. Also, as with drug toy ID tags, I don't like carrying such blatant advertising around with me.

Januvia Pen

Merck is pulling out all the stops for this one. Their newest diabetes wonder drug, with a singular pen design I haven't seen before. There are Post-It notes right there in the handle. It isn't bad at writing either.

Gardasil pen

Gardasil is Merck's latest wonder vaccine and lightning rod for controversy. However the pen is (without equivocation) wonderful. It is heavy and solidly constructed, with a quality ink cartridge. Definitely a quality find.

Zocor Mouse Pad

Apologies for the long hiatus. The hospital I am at this month has much stricter rules about drug reps, so the pickings have been slim, so to speak. I hope to make up for the pause at least with this amazing toy. It's a mouse pad (like anyone uses non-laser mice anymore) which doubles as a USB hub. Really cool. Good thing Zocor is a drug I use anyway.

Vytorin pens

Two more Vytorin pens. These are great, and the top one is actually my first choice pen lately. Comfortable to hold, good weight.

Zetia pen

Zetia is pulling out all the stops here I guess. First calipers, and now this really nice pen. It's a weird triangular shape, but it feels great, and it's part metal, so it has some nice wight to it.

Vytorin pen

Vytorin makes great pens. There are at least two types, and it is tough to pick a favorite. This one has two tips, one black and the other red, I guess a play on the fact that Vytorin is a combination drug, with Zetia and Zocor in one pill.

Zetia Calipers

These are cool. They even come in a special box, for prominent display on a shelf, I guess. Also, just like with the Coreg calipers below, you can fit the top piece back into the handle to hold it. So much fun. It looks a little like an alien spaceship in that configuration though.