I'm familiar with the pattern, and for some things it actually works. It stems from the fact that in order to patent something you must make the details on how to make it public knowledge. That means people have a time to experiment with it and once the patent lapses release their own formulation using your idea as a starting point.
For this reason patents arent always a good choice.
However sometimes they are, it really depends on the details of what you are patenting. When it comes to medication parents are your only real option because you have to make the chemical formula anyway because, well, its a drug, as a matter of safety the molecular formular need to be shared with the community to verify its safety. Could you imagine if drug companies started to have the right not to tell you the chemical formula of the drugs you took, I shudder at the thought.