Every Monday we share support and altered service information from our Partners, to help maintain your mental health and navigate the current pandemic.
This week we want to bring you the work of the HPRA, Health Products Regulatory Authority.
The HPRA protects and enhances public and animal health through the regulation of medicines, medical devices and other health products.
They have been working very closely on the response to Covid-19. Below is a list of the work they have been doing.
“We have taken action across many areas of our organisation to respond to the challenges presented by COVID-19.
- NPHET: The HPRA is a member of the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) and provides advice to NPHET on matters relating to supply of and access to medicines and medical devices, clinical trials, international initiatives on new therapies and vaccines, and the safety of medicines being used to treat COVID-19.
- Supply of Medicines: The HPRA works with others to help ensure that the supply of medicines is not affected by COVID-19. Where any potential issues are identified, we work with stakeholders to find solutions that ensure the continued availability of medicines to treat Irish patients.
- Access to Medical Devices: In order to help healthcare services access essential devices, we have introduced a new procedure for the urgent assessment of devices to diagnose and treat Covid-19 in Ireland.
- Regulatory Changes: We have adapted elements of the regulatory system to help address challenges in the pharmaceutical and MedTech sectors. This flexibility is focused especially on facilitating supply of crucial medicines for COVID-19 patients.
- International Cooperation: We are working with international partners to accelerate the delivery of safe and effective treatments for COVID-19. The organisations we work alongside include the European Medicines Agency, the European Commission and the World Health Organisation.
- Clinical Trials and Investigations: We have introduced new accelerated reviews for human health research. This allows researchers and manufacturers to evaluate as quickly as possible which medicines and medical devices are safe and effective to use to combat COVID-19.
- Tackling Illegal Products: Our staff members are proactively monitoring the market for falsified COVID-19 health products including treatments and test kits and are taking action against websites and advertisements with misleading claims.
- Contact Tracing: A number of HPRA staff members are assisting the HSE with contact tracing activities and other health sector initiatives.”
More information on this important work can be found here
